Staff Writer
For Ponte Vedra business owners, the week of The Players Championship is more than just about the game of golf. It’s about the big business that comes with the annual tournament.
“When you have 60,000 to 70,000 people passing by your place, it obviously benefits us,” said Cary Paige, general manager of the Aqua Grill, Thursday. “It’s been busy so far.”
Paige has been with the Sawgrass Village restaurant for much of its 22 years and said business is up from the same time last year, which he attributes to people having a better perception of the economy.
Spending is always up during Players week, he said, and usually the tournament’s arrival and practice days, Monday through Wednesday, lead to double the business. On tournament days, Thursday through Sunday, business is generally up as much as 60 percent over a typical day.
Packed hotels and restaurants are common during tournament week, said Ginger Lilley Peace, Ponte Vedra Chamber of Commerce executive director. It’s easy to gauge the level of business simply by taking a look outside.
“Last night (Wednesday), we couldn’t find a parking spot in Sawgrass Village,” she said. “That’s a pretty good thing.”
Like Paige, Lilley Peace said activity seems to be stronger than last year when the economy affected consumer spending, especially during practice round days.
Hotels are full, as are many restaurants during afternoons and evenings, but there is one negative to the activity.
“Traffic is abysmal,” she said with a laugh. “Fifty-one weeks a years, this is a pretty quiet little place.”
While a nuisance to some, the lines of cars flocking to the Sawgrass area are a good thing, too, said Dan Monk, general manager of Pusser’s Caribbean Grille. Monk has a view of traffic from the restaurant along Florida A1A not far from Sawgrass. Many of the drivers have been stopping by.
“It’s going really well,” said Monk. “We’re keeping our fingers crossed for good weather because a lot of our seating is outside.”
Monk said the restaurant has been preparing for weeks for the increase in customers by hiring additional help that will stay through the summer. The restaurant can hold 300 people, but as Monk observed, it’s generally wall-to-wall.
“We definitely gear up,” he said. “Staff knows it’s going to be a busy, busy time.”
This is the third Players since Pusser’s opened, with business picking up this year over last year. Generally, he said, sales figures are 30 percent higher than normal days.
Like the restaurants, though, Lilley Peace said all the Ponte Vedra businesses have to prepare.
“Most of them have been around and know what’s going to happen,” she said. “But it’s good for business.”
356-2466