If you’re looking for a fresh idea to engage employees, clients, and the community at large while raising awareness about your brand in a unique and meaningful way, a corporate golf event is the perfect answer. Corporate golf outings—especially when they’re well-managed and organized—offer a variety of positive outcomes for a company.

What Are Corporate Golf Events?

A corporate golf event is a tournament or outing planned and hosted by a business. Corporate events often raise money for a corporate foundation or favorite nonprofit, but don’t have to include a charitable component. Such events are used as an opportunity for team-building across departments, to entertain clients or prospects, or as a give-back initiative. 

For example, a credit union is looking for a new way to support the children’s hospital in its community. The credit union organizes a corporate golf event targeted at credit union employees, partners, and vendors, and hospital personnel. The event connects people across organizations while raising money for the hospital.

Learn How to Plan a Corporate Golf Event

What Are the Benefits of Corporate Golf Events?

Enhance Corporate Social Responsibility

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is becoming increasingly important to employees, partners, and clients who want to work and spend their dollars with businesses that prioritize community impact. Consider these CSR statistics:

• 93% of employees think companies should lead with purpose

• 77% of consumers want to purchase from socially-responsible companies

• 94% of major US corporations plan to increase or maintain their corporate giving over the next few years

CSR initiatives should be strategic, genuine, and multifaceted. A corporate golf outing that benefits a charity or cause is a great addition to your company’s CSR portfolio, providing not only a philanthropic opportunity, but the brand lift and awareness that comes from a fun community fundraiser. 

As a business, this could mean connecting with an existing golf event to support it as a sponsor. Or, if you choose to take it a step further by hosting your own corporate event, you can be strategic in choosing nonprofit beneficiaries while also reaping a reputational boost.

Connect With Your Community

Golf events are unique in that they can be designed as communal activities. If community engagement and outreach are among your goals for the outing, you’ll want to ask and answer a few questions as you get started:

• Who would we like to attend the outing?

• What’s our goal for turnout?

• What do we want our attendees to take away from this event?

• Does it make sense to open the tournament up to the broader community?

You may invite specific community members to participate, such as the mayor, community outreach group leaders, school administrators, or other stakeholders. Or invite staff or beneficiaries from the charity the outing will raise money for. Either way, be thoughtful about how the event might be a win-win for your business and the community.

No matter the audience you choose or the objective at hand for your business, having an easy way to register and track interested participants and sponsorships is crucial. Online registration with secure payment processing as part of a broader golf event management platform makes it easy to collect participant information, manage it in real time, and facilitate communications before, during, and after the event.

Provide a Competitive Edge

Creating positive social impact has increasingly become a competitive advantage for businesses. As a community event that tends to attract attention in addition to raising dollars, a corporate golf event that’s dedicated to supporting a cause helps set your brand apart from your competitors and attract socially responsible customers. 

An event website makes it simple to spread the word about your event while also getting more support from the community. A professional event site also elevates your brand, cause, and case for support. A website provider like GolfStatus, that’s powered by a golf-specific software platform, lets you manage players, teams, and hole assignments with just a few clicks.

Build & Foster Relationships

Golf outings are unique in that they give participants four or five focused hours on the golf course—a rarity in today’s busy world. That means several hours of facetime with colleagues, vendors, clients, prospects, or others to network and advance important business relationships. This also means that your business development team gets quality time to engage with current and prospective clients and partners to thank them for their continued involvement or advance a new relationship. 

If fostering business relationships is among your goals for the event, you’ll want to ensure a smooth and seamless experience for participants from the time they hear about your event to the thank you they receive for supporting it. Every touchpoint should be seamless and professional, including online registration, clear communication in the time leading up to the event, high quality branded cart signs and scorecards, and TOUR-caliber live leaderboards.

Boost Employee Engagement

In today’s competitive job market, businesses need to find ways to attract and retain top talent, which means demonstrating that business priorities include more than just the bottom line. Studies show that team bonding events can boost employee retention and performance at work. A golf outing can be used to engage employees, reward them for a job well done, build morale, and encourage team retention. Best of all, holding a charity event satisfies the 71% of employees who think it’s important to work at a company that gives back.

Allow Your Company to Do Good In Your Community

Golf has deep ties to the nonprofit sector, evidenced by the $4.6 billion that the sport raises for charity annually. It’s a game that brings people together in a memorable way to raise funds for a good cause. Golf’s popularity continues to grow, making it a great time to use it to give back—to your employees, your community, and an important cause.

For instance, in the example mentioned above, a credit union hosted a golf tournament that raised money for the local children’s hospital. Organizers sold sponsorships to the credit union’s partners, vendors, and industry associations who share an interest in advancing children’s healthcare. Golfers represented sponsors, employees from the host credit union and competing credit unions, members of the city council, and hospital staff. Hospital patients and administrators attended the event and helped run on-course games that allowed participants to connect with the “why” behind the event. The event raised $50,000 which provided financial assistance to patients and their families and built strong connections within the community.

How to Host a Corporate Golf Event

If you’ve never planned a golf tournament before or don’t know much about the sport, don’t worry—you can still hold a professional, memorable event that engages employees and the community. Here’s how:

1. Use the Right Tools

It’s likely that planning a company golf outing isn’t your full-time job, or even something you do on a regular basis, so you might not know where to start or how to maximize efficiencies that save your precious time. Most event management systems aren’t able to intuitively manage the intricacies of a golf outing (hole assignments, player pairings, scoring and leaderboards, flighting, handicaps, etc.) so look for one that’s built specifically for golf tournaments and includes:

Online registration is non-negotiable when planning a corporate golf event. It gives the event and your brand a professional feel and is a time-saver for tournament planners.

• Online Registration. This is a must-have—golfers seamlessly submit their information and payment online, saving hours of dealing with spreadsheets, checks, and receipts. 

• Customizable Event Website. The site should present your event in a professional light and make it simple to promote the event, provide digital sponsor exposure, and share detailed information about the event.

• Shared Access. All registration information should populate into the platform’s back end, which means all the event’s information is stored and accessible in one place by organizers and even staff at the golf facility. 

• Communication Tools. Need an easy way to quickly communicate with all registrants? Your platform should have built-in communication tools like emails and push notifications. 

