Ryder Cup :: A spectator’s guide

This is the view you’ll have from the grandstand behind the first tee. If you want to grab a seat for Friday morning, you’ll need to be early. Very early. The first tee time is 7.35am, and the stand is expected to be full by 6.45am.  250,000 fans are expected to attend this week, coming from 96 different countries.

2 First tee (standing)

If you don’t make it in time to grab a seat behind the tee, the closest you can get to the first tee is right here. There’s plenty of space front left of the tee box, adjacent to the practice putting green.

Read more –> Ryder Cup heralds a new chapter in Stephen Gallacher’s career

3 18^th grandstand

The huge grandstand on the 18^th gives you an awesome view of the first tee and is a photographer’s dream. Remember, though, it’s matchplay, so there might not be much point in bagging a seat here unless you know the game you’re following is going to go to the wire. There are 19 grandstands on the golf course, totalling 14,278 seats.

4 18^th fairway

From the top of the 18^th grandstand, this is your view down the 18^th fairway. The new green, should it come into play this week, will provide plenty of drama thanks to its new run-off areas and general quirks.

5 Practice putting green

Probably the place you can get closest to the players – and backroom team. This is where Sam Torrance, Des Smyth, Ray Floyd and Co. will probably do most of their work. Paul McGinley has said that as soon as his players are out on the course, he’ll likely leave them alone to get on with it.

6 Spectator village

Expect this to be one of the busiest corners of the golf course. This is where you can get lessons, look at picking up a new car (see BMW below), check out the latest golf gadgets… and drink.

7 BMW cars

Serious eye candy for all the petrolheads. Nice.

8 The bar

Quite possibly one of the most important places you need to know about at Gleneagles this week. Prices? We didn’t venture far enough to get to the bar (honest), but the prices for food are what you’d expect at a top sports event these days.

9 Eating

It’s not cheap, let’s be honest – but how often do you get to eat a Jamie Oliver burger at the Ryder Cup in Scotland? Not very often. We’ll be trying a couple of these during the week (on expenses, of course). Fans are expected to munch their way through 1,200 chicken burgers, 10,000 fish and chips and 18,000 beef burgers. To help clean up, there are 300 cleaning staff on-site.

10 Media centre

In case you’re interested, this is our home for the week, and the other 944 media who are accredited. There is also a staff of 900 TV personnel on the grounds, sending pictures to almost 600million homes worldwide. Remember to follow us on Twitter (@BunkeredOnline) and Facebook (facebook.com/bunkeredmagazine) for the latest news and updates live from Gleneagles the entire week. If that’s not enough for you, check out our lively forum at

bunkered.co.uk/forums

and get involved.

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Bryce Ritchie is the Editor of bunkered and, in addition to leading on content and strategy, oversees all aspects of the brand. The first full-time journalist employed by bunkered, he joined the company in 2001 and has been editor since 2009. A member of Balfron Golfing Society, he currently plays off nine and once got a lesson from Justin Thomas’ dad.

Editor of bunkered

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