Columbia hotels hearing cash registers ring for Masters

Spillover Masters golf fans are providing their annual “cha-ching” sound to Columbia hoteliers.

Hotel and convention officials say most capital city-area rooms are close to fully booked for the week, especially along the I-20 corridor to Augusta – even with higher room rates.

What the industry calls “compression nights” means that everyday travelers check in at available hotels and motels because their usual ones are full on particularly busy nights.

But spokeswomen for the Columbia area’s sports council and for the state hotel and restaurant organization said Wednesday they had no firm numbers on occupancy from their members or associated hotels and motels.

Still, the influx of more visitors creates “a win for the industry in the region,” said Katie Montgomery, spokeswoman for the S.C. Restaurant and Lodging Association.

Scott Powers, director of the Columbia Regional Sports Council, called the Masters “a great event” for the region.

“Hotels throughout the metro area see a rise in both occupancy levels and room rates as the tournament brings in more spectators than Augusta can accommodate,” Powers said.

Nancy Wagner, head of sales for the city’s downtown Marriott, estimates that occupancy increases about 10 percent on average during Masters week.

“We run generally over 80 percent occupancy in April, so there isn’t much room to grow our occupancy,” Wagner said in a statement released through the sports authority.

The Marriott rates rise by 25 percent during Masters weekdays and 100 percent during the weekend, Wagner said.

Andrea Mensink, spokeswoman for the council, said she hears that most hotels and motels have reached 90 percent occupancy the whole week. The Main Street Sheraton, for example, is nearly sold out, Mensink said.

The Hilton-Columbia Center reported occupancy this week between 80 percent and 100 percent, she said.

Restaurants and catering companies in recent years also have said business thrives during Masters week.

This story was originally published April 8, 2015 at 8:25 PM with the headline "Columbia hotels hearing cash registers ring for Masters."