Organizing a Golf Tournament

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When to Start Planning

When to Start Planning:

For best results, start planning at least 6 months in advance.

This gives you enough time to:

Secure a venue and date that works for everyone
Create a budget and begin fundraising efforts
Find and book vendors or suppliers for any necessary equipment, decorations, or services
Develop a marketing and promotion plan to spread the word about your event
Recruit and coordinate volunteers or staff to help with various tasks on the day of the event
Plan and coordinate any activities or entertainment you want to include

Starting early also helps to ensure that any unexpected issues or complications that arise can be addressed and resolved before the event.

Step 1: Define Purpose and Target Market

The purpose of your golf tournament will determine the scale and logistics of the event. Consider the following questions:

Is the tournament a charity event to raise money for a cause, such as scholarships?
Or is it simply a fun activity for BYU alumni to get together with little expectation of making money?

Answering these questions will help you determine the size of your event, including the number and type of players you expect to participate, and the course options that are best suited for your needs.

Additional Considerations

In addition to defining the purpose of your event, there are several other factors to consider when planning a successful golf tournament:

How many players will you need to achieve your goals?
What kind of golfers do you expect to participate?
What course options are available and how do they fit your needs?
What resources will you need to make the tournament a success?
Who will be responsible for organizing and executing the event?

By answering these questions and carefully considering your options, you can ensure that your golf tournament is a success, regardless of its purpose.

Step 2: Put Your Committee Together

If you are not a golf aficionado, enlist someone who knows and likes golf, is good at organizing, and will lead or help direct the overall process.

Find someone who can understand and align with your goal and vision.
Make sure that they have a clear understanding of your expectations and requirements.

Bring others onto your committee to be responsible for different aspects of the event.

Create committees for fund-raising, registration, food and beverages, transportation, prizes, etc.
Assign committee chairs who will be responsible for leading their respective committees.

Have each committee get additional volunteers or have a single pool of volunteers from where each committee can pick their required volunteers.

Provide each volunteer with a clear understanding of the purpose and goals of your tournament so they can make suitable decisions.
Ensure that each volunteer is aware of their responsibilities and is working towards the overall success of the event.

Let each committee chair be responsible for his/her area so that he/she will embrace the challenge and work individually and in a group towards the overall success.

Encourage committee chairs to take ownership of their area and to delegate tasks to their committee members as needed.
Regularly check in with committee chairs to ensure that everything is running smoothly and that they have the resources they need to be successful.

Step 3: Budget

The budget is always the reality check. The scope and reach of the golf tournament will be decided based on your budget. For this, do a cost analysis of the different options available to you. Remember your overall goal when making these decisions. What needs to be done to accomplish your purpose?

Think of the scope of the event: i.e. city-wide, area-wide or bigger
Think of potential sponsors who might be inclined to participate (LDS, business owners, golfers, etc.)
Compare the golf courses available, their desirability, and costs

The key is not to overreach or under-deliver. If it’s the first golf tournament you are hosting, it’s best to be cautious in your outlay. Food, beverages, prizes, and the venue define what type of event it’ll be. Sometimes, a few ‘underwriting sponsors’ can both suggest the type of event and fund key costs if the event will represent them well.

Step 4: Find Sponsors

Sponsorship is an important aspect of hosting an event, and it can help to cover costs and achieve charitable goals. Entry fees alone may not be enough to cover all the expenses of your event, so it is important to seek out sponsors who can contribute to your event's success. Here are some tips for seeking out and asking potential sponsors:

How to Decide Who to Ask:

Create a list of potential donors
Conduct research on the potential sponsors beforehand
Build a strong relationship or connection with potential sponsors before making your ask
Ask potential sponsors if they know of anyone else who may be interested in getting involved

How to Ask for Sponsorship:

Approach potential sponsors with someone who is invested in the project and skilled in asking for money
Meet potential sponsors where they are
Prepare what you are going to say and be concise
Help potential sponsors understand your event goal, the BYU connection, the charitable results that will transpire from a successful event, and how they can make a difference
Have a nicely printed flyer or letter with the event details
Be genuine, direct, and specific
Tell potential sponsors what you will do for them, such as exposure or anonymity
Be prepared for rejection and give people options
Say thank you more than once, and be appreciative and gracious to sponsors who accept to be a part of the event

How Many Sponsors Can/Should We Have:

The more sponsors, the greater the financial base
You can have a sponsor for every hole

Potential Sponsors:

Individuals
Companies – Sometimes they would like to sponsor in kind. Rather than money donated, they donate the dinner, or goods, etc.
Family Foundations

Sponsorship Perks – Suggestions:

