The Masters returned to full-capacity crowds for the first time since 2019 and with Tiger Woods' highly anticipated return, ticket marketplaces are seeing an increased demand for one of golf's most prestigious events.
StubHub spokesperson Adam Budelli told ESPN that the average price (looking at practice and competition rounds) of a ticket was roughly $1,644 -- 21% higher than StubHub saw in 2019.
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"We are seeing just tremendous demand for this Masters and actually exceeding the 2019, which was a uniquely high event in itself because of Tiger's return from injury that year," Budelli said. "But with the 2020 [Masters] having no fans, obviously limited in 2021, there's certainly a lot of demand out there. And then adding in kind of the past, I'd say, you know, less than a week of rumors of Tiger after his practice round on Thursday, we have seen a big spike in sales."
Budelli added that if Woods were able to make the cut to play Saturday and Sunday, "We would anticipate another spike in ticket prices."
According to Vivid Seats' data, it has also seen an increase in prices compared with 2019.
Thursday prices: $2,688 (2019) | $2,667 (2022)
Friday: $1,945 (2019) | $2,609 (2022)
Saturday: $1,751 (2019) | $2,515 (2022)
Sunday: $1,771 (2019) | $2,759 (2022)
Woods, who hasn't participated in a PGA Tour tournament since playing at the postponed Masters in November 2020, was seriously injured in a car crash outside Los Angeles on Feb. 23, 2021. He told reporters in December that surgeons nearly had to amputate his right leg.
Woods will tee off in the first round at 10:34 a.m. ET on Thursday with South Africa's Louis Oosthuizen and Chile's Joaquin Niemann.
The get-in price -- as of Wednesday afternoon -- was $1,600 on StubHub. Budelli said the marketplace expects those prices to go up as the field gets narrowed down after the Thursday and Friday rounds.
The Masters is a hot ticket in any year, but given the circumstances of the past few years with the pandemic and Woods' return, this weekend's event is sure to have more interest and more eyes.