• Pre-formatted Printouts. Want to print branded scorecards and cart signs? Use a platform that comes with pre-formatted, professional printouts.

• Live-scoring & Leaderboards. Golfers submit their scores with an easy-to-use, reliable live-scoring app that syncs to live leaderboards. Live leaderboards give the tournament an even more professional look and feel and allow teams to track current standings.

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Ready to start planning?

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2. Set Goals & Outline the Specifics

Once you have your management tool in place, you can determine goals and specifics. The goals for the event will help other key details fall into place, so start by thinking through what you hope to accomplish. Keep in mind that goals don’t have to be mutually exclusive—you can engage employees while also raising money for charity. 

If you are planning to include a fundraising component in the outing, work directly with the chosen nonprofit partner from the beginning to ensure everyone is on the same page and to collect logos and messaging.

Once you’ve determined the outing’s goals, it’s time to think through event specifics, including:

• Target audience (employees, clients, partners, community members, etc.)

• Tournament budget

• Host golf facility

• Planning team roles and responsibilities

• Marketing and communications strategy

• Sponsorship packages (if applicable)

• Contingency plan for inclement weather

• Prizes and awards

• Add-on activities and contests, such as on-course games, hole-in-one contests, raffle drawings, or a silent auction

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Step-by-Step Golf Tournament Planning Guide

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3. Promote the Corporate Golf Event

It’s time to get the word out about the event! How you do this is dependent on the target audience for your outing. For instance, if the tournament is open to employees, you might include a link to the event website in internal newsletters or mention it in company meetings. If the event is open to the community at large, send promotional emails, include in client newsletters, and mention on your social media channels. And if you’re raising money for a nonprofit, work with them to promote the tournament to their supporter base.

Particularly if your golf outing has a charitable component, consider drumming up some positive PR for your company and what the event is raising money for. Invite members of the press and the community to participate and work together to raise awareness for a good cause (and give your brand a substantial lift). 

If you’re live scoring the event, post a link to the live leaderboards on your social media channels to get even more exposure for your company and brand, the benefiting charity, and the leaderboard sponsor (if you have one).

4. Provide a Memorable Experience

What sets a great event apart from a good event is the overall experience. Folks will remember if the event was chaotic and plagued with snafus—or if it was well executed. Using technology tools to manage the event holistically frees golf facility staff up to assist and cater to golfers instead of scrambling to handle last-minute tasks like hole assignments, scorecards, cart signs, and alpha lists. It also streamlines prep and planning so event planners stay organized and can execute a seamless event. 

Yes, your event needs to be well-run, but it should also offer a memorable, top-notch experience that advances business goals: 

• Include add-ons and extras like contests, on-course games and entertainment, auctions, and custom player gifts.

• Live score the event to add an element of professionalism that’s unlike any other and let spectators (as well as event organizers who are keeping an eye on the round’s progress to facilitate an awards ceremony, banquet, reception, or other post-round gathering) follow along on live leaderboards. 

• Build in ways to connect with employees and/or clients, such as through a pre- or post-round meal or reception, on-course interactions, the opportunity to volunteer, or informal networking. 

• Be strategic when making hole assignments and how they might further business objectives. For example, you may want to pair your company’s top executives with their counterparts from a major partner or prospective client to spend the day on the course talking business and potentially even closing deals. Or group staff or board members from the benefiting charity with potential partners or donors to help advance their mission and open doors for additional support.
  

5. Track Data & Gauge Success

It’s important to demonstrate the overall success and impact of the event, both to prove its value to decision makers in your company and demonstrate your commitment to giving back if your tournament includes a fundraising component. Your golf event management platform should include robust reporting that helps you see at a glance:

• The number of teams or individual golfers

• The number of sponsors that signed on to support the event

• The dollars that were processed through online registration and donations

You might also gather further information to gauge the event’s success by:

• Sending surveys to participants to garner impressions and feedback, and the event’s impact on employee satisfaction

• Having informal conversations with golfers to see what they like and how you can improve in the future

• Meeting with the benefiting nonprofit to determine fundraising outcomes and next steps for donor stewardship

If your corporate golf event becomes an annual tradition, consider tracking and analyzing long-term trends, such as employee retention and the event’s impact on the company’s culture.

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Powering Corporate Golf Events with GolfStatus

Whether you’re at a Fortune 500 company, a socially-responsible local business, or a corporate foundation raising money for a dedicated cause, GolfStatus’ golf event management and fundraising platform is the solution for the best event possible.  

GolfStatus’ powerful, user-friendly tech saves organizers time and effort, helps raise more money, boosts your brand, and ensures a professionally planned and executed tournament from start to finish. Plus, if you’re planning an outing that benefits a nonprofit or cause, you can qualify for no-cost access through the Golf for Good program. Not only do you get an attractive, professional event website, but you also get golf-specific tools and features, access to sponsorships and add-ons only available to GolfStatus clients, and a dedicated client success rep to coach you along the way. It’s a win-win for everyone!

Use the Tech That’s Built for Golf events

Click Here to Book a GolfStatus Demo!

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It happens all too often—nonprofits looking to add a new revenue stream to their fundraising portfolio write off the possibility of a golf tournament because they have preconceived notions about such events. From misunderstandings about income potential to doubts about their true impact, these myths can deter organizations from jumping into golf fundraising.

Here are seven common myths about charity golf tournaments—and the facts that prove them wrong.

Myth #1: You have to know all about golf to be successful

Fact: You don’t have to be a golfer or understand the intricacies of the game to plan a lucrative golf tournament.

A deep knowledge of the game simply isn’t necessary. In fact, many successful golf tournament organizers aren’t golfers. What do they have to help them be successful? A golf-specific tool that helps them manage the intricacies of a golf event. The key here is using an event management platform that’s designed for golf and makes it easier for tournament organizers of all experience levels to plan, manage, and execute a lucrative golf tournament. You’ll want a software solution that lets you effortlessly collaborate with your planning team and the golf facility and has a knowledgeable, responsive support team to help you along the way.

Myth #2: It’s impossible to make money from a golf tournament

Fact: Golf tournaments have a ton of revenue potential.

