Pubs in Merseyside are experiencing a surge in business as thousands of spectators descend on the region for The 154th Open golf championship at Royal Birkdale. On the second day of the event, July 17, the area has seen an influx of visitors to Southport, Birkdale, and Liverpool city centre.
Grasshopper Pub Sees Record Sales
The Grasshopper, located near the golf club, sold 2,000 pints on the first day of the championship. Owner Phillip Harvey described the atmosphere as "a bit manic," with each day becoming busier. Co-owner Katherine Harvey noted the positive community impact: "It's very positive for the community. Everyone is mucking in together. We've got lots of visitors from all over the world and all of our regulars are still joining us, which is important to us."
Phillip added: "We've had lots of Americans, they're good fun. Germans, we had French in the other night watching the semi final, they weren't too happy at the end obviously. We've had golfers in, caddies, it has been great."
Daily Deliveries and Outdoor Bar Set Up
The micropub is receiving daily deliveries to meet demand, with sales described as "record breaking." They have also set up a bottle bar outside to ease pressure on the inside bar. Katherine Harvey emphasized the importance of the event for the hospitality industry: "As I've said, everyone here is just loving it. The locals are getting involved. This is a really hard industry at this moment in time, so it's helping to just get through again, take a little bit of pressure off the next 12 months. We could not have wished for anything better."
The Pines Reports Week's Sales in One Day
Just down the road, The Pines, owned by John Manning, 60, from Hillside, is also seeing a surge. Manning reported that one day's sales now match a typical week. He told the ECHO: "It's just absolutely fantastic, it's great for the town, pubs, hospitality. It's unbelievable atmosphere, and obviously the weather is helping. It's just booming from 3pm when they start to leave, through to 11, 12 o'clock at night. It's just brilliant."
Manning noted that golfers have visited the area, including world number one Scottie Scheffler, who was spotted at a local chippy on Sunday night. He added: "Scottie Scheffler was in the chippy on Sunday night getting his prawn crackers. It's just fantastic. We've had a couple [of golfers]. One is staying with a good friend of ours. He just had a Coke, he said if he misses the cut he'll be in on Saturday and Sunday for a proper swill."
Local Support for Tommy Fleetwood
Manning is backing hometown hero Tommy Fleetwood in this year's event, expressing hope for a double celebration: "It would be fantastic. I was hoping England would win the World Cup final and Tommy would win The Open. That would have just been the day of all days."
