To the victor of the Ryder Cup go the spoils – and the drinks. And the Presidents Cup is no different. If you’ve ever witnessed one of these wild victorious press conferences, you’ve seen the best golfers on the planet getting pretty loose. And guys like Kevin Kisner completely in their element.
Of course, it’s different when you lose. The bubbly doesn’t flow like water and those press conferences are much more sobering. Literally. But what’s the difference in bar tabs between the winners and losers? Well, thanks to one of this year’s captains we now have an idea.
Luke Donald appeared this week on the Beef’s Golf Club podcast with Andrew “Beef” Johnston and shared a little nugget he learned from a member at Oakland Hills, site of Europe’s blowout victory at the 2004 Ryder Cup. According to “folklore within the membership” there, the Europeans ran up a bar tab of more than $30,000(!) that Sunday. In comparions, the Americans drank only $600 worth of booze. Have a listen:
That’s a lot for a team of a dozen golfers to spend in one evening. Of course, there are captains and wives, etc, but still, that’s more than $2,000 per man. And this was 18 years ago! Long before the rampant inflation we’re seeing today!