Whether you hold an 18-hole golf tournament at an exclusive, high-end private golf club or a putt putt event at a local mini golf course, golf comes with a ton of fundraising potential. While there are certainly expenses associated with a golf event—such as facility rental, greens fees, cart rental, food and beverage, player gifts, and promotional expenses—there are even more opportunities to bring in funds. Sponsorships are where you’ll likely raise the bulk of your tournament’s money, but they can be supplemented by golfer registrations, add-ons like mulligans or contest entries, raffle tickets, auctions, on-course games, or donation appeals.

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Download a free budget template

This sample golf fundraiser budget spreadsheet helps charity golf tournament organizers outline, plan, and manage the event's budget. Simply add your tournament's specific information and get a clear overview of all revenue and expenses associated with the event, track vendor estimates, and instantly see a profit-loss summary.

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Look for an event management platform that comes with multiple avenues to raise additional funds, such as:

• Premium digital sponsorships

• The ability to collect donations on your event website

• The ability to pass processing fees on to registrants

• The ability for registrants to “round up” their order total

• Custom registration packages for mulligans, contest entries, raffle tickets, and more

An attractive, professional event website makes it easy to raise even more money from a charity golf tournament.

Myth #3: I don’t need golfers in my donor base

Fact: Golfers represent a highly desirable demographic of potential donors.

If you’re not holding a golf tournament, or worse yet, not collecting golfers’ donor data, you’re missing out on an affluent, influential demographic of the population. In general, golfers have a significantly higher than average net worth and annual income—giving them a higher capacity to give. Over half of golfers are between the ages of 25 and 55, an age group with a great deal of spending power and an interest in supporting charitable causes through a sport they enjoy.

What’s more, when golfers tap their networks to assemble a team for a charity golf outing, your donor base instantly expands, exposing even more people—and more potential donors—to your work and mission. Your tournament’s sponsors also present an opportunity to forge strong relationships with new or existing corporate partners for support beyond your golf event.

Myth #4: Golf Tournaments Are Outdated & Boring

Fact: Golf is more popular than ever.

The National Golf Foundation reports that 531 million rounds of golf were played in 2023, which surpasses the previous record high set in 2021. In general, rounds played are up 10% from the pre-COVID average between 2015 and 2019. Roughly one-third of the total population of the United States (over the age of five) interacted with the sport in some way in 2023, either by playing golf, following it on TV or online, reading about it, or listening to a golf-related podcast—which is up 30% since 2016.

Why are these numbers important? Because charity golf tournaments tap into golf’s surging popularity, meeting donors where they’re already spending time—on the golf course. When golfers are able to support a cause they care about or one they’ve just learned about because they played in a tournament, they’re more likely to come back year after year to engage with that organization.

Charity golf tournaments meet donors where they’re already spending time—on the golf course.

Successful golf tournaments also focus on the overall experience, providing a professional, memorable day for golfers and sponsors. There are a number of ways to add fun, excitement, and even extra fundraising to charity golf tournaments, such as:

• Contests, like hole-in-one, longest drive, closest to the pin, or putting

• Skins games

• Beat the pro contest

• Mulligans

• On-course games or challenges

• Live or silent auctions

• Demonstrations on tee boxes

• Post-golf entertainment

• Custom player gifts

• Live leaderboards

Myth #5: Sponsors Aren’t Interested in Supporting Golf Tournaments

Fact: Golf tournaments have a unique value proposition.

Golf events offer a unique blend of engagement, networking, and fun that other fundraising events simply can’t match, making them especially attractive to sponsors. Unlike traditional fundraisers, like galas, golf tournaments provide participants with a full day of an activity they enjoy. The nature of golf encourages interaction and relationship-building in an informal, relaxed setting, which can be especially beneficial for sponsors looking to connect with golfers on a more personal level.

Golf tournaments also present numerous opportunities for creative sponsorships and branding that are less intrusive—but more effective and memorable. The addition of the digital exposure and impressions provided by your golf event management platform gives sponsors multiple touchpoints to gain visibility and recognition throughout the event. Having a variety of sponsorship options also accommodates different levels of financial commitment, making it easier to attract sponsors with varying budgets.

Digital exposure adds a ton of value to golf tournament sponsorships.

Myth #6: Golf Tournaments Are Too Much Work

Fact: With the right technology in place, golf tournaments provide tremendous ROI for nonprofits and charities.

Yes, golf events come with a number of moving pieces and unique details to handle. But having the right resources at your disposal saves time, effort, and hassle. Technology specific to golf tournaments simplifies planning, management, and execution, with baked-in solutions that make it a breeze to:

• Promote your tournament

• Collect registrations

• Build and sell custom sponsorship packages

• Onboard sponsors and provide digital exposure

• Manage golfer and sponsor data

• Make hole assignments

• Collaborate with the golf facility’s staff

• Print day-of documents

• Run reports and track payments

Instead of siloed information across multiple platforms and spreadsheets, golf event management tech makes everything accessible with one login. And unlike traditional event management platforms that require endless workarounds to function properly for a golf tournament, you can handle golf-specific tasks like GHIN handicaps, team pairings, hole assignments, and live scoring with just a few clicks. The end result? A ton of time savings and more money raised for your mission.

GolfStatus’ in-house client success team is available with live support seven days a week.

Myth #7: There’s No One to Help Me

Fact: Tools, resources, and support are available to help you hold a successful charity golf tournament.

You aren’t alone! Help is available, from software solutions and tournament planning resources to troubleshooting and live support seven days a week. Nonprofits, charities, and third parties holding golf events to benefit a cause can qualify to use GolfStatus’ golf event management platform at no upfront cost through the Golf for Good giveback program. You’ll get a free golf tournament website, online registration and payment processing, live scoring and leaderboards, exclusive sponsorships and add-ons, and a dedicated client success rep there to help you every step of the way. Click the button below to learn more and get qualified for Golf for Good!

There’s no nonprofit fundraising event quite like a charity golf tournament. It’s a fun, social event that not only raises money, but boosts awareness for your organization and cause, forges or strengthens partnerships, fosters corporate support, and broadens your donor pool.

Because golf tournaments have so much potential to move nonprofits forward, it’s in your best interest to attract as many golfers as possible to play in your event. Here are 11 quick ideas to get golfers interested in your tournament.

