Ron Burgundy of Anchorman fame signed off his newscasts by encouraging San Diegans to "stay classy." The 2008 U.S. Open will certainly help on that front, injecting some $100 million into the local economy. "And that's probably a conservative estimate," says Peter Bevacqua, chief business officer at the USGA. An estimated 42,500 ticket holders will flood Torrey Pines each day, and when you add volunteers, vendors and the media, the Open could see 150,000 visitors by week's end — what Bevacqua calls "a pretty good boom." Here's how three businesses plan to cash in.
Yellow Cab of San Diego
Miles from the course: 10
Expected increase in revenue: $31,500
"Our fleet size is fixed (280 cabs), so we won't add more cars. But we do set up a quasi-taxi stand outside the parking lot at Torrey Pines when the Buick's in town, and we hope to do something similar during the Open. Many of our drivers should see a jump in revenue of 20 percent, and for the guys who really hustle, 35 percent." — Darien DeBellis, director of marketing
Best Western Golden Triangle
Miles from the course: 7
Expected increase in revenue: $17,000
"We should run at full capacity, 100 percent. That's a no-brainer, between visitors for the U.S. Open and regular travelers. From the coast between I-15 (which runs north to south), I bet you that all motels and hotels will sell out or at least be 98 percent full." — Dan DiMaggio, general manager
Pacific Beach Surf School
Miles from the course: 10
Expected increase in revenue: $1,000-$2,000
"People visiting for the tournament are coming from all over. If those people can get down to the beach, you never know how busy we might get. They may extend their trip and stick around San Diego. When there's a college bowl game, we'll generally see 10 to 30 extra customers in the days right before the game, depending on the weather. I'm ramped up for just about anything at this point, though this time of the year, every day is busy whether there's a U.S. Open or not." — Randy Strunk, owner
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