Arrowtown businesses reaped the windfall of thousands of golfers and fans attending the 2010 Michael Hill New Zealand Open, which finished yesterday.
Official crowd numbers revealed there were 3615 people at The Hills on Thursday, 4478 on Friday and 6912 on Saturday.
Sunday's figure had yet to be announced.
The March 2009 Open attracted more than 24,000 people.
Queenstown Lakes Mayor Clive Geddes said the Michael Hill NZ Open was "up there with the top six or seven events in the district".
"Because it's a tournament with a national impact, it is an important addition to the events calender."
On Thursday, Mr Hill had called on the business community to help secure the Open at The Hills, after the current arrangement with New Zealand Golf expired with the 2010 tournament.
Mr Geddes said the council had a clear events policy and funding the next Open was beyond its means, but it had a role to play in facilitating infrastructure to help it run smoothly.
"I would agree it's the business owners who benefit from this tournament who are able to support it," Mr Geddes said.
Mr Hill was to be congratulated for re-establishing the tournament on the New Zealand and international golf circuit, Mr Geddes said.
Arrowtown Bakery and Cafe owner-operator Ros Maxwell and staff were working long hours each day during the tournament to keep up with demand.
The bakery was providing 400 lunch packs per day for volunteers at The Hills.
"I think [the Open] is absolutely wonderful and everyone's hoping it stays.
It's so good for the area, it's been a great week."
Trade at the New Orleans Hotel doubled compared to the week before the Open, bar manager George Fort said.
The hotel was a popular destination for New Zealand and American golfers from 7pm onwards and did a brisk business in food sales.
Arrowtown House Boutique Hotel owner Jeanette Brough said the hotel had been fully booked in advance for several months with mostly British and American tourists.
Most clients were holidaying in New Zealand in any case, but there had been a couple of bookings for the Open, she said.