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1. use an event website

If there’s one non-negotiable for a successful golf tournament, it’s an event website. You’ll meet people where they already are—online—to share information about your tournament and what you’re raising money for in a professional manner. Share the link in all your promotional materials to drive traffic to the website where they can commit as soon as they hear about the tournament.

2. make registration as easy as possible

Online registration is the standard for events these days, and golf tournaments are no different. It’s quick, convenient, and saves everyone—organizers and golfers alike—time and hassle. Everyone is busy, so an event site equipped with a simple registration checkout process is key to getting them on board. Be sure that the website is mobile-friendly so golfers can register right from their phones!

3. make it irresistible

It starts by understanding your target audience and what would appeal to them. Would they be interested in golfing at (and paying the corresponding registration fee) a high-end, private club? Or is a public course with a lower registration fee more appealing? Both can be a draw for golfers, depending on your supporters’ preferences. Attractive prizes, memorable add-ons, alternative or inclusive formats, and fun contests also go a long way toward getting golfers to say “yes” to your event, so highlight these throughout your promotions.

4. get in touch with past event participants & supporters

If yours is an existing event, start with past golfers. Invite them to come back and play in support of your mission. You might offer a special discount code or registration rate for returning players to sweeten the deal. If you’re getting a new golf event up and running, reach out to past participants in other events your nonprofit has held or participated in. Ask your loyal supporters to share the word about the upcoming golf tournament. You might provide some copy/paste verbiage or social graphics they can use on their personal channels.

5. leverage sponsors & other partners

Sponsors are a major part of your golf tournament’s success. Leverage their participation and networks to help attract players. Sponsors and businesses will often use charity golf tournaments to entertain clients, woo prospects, network, and even reward employees, so it makes sense to build a team or two into some of your sponsorship packages. Not only does this add value, but it also helps fill your tournament’s field in the process. You might also consider providing promotional assets (logos, verbiage, graphics, etc.) to your sponsors and invite them to share them on their social media platforms and with their employees.

6. get your board & planning teams involved

Ask each member of your nonprofit’s board and tournament planning committee to think of five to 10 contacts they’ll invite to play in the event. This bite-sized request makes it easy for them to follow up and broadens your pool of potential golfers. Set them up for success with talking points or email templates to help with their outreach.

7. send promotional emails

Email marketing is a cost-effective way to cast a wide net of potential golfers. Start with a save-the-date email to last year’s golfers and sponsors and/or your nonprofit’s email list as soon as you finalize the date and course. Send strategic reminder emails at intervals leading up to the tournament date. Consider adding an early bird registration period or a registration closing date to help create urgency among potential participants and get them to commit earlier.

8. use social media effectively

Social media is another cost-effective promotional vehicle for your event. Utilize your nonprofit’s presence to drive registrations via your event website. Create a Facebook event and make your planning team co-hosts so they can invite their networks to register and widen your reach. Tap into Facebook groups—there are often groups strictly for sharing nonprofit fundraising events, golf tournaments, or community events. If you have a few dollars to spare, consider a limited paid ad campaign that targets a specific geographic area or interests. If you spend even $100, but get one or two teams to register as a result, you’ve gotten good ROI!

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using social media to amplify your golf fundraiser

Download this free guide to find out how to leverage social media to make the most out of your charity golf tournament and raise the most money possible for your cause!

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9. Promote it to your community

Your community likely has event boards, community calendars, or other similar avenues to promote local events. Submit your tournament to such channels, and consider reaching out to local television and radio stations with a press release or an ask to list on their website. Use community gathering spots such as grocery stores, coffee shops, libraries, community centers, gyms, churches, or other locations to post flyers (with a QR code that links to your event site) advertising your tournament. The host golf facility may be willing to post flyers in the clubhouse as well, so don’t be afraid to ask!

10. leverage your tech stack

When you use GolfStatus to host your golf tournament website and manage your event, your tournament reaches tens of thousands of avid golfers in your area who actively look for local charity tournaments to play in. Your event will be listed on events.golfstatus.com as well as on the GolfStatus mobile app, helping you reach new golfers—and potential new supporters.

11. connect golfers to your cause

Be sure to help golfers understand 1. what they’re supporting by playing golf and 2. the impact of their participation on your work. Use your event website to help tell the story, and build in elements of cause connection to your tournament to help golfers get a tangible understanding—such as one team registration feeds a shelter pet for a month—of how they’re helping move your mission forward. You might use banners, signage, displays, guest speakers, beneficiary testimonials, or elements of on-course games to drive home the goals of the tournaments.

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No-Risk, No-Cost Tech for Your Next Golf Event

No matter if you’re holding your first golf tournament or your twentieth, you need a golf-specific event management tool to make your life easier. GolfStatus’ robust platform is built to handle the unique needs that come with a golf event, like team pairings, hole assignments, handicaps, and more. Built-in fundraising features and exclusive revenue-boosting add-ons and sponsorships help raise more money for your cause, while automations and our industry-leading support team help save you time and effort. Best of all, nonprofits can qualify for a free event website and no-cost access to the GolfStatus platform through the Golf for Good program. Click below to learn more and get qualified!

Ready to get started?

Click here to get qualified to use GolfStatus at no cost!

Fundraising for nonprofits boils down to two simple things: finding new donors and keeping existing ones. Both are critical to a nonprofit’s fundraising success—and to the overall success of the organization.

Charity golf tournaments are avenues to successfully do both. Here’s what you need to know about using your golf fundraiser to attract new donors and make sure they keep coming back to support your mission.

Why are new donors important for nonprofits?

New donors are crucial to moving your nonprofit’s cause forward. Just as a for-profit business must attract new customers or clients to grow market share, a nonprofit must raise awareness about the organization, the cause, and its work to effectively grow its donor base.

While some level of donor attrition is natural, without onboarding new donors to replace those that have lapsed, your network begins to stagnate and your organization ends up with an increasingly narrow donor pool. Indeed, golf tournaments present an opportunity to raise awareness and dollars, while simultaneously attracting new donors.

Why is it important to retain donors?

