Colonial releases a new all-inclusive ticket. Here’s what it costs and what you’ll get
Colonial Country Club released a new all-inclusive ticket for this year’s Charles Schwab Challenge that doesn’t have quite the sticker shock of its initial ticket options.
A premium grounds pass is being offered for $175 a day, which includes unlimited food, beer, wine, soft drinks and water. Mixed drinks and spirits are not included.
These tickets are on sale now through the tournament’s website and are limited to 2,000 per day. When the first release sells out, the price is set to increase to $250 per day.
For this year’s tournament, the grounds ticket is a more affordable option compared to the high-end hospitality tickets released in February with price points of $575 per day for “Patio Club” tickets and $475 for “75th anniversary” tickets.
Tournament director Michael Tothe understands it is a higher-than-normal price for fans as grounds passes usually run in the $50 range. However, with the food and drink option included, fans may find themselves spending a similar amount of money as they would with a regular ticket.
“The only out-of-pocket expense fans are going to have is if they buy one of our 75th anniversary merchandise items, or use a ride-share app to get to the course,” Tothe said. “Once you’re on the ground, you can eat, drink and be merry.”
The tournament, which runs May 27-30, is expecting to host around 10,000 fans per day.
Even though it’s not fully back to normal with various protocols still in place amid the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s still better than what 2020 brought.
Last year’s event was memorable in some ways as it was the site where the PGA Tour restarted its season with a loaded field. But the general public was not allowed on the grounds with fans only able to catch glimpses of the action if they had access to one of the makeshift bleachers outside the grounds or wanted to peer through fences around the course.
“Last year was tough,” Tothe said. “It’s great to have fans back. That’s what we do. We’re in the business of bringing the best golfers to Fort Worth and being able to celebrate that with as many people as we can. This year is a little better than last.
“We’re sort of operating under a 50% occupancy per day.”
Yes, the state of Texas is fully open and back to 100% but the PGA Tour and Colonial worked together to put together a plan both deemed suitable for the event.
Going with all-inclusive ticket packages and limiting fans ended up being the route the tournament took. There will be no skyboxes around the course.
“We’re celebrating our 75th anniversary, and it’s a little bit of a throwback to 75 years ago when there weren’t many structures built during the tournament,” Tothe said. “We’ll see how it goes. The market has been receptive so far.
“Everyone on the property will have all-access to food and beverage based on the ticket they purchase. The Fort Worth community is great, they’ll support us, but it is different from what we normally do.”
Field update
Colonial’s field remains a work in progress with several of the more notable names likely committing in the next few weeks.
In the meantime, the 2021 field already has a number of familiar faces in it. Daniel Berger will return to defend his 2020 title. Other former champions expected to be in the mix include Kevin Na and Kevin Kisner.
Berger is the highest-ranked player in the field so far at No. 15 in the world. Scottie Scheffler, ranked 22nd in the world, plans to play the event, too, as does Ryan Palmer (27th) and Cameron Smith (30th).
Another notable early entry is TCU product Tom Hoge, who recently moved into the top 100 (98th) for the first time in his career.
This story was originally published April 7, 2021 at 3:50 PM.