Acknowledgment of their sponsorship everywhere that is appropriate – on a welcoming banner, in the advertising, have them be acknowledged at the closing ceremonies, etc.
Hole sponsorship (Their name on a sign at selected holes.)
Foursome plays free
A special sponsor-only hat, jacket, or shirt
Be creative

The Sponsored Golf Holes Could Have Competitions:

Competitions bring some life to the tournament
Suggestions – KP (Closest to the Pin, Long Drive, Hole in One
Sponsor of the hole provides prizes

Step 5: Golf Tournament Formats

Scramble - Most popular and easiest for golfers of all abilities to play since no handicaps are required. It also helps keep the players moving along at a quicker pace. With the Scramble format along with multiple on-course competitions, everyone has a shot at winning something and can feel good about their day.
Golf Marathon - Here the players are asked to invite their friends, family, and acquaintances and collect a pledged amount. Then he/she plays 36 holes or something similar which qualifies as a marathon. As long as they fulfill their pledges, their golf is free.
Best Ball Format - For a more serious, competitive tournament. Here, everyone in the group plays each hole and the lowest individual score for that hole is recorded for the team. This is much slower-paced competition and better players are favored, so the temptation is to ‘stack’ a team which may discourage other players in future years. This narrows down the field of golfers who will sign up.

Step 6: Select the Golf Course

Book the perfect course for your tournament:

Look at your options of what golf courses you can use. Consider:
- Difficulty of course
- Accessibility to your target market. Closer is better
- Costs – which course fits in your budget
- Availability for your scheduling window
Booking the course
- Be clear on all the costs
- Food/drink? Do you need to use their food/drinks?
- Carts – any charge?
- Clarify what the course management will do to help with the tournament
- Time the event so that player’s work commitments are least impacted
- 2 ways to schedule tee times
- Book the whole course so only your players will be on the course. Expect that you will have to pay a set fee to block out the course.
- Line up the group tee times that you’ll need. This costs less money but gives you much less control
Check with BYU Risk Management

Step 7: Advertising the Golf Tournament

For the golf tournament to be a success, you need golfers. Build up the enthusiasm for the event once the base plan is in place
Word-of-mouth is the most effective method, but also use social media, fliers, ward announcements, alumni emails, etc
- Social media guidelines
- Email Request

Step 8: Registrations and Paperwork

It’s easiest to registers teams, rather than individuals but you will always have some individuals who want to sign up.
If you are handing out goodies like T-Shirts, vests, golf balls, and/or other items, make sure you get the sizes from the intended recipients. And hand them out when they check-in
Anything that’s worth recording should be put in a paper or digital mode for audit after the golf tournaments. Track all receipts and revenues.

Step 9: Food and Beverages

One of the top attractions of a golf tournament is the food. For a quality event, make sure this experience is worth it.

Talk to the golf course liaison and figure out the do’s and don’ts in terms of food (many require you use them!). Check if the golf club itself is capable of catering the food and how much it costs for the entire event. Note: Some courses allow open-air barbecue and grills which can add to the aura of the even.

Step 10: Contest Details and Other Ideas

Hole-in-One - Sponsored 3-par Hole – Have sponsor offer a big prize (i.e. motorcycle, boat, etc.) if someone gets a hole-in-one on that particular hole. Sponsor can get insurance to cover the prize
KP - Closest to the pin
Raffle – selling raffle tickets can help raise money

- Award a big prize to the winner
- 50-50 - Half to the winner and half to charity

Mulligans – people can buy extra shots (set a limit). You could give the sponsors 2 free mulligans
Prizes

Give away as many prizes as possible without compromising on the charity money you raise. Many sponsors will pay for small giveaways at their sponsored hole.
You can give away golf-related prizes to the enthusiasts like balls, gloves, tees, etc.

Celebrity Guest - You could have a ‘celebrity’ attend the event

They could stay at one of the tees and drive and possibly drive a free ball with each foursome.
Or they could be at a hole for the group to talk to and/or get a picture taken.

Step 11: Photography and Video

Have a photographer take picture
Works especially well to show the pictures/video of the players while they wait for food or score-posting at the end. It’s always great to let the players unwind and talk about their good shots. Make sure they leave with pleasant memories regardless of whether they win big or not
Email a picture of each foursome after the tournament to thank you for playing

Step 12: Conclusions

This is not a one-person job. The more support you have, the better your tournament will be.
Be aware of the players’ comfort and expectations. Do you need a drink cart? The enjoyment of the participants, reaching your stated goals, the general enjoyment of the day are what will make your tournament a success.

Golf Sponsorship Flyer PDF

Click below to open a PDF of a golf sponsorship flyer.

Golf Sponsorship Flyer