While new donors are certainly important and must be pursued, retaining donors is equally, if not more, important. Returning donors already care about your cause and believe in how your organization is addressing the issue. They’re more likely to make larger gifts, and are already on the road to being long term donors.

What’s more, the costs associated with onboarding new donors—both in terms of dollars and staff time—are significantly higher than with simply retaining existing supporters. You’ve likely invested time and effort in stewarding donors, which means high donor attrition essentially undoes all the good that new donors bring to your organization.

How do golf tournaments both attract & retain donors?

Golf tournaments meet your donors where they’re likely already spending time—on the golf course. Unlike any other type of fundraising event, a golf tournament lets you connect with past and prospective donors through an activity they genuinely enjoy, forging new connections and relationships over the focused hours on the golf course. Here’s how and why golf tournaments help your nonprofit to onboard and retain donors of all levels:

1. People want to play golf

The golf industry saw unprecedented growth during the COVID-19 pandemic, as golf gave people the chance to safely get outside, stay active, and gather with others in a socially distanced way. While the numbers have dipped slightly, golf is still more popular than it was before 2020—which means a healthy pool of potential new donors.

Many golfers actively look for golf tournaments to play in simply because they love the game. And it’s not just the die-hard golfers—more casual players are getting involved in the game and are eager to play in tournaments, which opens the door for even more donors to steward. The best part about a golf fundraiser is that when your event is focused on something people really want to do and enjoy—like golf—they’re bound to come back year after year.

2. Players tap their network to field a team

Golf may be an individual sport, but charity golf tournaments tend to be scrambles, which means that folks must field a team to participate and tap into their personal and professional networks to do so. One of your supporters registers for the fundraiser, then brings three others who aren’t necessarily familiar with your cause, but will be once they play in the tournament. This instantly multiplies your donor outreach, and when you retain these new donors, your donor network snowballs. What’s more, these new donors are more likely to return in future years and bring others.

Golfers have a net worth of nearly $770,000 and an average household income twice the national average, making them prime candidates for donors.

3. golf attracts a particular demographic

Golfers typically represent a demographic with a higher-than-average net worth and average household income. What’s more, over half of golfers are between the ages of 25 and 55 (the age group with the most spending power), and one in three are top-level managers. In short, these are folks you definitely want in your organization's donor database (and one sponsors want to get in front of).

4. It’s an important networking opportunity

Many golfers use charity golf tournaments—especially higher-grossing events held at prestigious golf courses—as an opportunity to network and do business. With four to five focused hours on the golf course, they can entertain clients, connect with prospects, build professional relationships, and network. This makes golf tournaments uniquely positioned to attract new high-capacity and connected donors that are often invited to fill a team.

Golf tournaments give you four or more hours on the golf course to connect with current and potential donors.

5. You can reconnect with lapsed donors

Golf events are a fantastic chance to reconnect with supporters who have contributed in the past but may have missed a year or more. Perhaps they played in a golf tournament years ago but haven’t returned, joined as a member but didn’t renew, made a year-end gift but didn’t respond to additional asks, or participated in a program and subsequently fell dormant. No matter what the cause, an invitation to a golf tournament is a low-pressure opportunity for lapsed donors to reconnect with your organization through an activity they enjoy—and for you to take another opportunity to steward these relationships.

Capture Donor Data & Take the Next Step 

In order to truly use your golf fundraiser as an effective vehicle for donor outreach and stewardship, you need to know who is playing in the tournament each year. It’s essentially an exercise in capturing donor data, getting it into your donor database, and leveraging it to attract folks to future events, like your golf tournament, and get them engaged in your mission.

Technology is key. Upgrading to online registration as part of a golf-specific event management platform has a number of time-saving advantages and also allows for thorough, real-time collection of donor data. A professional event website with an intuitive online registration process allows you to easily capture the information for each player and sponsor. You’ll want to couple online registration with a platform that makes it easy for one player or sponsor to register a team without necessarily knowing who they’ll tap to play with them, and the ability to add that information later.

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Qualify for a Free Golf Tournament Website

If you’re a nonprofit or planning an event that benefits one, you likely qualify for a free event website and no-cost access to GolfStatus—a golf event management platform that allows event organizers to effortlessly collect valuable donor data while streamlining planning, management, and execution. The result is an easier way to plan a golf outing that attracts new donors and stewards existing donors through an all-around great experience.

Ready to hit the easy button on a first-year golf event or streamline an existing tournament? Click the button below to get qualified!

You’ve decided to hold a golf fundraiser—great! But…now what?

The decision to move forward isn’t one to be taken lightly. You’ll invest time and effort into putting on a great golf event, so you want to make sure you get started on the right foot. Work through the six steps in this quick start guide to launch your golf tournament toward success and start collecting registrations and selling sponsorships as soon as possible.

1. do your research

As you may have suspected, a golf tournament comes with a number of pieces and parts to wrangle. Before you jump into planning, it’s a good idea to do some background research so you have a better understanding of what you’re getting yourself into—and how to maximize the fundraising potential of your tournament.

Don’t worry—you don’t have to be a golf expert to pull off a successful golf tournament! There are a myriad of free golf tournament planning resources at your disposal, so take full advantage of the help available.

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fundamental tournament planning resources

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2. select your tech provider

Technology is a game-changer when it comes to planning and executing a great golf fundraiser. The right tech tool should streamline your golf tournament from start to finish, saving busy organizers like you time and effort. How? By automating time-consuming tasks, keeping you organized, and providing a seamless experience for golfers and sponsors to register, purchase packages, or make a donation.

The key here is a platform that’s designed for a golf event and caters to the unique needs of nonprofits and charity golf tournaments. The last thing you want is an expensive, underpowered, overly complicated platform that requires workarounds and adaptations to function. Look for these must-have features:

• Professional, responsive event website

• Online registration with secure payment processing

• Intuitive interface

• Communication tools

• Web-based for easy collaboration

• Broad sponsor exposure and offerings

• Live scoring and leaderboards

• Ability to collect donations

• Robust reporting

• Seamless data exports

3. reach out to area golf facilities

Next step is securing the host golf facility. A simple Google search for “golf courses near me” will help you identify possibilities. Keep your organization’s audience and donor base in mind when choosing a golf facility. Would they be interested in paying a premium to play at a high-end, private club? Or is a public, lower-cost facility more appealing and practical?

