In my opinion investing $2000.00 into gold isn't efficient because of the high price. You are better off looking at something like regular or penny stocks. With $2000 invested into gold you are likely only going to lose or gain around $100 ,take a loos at gold prices here - http://www.cmegroup.com/trading/metals/precious/gold-volatility-index-vix-futures.html - If you are simply looking for a place holder then gold is your best option for that amount of money. If you are actually looking for a decent return but with some risk involved I would suggest Bitcoin or something from this article -
http://www.wikihow.com/Invest-Small-Amounts-of-Money-Wisely
http://www.wikihow.com/Invest-Small-Amounts-of-Money-Wisely
That point is true. Its is very hard to split 2000$ into gold without paying insane premiums. First you buy 1 oz and then what? halve and oz on top? Those things go for 3-5% premium.
If you are referring to ETFs, then you only participate in the value change of gold, you actually never are entitled to the gold the ETF holds. So unlike stocks, there is no real alternative to physically holding gold.
That is true for the time the financial world is still active and alive. Many gold bugs argue that paper gold is not real because when everything collapses only real gold will safe you.
Also for 2000$ ETF, the fees will be quite high for a full roundturn, but yeah, still better than with real gold.
But remember to only invest what you can lose ^^ Bitcoin is a risky business. 
