There's more than golf at The Open

WE MAY be feeling let down after Wimbledon and jaded after the football World Cup. But few events more set the tills ringing than big sporting occasions such as The Open.

According to research by VisitBritain, tourists who come to play or spectate at events such as golf spend almost twice as much as the average tourist. In 2008, no fewer than three million sport tourists came to the UK, 14 per cent of total visitors, and they spent 2.3 billion. The sport tourist spends an average 900 per trip, almost twice the 500 ordinary visitors spend, and are estimated to support 50,000 jobs across the country.

Scotland is a prime beneficiary, with the Open Golf Championship beginning at St Andrews tomorrow, and both the Ryder Cup and the Commonwealth Games coming to the country in 2014. The Open Championship alone is worth more than 72 million to Scotland. In these difficult times, with pressure on household spending, this contribution - both on the course and at the nineteeth hole - is to be warmly welcomed.