• A public golf course is exactly what it says—open to the public. Anyone can play a public course and no membership is required. Public courses can be owned and operated by a municipality, such as a city, or a private entity. The fees are typically lower than private clubs, but may not be as well-maintained or challenging for avid golfers.

• A private golf course requires a membership to play. Private clubs are, in general, more expensive than public courses but may be more difficult to book an event, unless you have a connection who’s a member. On the flip side, a fundraiser at a private club can be a big draw for golfers who don’t typically have access to such a facility.

• A semi-private golf course is open to the public, but also offers memberships that come with perks not available to everyone. Greens fees should land somewhere in between a public and private club, and can be a nice alternative to either a public or private golf club.

Call around to golf courses in your area or browse course websites to get more information about their rates and costs for outside events and charity tournaments. Remember, a golf tournament essentially fills the facility’s tee sheet for most or all of the day, so it’s in their best interest to work with you to provide a good rate.

4. lock in a date

It’s a good idea to have a general time of year in mind for your tournament, whether it’s spring, summer, or fall (or even winter, if you live in a warmer climate), before you connect with golf staff. Do some research to identify other community or nonprofit events that might compete with yours for registrants, then work with golf staff to hone in on a date that works best for your organization and the course. They can also help advise you on the tournament’s format, start time, pairings and hole assignments, and any post-round banquet space.

Generally speaking, weekends and holidays will be more expensive to host an event than a weekday. Consider whether or not golfers and sponsors will be willing to commit to attending a golf event during the work day or on the weekend.

5. Launch an event website

An event website is a major key to the success of your golf tournament. Once you confirm the date and golf facility, go ahead and launch your site! You’ll get the event on supporters’ radars sooner rather than later. Simply share the link on your social media channels, in emails, on your organization's website, and anywhere else your target audience can be found online.

Use photos, videos, and compelling text to share your organization’s story and why people should support your mission. Provide tangible examples of what the dollars raised from the golf tournament will do for your work—this creates a strong connection between golfers and your organization.

6. fill in the details

As soon as you nail down additional tournament details—such as team and sponsor packages, any contests or games, an auction or raffle, or special guests—add them to the event website right away where folks can check back for updates and register for the event.

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what’s next?

Now that your tournament is launched and live, shift your focus to filling your field of golfers and sponsors. Marketing your event is the longest phase of tournament planning, so leverage these free resources to create a roadmap to a sold out event.

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Get a Free Golf Tournament Website (And More!)

A successful golf fundraiser starts with a professional event website. It’s the home base of your tournament, and where people can find out more information about the event and your mission and commit to participating. Nonprofits (and third parties holding a golf tournament to benefit a nonprofit or charity) can qualify for a free event website and access to GolfStatus’ golf event management platform at no upfront cost. You’ll save a ton of time and effort and raise even more money. Plus, GolfStatus is backed by a best-of-the-best in-house support team who’s there to help you every step of the way. Click below to learn more and get qualified!

Sales is a big part of a successful charity golf tournament, much to the chagrin of some nonprofit event organizers. The thought of reaching out to businesses to sell them on sponsoring your golf tournament might put you into a cold sweat, but with a solid strategy and the right tools in place, it won’t seem as daunting.

It’s important to start your sponsor outreach as early as possible, for a few reasons. First, you have a longer window to bring in sponsor dollars to help cover tournament expenses. Second, businesses often allot their marketing or charitable dollars early in their fiscal year, so the earlier you can get on their radar and into their budget, the better. Finally, the sooner they come on board as a sponsor, the longer they earn impressions and get exposure for their brand. It’s in the best interest of your tournament and the business to onboard them as early in the planning and marketing process as possible.

Before you outline your sales strategy, be sure to check these to-dos off your list:

• Set a Fundraising Goal. Knowing the revenue you’re aiming for with your golf event will help inform the type of sponsorships you build, the businesses you approach, and even the price of golfer and team registrations. Be realistic, but don’t underestimate the value of your tournament.

• Have an Event Website in Place. A golf tournament website gives you a place to send folks to learn more about your tournament, register a team, or purchase a sponsorship—as soon as they hear about it. An event website is also key to providing digital sponsor exposure, as golfers and prospective sponsors visit the site and see current sponsor logos.

Once you have these in place, you’re ready to dive into your sales strategy.

1. Create a prospect list

A prospect list is simply who you plan to go after for sponsors for your golf tournament. Start by getting your planning team together for a brainstorming session to throw out names of potential sponsors. Nothing should be off the table at this point! Many businesses find golf tournament sponsorships especially appealing, as their audience is made up of their ideal client or customer.

• Local, Regional, and Even National Businesses. Don’t limit yourself to only local businesses, especially if a larger company has an office or headquarters in your area.

• Businesses Where You Have Personal Connections. Who’s your dentist? Or doctor? Where do you take your dog to be groomed? Who sold your house? What printer does your organization use? Who are your nonprofit’s vendors? Use your personal networks to your advantage.

• Businesses That Are Connected to Your Cause. Think about businesses that have some type of connection to your mission. For example, if you’re raising money for a pet rescue, think about groomers, boarders, veterinarians, or pet supply stores. If yours is a memorial tournament, look for those that have a connection to the tournament’s namesake or the cause you’re raising money for.

• New Businesses. These are a great option for golf tournaments, especially for hole sponsorships. New businesses might not have a large budget for advertising, but still need and want the exposure.

Once you have your prospect list established, identify connections with your and your planning team’s personal and professional networks. Having an “in” at a business often leads to a successful sponsorship pitch!

2. build attractive sponsorship packages

Keep this in mind as you build your sponsorship packages: If you can put a logo on it, you can sell a sponsorship! Start by looking at your tournament’s hard costs and building sponsorship packages to cover them, such as food and beverage, player gifts, on-course games, beverage carts, golf carts, or hole-in-one contests.

Consider these best practices for sponsorship packages:

• Provide Value. Every sponsor package should provide enough return on investment (ROI) to justify the business’ support. Whether it’s brand exposure, the opportunity to engage with golfers, the chance to speak at the tournament’s kickoff or banquet, or registrant information, be sure to clearly outline the benefits for each sponsorship so prospective sponsors understand exactly what they’re getting.

