2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines generates $142 million for San Diego economy

The epic 2008 Men's U.S. Open Golf Championship staged at Torrey Pines generated an overall economic impact of $142 million in addition to providing the San Diego area with significant national television exposure, according to survey conducted by San Diego State University.

A direct impact of $73.62 million was attributed to spending on items such as lodging, shopping, food and beverage and transportation which in turn created an indirect impact of $68.46 million, for an estimated total of $142.08 million. 

The tournament, which ended as Tiger Woods defeated Rocco Mediate on the 91^st hole of play during a Monday playoff, was the 2^nd most attended U.S. Open in history. Counting the 21,597 spectators who watched the Monday finish, over 295,000 attended the tournament over an 8-day period. Non-local attendees accounted for 64 percent of the gallery.

A large portion of the money generated by the event came from hotel revenue. The study estimates that 60% of non-local U.S. Open spectators stayed in a hotel during their visit with an average of 4 room nights at $199.00 per night. An estimated 74,318 hotel rooms were sold as a result of the U.S. Open.

NBC reported that between the hours of 7-9 on the East Coast, the U.S. Open telecast received a rating of 11.4 which was the best in that time period since the last Academy Awards telecast.

On average 97% of people who responded to the survey said they would most likely visit San Diego again and 85% suggested they would attend the U.S. Open again.

The report is based on a survey of 1,450 spectators who were interviewed over a three-day period on the grounds of Torrey Pines during the U.S. Open. The Friends of Torrey Pines, a private group of investors that helped lure the U.S. Open to San Diego, commissioned the study at a cost of $20,000.

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