More than €130 million is expected to be generated in the State from the Ryder Cup but the aim is to reach one billion television viewers to boost future tourism and the economy, Fáilte Ireland chief Shaun Quinn said yesterday.
Mr Quinn was speaking at the official launch in Dublin of the programme of events for the Ryder Cup which takes place from September 22nd to 24th at the K Club in Co Kildare.
"To us, the biggest figure is the television exposure of up to one billion viewers.
"In traditional advertising terms, there is no way that we could get the message out to that many people," he said.
Asked about the possibilities of a rip-off on prices, he said demand for the event far outstripped supply.
"We are seeing prices going up a bit but I would hope that visitors will not have to pay prices that are opportunistic and that those charging will look to the future benefits. Let's not kill the golden goose," he said.
The market was a high-end product but they wanted to ensure that whatever rates were charged, visitors would feel they were getting value for money, he said.
The programme was launched by Minister for Sport and Tourism John O'Donoghue, who warned that anybody exploiting the situation by trying to cash in on the Ryder Cup would face legal sanctions.
"We have been in contact with the director of consumer affairs who will be watching pricing very, very carefully and who will impose any sanctions that require to be imposed," he said.
The Minister said the road had been long, stretching back to 1998 when Ireland signed an agreement to host the event.
The Ryder Cup 2006 gave a once in a lifetime opportunity to celebrate our golfing heritage and enjoy hosting one of the world's great sporting events, he said.
The Minister said the Government supported the project with funding.
In February, an additional €4.5 million was provided for Fáilte Ireland for marketing.
"I believe that this investment provides us with a unique opportunity to showcase Ireland to the world as a golfing and holiday destination and that it will pay handsome dividends to our tourism industry this year and for many years to come," he said.
Mr Quinn said Ireland had world class golfing facilities and €120 million had been invested in golf facilities over the past five years.
"We have a unique opportunity to leverage the Ryder Cup in Ireland to maximise the return on this private and public sector investment," he said.
Only 6 per cent of US golfers had visited Ireland.
The major task was to convert the high and very positive level of awareness that had been created to hard sales, he said.
"It is encouraging that 80 per cent of US golf tour operators believe that customers will be more interested in Ireland as a destination because of the Ryder Cup.
"We need to convert those people who want to golf in Ireland 'some day' into people who have booked seats," he added.
Played every two years, the Ryder Cup is a competition between Europe and the United States which has grown enormously in prestige and public interest over the last 20 years. Europe won the event when it was last staged in the United States in 2004.