• Show Tangible Impact. Help businesses understand what their support of your tournament will do. For example, the Title Sponsor will underwrite 10 dog adoptions. The goal is to help connect sponsors to your cause and compel them to participate.

• Attach Teams to Sponsorships. Not only does this add additional value to each package, but it functions to help fill your tournament’s field. Many of the highest grossing tournaments only have teams attached to sponsorships.

• Be Flexible. Don’t be afraid to create custom sponsorships based on what returns value for the business. It’s likely that your final slate of sponsorships will look different than when you started—and that’s ok!

• Accept In-Kind Support. Businesses are often interested in providing in-kind donations of goods or services instead of monetary support. These can be leveraged as raffle prizes, player gifts, auction items, pin prizes, to just enhance the overall tournament experience, or reduce your operating costs. For example, a local caterer or grocery store might be interested in providing lunch or snacks. Or perhaps a sporting goods store wants to donate a golf bag or gift card. Provide exposure and thanks for these contributions.

Your event management platform should make it simple to create and list sponsor packages on the golf tournament website, plus make additions and updates as necessary.

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Sample golf fundraiser sponsorship packages

This free guide outlines three sets of golf tournament sample sponsorship packages, including pricing, benefits, and golfer registration costs. You’ll find examples for small, mid-sized, and large tournaments that you can adapt based on your tournament’s unique needs.

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3. price packages effectively

As mentioned previously, your fundraising goal will guide your pricing, combined with the caliber of the host golf facility and size of the tournament’s field. Don’t expect to hit your goal with one sponsorship sale! Keep these points in mind as you consider package pricing:

• Cover Costs. As a baseline, you should cover hard costs and build in pure revenue to each package.

• Offer Varying Price Points. Lower price points might be an easier sell for businesses that don’t have a huge budget. That being said, don’t be afraid to go after the bigger fish who have more robust philanthropic or marketing budgets.

• Understand your network and its capabilities. Are there a number of businesses you can approach for lower-cost packages? Or do you have one or two you can target for pricier sponsorships?

• Don’t Underprice Your Sponsorships. Remember that your tournament has a unique value proposition! Sponsors get high engagement and exposure to an audience they can’t access anywhere else.

4. make an effective pitch

Once you’ve identified connections at prospective sponsors on your prospect list, determine who will reach out to each prospect. Lean on your planning team, staff, or board as much as possible in this phase, not only to leverage their connections, but to share the work. It’s a good idea to put the person tasked with reaching out to a business in charge of the relationship with that sponsor.

It’s also a good idea to use a shared template or talking points to ensure consistent messaging and make it easier to make the pitch. Use a combination of approaches, perhaps with an introductory email, followed by a phone call and/or check-in email. For larger sponsorships or when pitching to a known partner, you might want to connect in person. Every pitch should clearly outline the pricing and benefits, as well as an overview of the audience and estimated attendance numbers, if known. Ask them what they hope to get out of the partnership, which helps both parties get the most value out of the sponsorship. Send folks to the event website to view available sponsorships and purchase their package.

If yours is an existing tournament, offer past years’ sponsors the first right of refusal. Give them the option to move up to a different package, or stick with what they’ve done in the past.

Above all, remember the worst they can say is no!

An event website makes it simple for prospective sponsors to view available sponsorships and purchase a package with a few clicks.

5. Lean on technology

Technology is a key part of golfer and sponsor outreach, with an event website as the centerpiece. The website makes marketing and promotion as simple as sharing a link, where folks can learn more about your organization and event and register or become a sponsor as soon as they hear about it. A website makes the tournament shareable, so your supporters can share it with their networks, instantly expanding your potential audience.

The digital exposure afforded by the event website adds even more value to your sponsor packages. Every time someone visits the site, sponsors get eyeballs on their brand. And with the right event management tool, sponsor exposure is automatic—it gets added to the site as soon as a sponsor purchases a package via the website and starts earning impressions right away.

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GolfStatus Makes It Easy

GolfStatus’ golf tournament management platform makes it easier than ever to build custom sponsorships, sell packages, collect assets, and provide digital sponsor exposure. It comes with an attractive, mobile-responsive event website and a user-friendly interface that streamlines tournament planning and execution. Nonprofits and charities (and third parties hosting golf events on their behalf) can qualify to use GolfSatus at no upfront cost through the Golf for Good program. You’ll get access to tech tools, exclusive premium sponsorships, add-ons, and our A+ in-house support team to make your tournament a success. Click below to get qualified!

Partner Snapshot

Mahoney Golf Course in Lincoln, Nebraska is part of the city’s robust municipal golf program. Head Golf Pro Jonathan Benson (JB) has been with Mahoney for nearly 20 years, nine of them as Head Pro.

Mahoney was built in 1976, the third of the city’s five courses. The par 70 course boasts some of the most challenging par four holes in the city, and as JB says, “is more difficult than some golfers think!” Its large, fast greens make for great playing conditions and multitude of trees present a challenge for every golfer.

JB loves the city’s approach to running its golf program, allowing pros to work as independent contractors within specific parameters. He also has the freedom to hold course-hosted golf events to engage golfers and the Lincoln community at large, getting them to the course for a day of fun.

The challenge

When JB and his predecessor launched Mahoney’s first event, the Mahoney Masters, they did all the prep work manually, taking registration and credit card information over the phone or in-person when a golfer would stop in the pro shop (and hoping the information was written down correctly) and tracking it all on a big, single access spreadsheet. Leading up to and on event day, they would spend 15 or more hours creating scorecards and cart signs, not to mention the time spent flighting results and breaking ties by hand.

All this manual work came with major challenges that took up valuable staff time. What’s more, it was often difficult to collect payment upfront. “When our staff would expand over the summer to 15 part-timers that worked the pro shop, it was a big problem to make sure they took payments when someone registered,” JB says. “We dealt with a huge number of no-shows without prepayment, sometimes up to 20% of registered golfers,” he says. He needed a tool to scale the course’s events while saving his staff time and effort.

