18 Pointers for a Great Golf Event

1. Choose Your Course and Date Wisely

Seems like an obvious one, right? However, your venue can really determine the success of your tournament. Ideally, you want to choose an accessible course with a good reputation that's also fun to play. Budget is another consideration, but should not be the prime factor. Depending on the size of your group, green fees will vary. Weekdays are generally less expensive than weekends. Also, know that even if your current course did not do well on your last event, allow them the opportunity to recover your business. If they are truly interested in helping you succeed with your event, the course will make sure that wherever they fell short last time will not happen again. This is not always a guarantee with a new venue, and you may end up with issues you had not anticipated.

2. Use Your Network to Enlist Sponsors

Get a list of suppliers and vendors that you, your company, and your tournament committee are connected to. Your sponsors may even participate by supplying prizes or player gifts, or by buying sponsorships as a thank you for the business. Be sure you have great signs acknowledging your sponsors at the event—don't cut costs here. Get creative with sponsor options to find the best fit for each potential sponsorship.

3. Make Registration Easy

Online registration is the best and easiest option for your event, and you have a variety of choices when it comes to choosing how you are going to offer online registration. Online registration dramatically improves pre-event sign-ups and helps mitigate cancellation issues. Allow for payment at registration, and—if you can—it's usually best to offer team sign-ups only. Also be sure to identify a cut-off date.

4. Deliver Day-of Event Schedule

Be sure to put together a schedule for the event day and either email it to players prior to the event start or hand it out at registration.

5. Provide Good Prizes

Purchase the most exciting prizes you can afford or have them donated—good prizes can greatly enhance your tournament’s reputation, help to make the event more memorable, and generate interest in playing in future events.

6. Be Choosy With Format

The most common choices for tournament format are best ball, scramble, or individual stroke play with variations of scoring and flights. The one you choose may depend largely on the skill level of your participants. Make sure your format represents the type of event you're hosting. If you're hosting a fundraising event and are trying to get the most participation you can, allow for a larger range of skill levels by choosing a scramble. If you are hosting a small, competitive outing, you may want to go straight for the individual stroke play to allow to maximum competition.

7. Be Prepared for Onsite Registration

At larger tournaments, there will undoubtedly be a rush at the registration tables half an hour before tee time. Always have an organized system for checking in your golfers and getting them quickly on their way.

8. Be Smart About Your Pairings

For fundraising tournaments and corporate outings, pay close attention to who is paired with whom. If the event aims to accomplish business goals, pair the right people together.

9. Plan the Transportation

Be sure golfers have good directions to the golf course if they are driving themselves, or that bus drivers know where they're going. Golfers have to be at the course and ready ahead of time, especially for shotgun starts.

10. Book Enough Beverage Carts

Thirsty golfers are crabby golfers, and there are health factors to consider, too. If your event is being held during one of the warmer months, add an extra cart. Remember that boxed lunches and snacks are also a welcome addition.

11. Start On Time

If you have an 8:00 a.m. shotgun start, have golfers at their assigned starting holes and ready to begin play at 8:00 a.m.. Better to please 120 golfers who are ready than satisfy the 10 who are late.

12. Take Care of Your Signs

Make sure your signs are quality in design and production, and that they are on course, on time. Proper sign care is the easiest way to please sponsors and improper care is the easiest way to make them unhappy. Ask the course tournament coordinator to recommend providers of quality signs and get them on the course at their designated holes on time.

13. Have Enough Volunteers

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail. Staff accordingly.

14. Double Check the Yardage on Hole-in-One Holes

Nobody wants legal problems, so save yourself a potential headache. Ask the course tournament coordinator to recommend providers of hole-in-one contests.

15. Communicate with the Course Staff

You can't do too much planning. It's a good idea to have a face-to-face meeting with the course tournament coordinator a few days before the event to discuss details and your expectations of the staff. Remember, they are there to help you make the event a huge success and will do much of the day-of event execution, so make sure they really know your needs.

16. Keep the Pace Moving

Don't try to do too much. Be creative with games and contests, but remember that they slow down play. Work with your tournament coordinator to setup the course in a way that is conducive to a faster pace, and keep in mind that a golfer will remember a long round much more than they’ll remember a short par 5. 

17. Make it Personal

People like to see where their money is going. If you’re organizing a charity tournament, make sure there is information regarding your cause communicated throughout the event. The best places to put this information are in the tournament program, the rules sheet, on course, and at the awards banquet. Some charities will even have beneficiaries of their services present at the event. From kids benefiting from a scholarship fund to veterans, involving these beneficiaries will also put a face to your cause and involve your participants on a more personal level.

18. Show Appreciation

Make sure you follow up with every golfer, sponsor, and volunteer after the event to thank them for their participation in your event. Include a survey if you would like feedback.

Article written by Don Offill, Texas Regional Tournament Sales Director.