Golf week rewards here to stay for Augusta businesses
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Throughout golf week, many of our local businesses told us how incredible it was to see folks from across the globe in Augusta.
This so-called ‘13th month’ for businesses props them up for the rest of the year.
The tournament week rush is over, but the benefit lingers for some downtown Augusta storefronts.
We went to some Downtown Augusta businesses and asked them how the week has gone for them as Augusta saw an uptick in visitors.
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“It’s like a super, super big experience,” said Obed Castillo, owner of El Paso. “It is like the biggest tournament in all the world, and it’s here in this city.”
Castillo is a first-timer and had no complaints.
“Every single tournament or holiday is like wow for me, but the masters is like another big thing,” said Castillo.
It’s not just restaurants, it’s stores too.
“The buzz and the excitement from the community and just how it transforms for the week,” said Brianne Martin, co-owner of Freshwater Design Co. “It’s all anybody talks about, thinks about, it’s really just like another holiday.”
And what’s a holiday without some kind of gift.
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“We have been doing a lot more online sales, like our online sales have been up for Augusta-themed things,” said Martin. “Our store sales have been up significantly from last year, so I would say they’re doing pretty good. Especially our online, because we just kind of pushed that more.”
They take the lessons learned this year and look ahead to next year.
“We’re always looking forward to it, especially the month before and then during, but it’s always on our minds,” said Martin.
One waitress at El Paso says people are coming from everywhere.
“This week has been somewhat busy,” Yisel Garcia, a waitress at El Paso, says. “We’ve had a lot of people come from different places, and had a lot of great conversations with most of our customers and it was all great.”
Top Dawg Tavern also saw a lot of people come this week.
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The tavern also had multiple events for people who weren’t on the course but wanted to have some golf fun.
One server thinks she knows why this strategy has worked well.
“We have quick food,” Jaden Adams, a server at Top Dawg Tavern, explains. “People love beer, so they come and get something quick and have a good time. A lot of people have been coming here multiple days because they’ve had a good experience, so I feel like we’ve been doing good with that as well.”
Some of these businesses are also still recovering from Hurricane Helene.
So, the business is much appreciated.
“Thank you, everybody, for coming to my restaurant every single day,” said Castillo. “And thank you for ing my restaurant last week for Master’s.”
And just like that, the week is over, but the rewards are here to stay.
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