The solution

A part-time staffer at Mahoney, Frank Cuddy, was also interning at GolfStatus and mentioned how its tournament management software would be helpful for managing tournament signups. “My first reaction was, ‘you mean I don’t have to do this over the phone?’” JB laughs. GolfStatus was a perfect fit for JB and his team, with robust enough features to streamline event prep but simple enough any staff can jump in and find the tools and information they needed.

“I haven’t seen any part of GolfStatus that I don’t like,” JB says. “We can spend two hours prepping for an event instead of 15. The support we get from GolfStatus is great.”

— JB, Head Golf Pro at Mahoney Golf Course

the results

No More Manual Signups

The online registration feature is what first drew JB to GolfStatus. “We were spending so much time on the phone, so anything that can cut down on that is huge,” he says. Online registration changed all that. “Everything is online these days so it makes sense to do this online too,” JB explains. Golfers choose their team packages, skins, and mulligans and pay directly through the website, giving them an increased confidence that their information is handled securely, as opposed to having a staff member write down their credit card information. “Even if someone calls, we now send them to the website to register,” JB says.

JB says having their branding on the event website is an added bonus, and if they have any sponsors for the events, they get great exposure.

Mahoney Golf Course’s event website for the Mahoney Masters, held every April.

easy communication

JB uses GolfStatus’ messaging feature to promote each event to past participants and other avid golfers in the area, which has helped Mahoney’s events grow significantly. He’s also able to easily share updates, the day’s itinerary, and other reminders without having to hunt down golfer emails and pulling them into a different platform. “I love being able to communicate with teams leading up to the tournament,” JB says.

More Golfers, More Events

The Mahoney Masters is a two-person scramble held the Saturday of Master’s week. In its first few years, the event attracted 60 to 80 golfers. But once JB started leveraging GolfStatus, the tournament regularly fills with 160 players. “We didn’t fill events until we started partnering with GolfStatus,” JB says. “Being able to promote tournaments online and have golfers register online has been amazing for our golf course.”

“We didn’t fill events until we started partnering with GolfStatus,” JB says. “Being able to promote tournaments online and have golfers register online has been amazing for our golf course.”

— JB, Head Golf Pro at Mahoney Golf Course

The success of the Mahoney Masters led JB to add three additional course-hosted events powered by GolfStatus:

• Mahoney North Side Scramble, a one-day four-person scramble

• Mahoney Open, a two-person scramble the week of the U.S. Open

• Mahoney Fantasy Football Scramble, which plays on fantasy football points

This slate of tournaments is great from a business perspective. It gets golfers to the golf course with guaranteed rounds and cart rentals and boosts sales across the golf course: food and beverage, merchandise, and gift certificates.

Printouts, Flighting & Tiebreakers

Automating the time-consuming aspects of a golf event is a huge advantage of using an online event management platform. Golfer information is easily accessible in the software’s backend, where JB and any of his staff can access it to make team pairings and hole assignments quickly and easily.

Before GolfStatus, custom printouts were a major time suck. “We would have to type everything into Excel and into a template, which took a long time and often had errors because we had to decipher handwritten golfer information,” JB says. Now, “we can do it in minutes!” Professionally formatted cart signs, scorecards, and alpha lists are auto generated—all staff has to do is click print.

Mahoney is starting to lean into live scoring a bit more. Teams record and submit their scores via the GolfStatus mobile app, which syncs to live leaderboards in real time. Not only does live scoring let golfers see current standings, but it’s also a time-saver when it comes to finalizing the tournament results. “I don’t have to type in the scores, they’re all there,” JB says. The software will flight the results and break ties automatically—with the ability to manually change them if necessary—so they don’t have to rifle through paper scorecards. “We’re able to announce results, award prizes, and get people done faster than ever.”

Golfstatus for every golf event

Golf facilities like Mahoney Golf Course benefit as much from GolfStatus’ tournament management tech as event organizers. Facility staff and the planning team can share access in GolfStatus’ backend to manage golfer and sponsor information, finalize team pairings and hole assignments, and save time from start to finish. Want to learn more about how your organization or golf facility can save time and raise more money with GolfStatus? Hit the button below to get in touch!

Once you’ve gotten a new golf tournament up and running—which is no easy feat—it can be tempting to simply cruise and maintain the status quo. But in order to grow your event into its second year and beyond, tournament organizers must find ways to keep golfers and sponsors coming back year after year. These 10 strategies can help.

1. Get Online

If you haven’t before, get your tournament online. A web-based golf event management platform saves you a ton of time and gives you tools to plan, manage, and execute a professional, lucrative event. Leverage an event website to easily promote your tournament, collect registration, onboard and recognize sponsors, and more.

Using digital channels for your golf tournament, especially an event website, is a great way to grow the event.

2. Expand the Event

This can be scary, especially if it comes with added expenses, but might be the key to scaling your tournament. Depending on the type of event and the capabilities of your golf facility, you might add an additional course, round, day, or accompanying event (such as a post-golf banquet or auction). This approach works best if you typically have a waitlist for your tournament or most of your teams are committed to sponsors and you’d like to open it up to other supporters. Do a cost-benefit analysis before you take the plunge!

3. Make it Memorable

Look for ways to build even more fun into the event. And lucky for you, many elements that make a tournament memorable also bring additional fundraising opportunities to the tournament. Exciting add-ons like on-course entertainment, golf tournament games, and contests are great ways to have an impact. Charge a nominal fee to participate in these add-ons, but don’t nickel and dime people. Consider selling a super ticket or wristband that provides entry or participation in each event for a flat price. Folks will remember the fun they had and come back in subsequent years.

Adding games to your golf tournament makes it even more fun and memorable for golfers and sponsors.

4. Boost Your Marketing

Definitely start your marketing efforts with past participants, sponsors, and anyone on the previous year’s waitlist, giving them the first shot at registering or purchasing sponsorships. Boost your marketing efforts in order to broaden your audience and spread awareness about your organization and cause. Leverage social media, partner marketing, sponsor promotions, and email campaigns to reach new folks. Consider an early bird registration period to create a sense of urgency and encourage golfers and sponsors to commit to your tournament.

5. Live Score the Tournament

Live scoring gives your tournament another level of engagement with golfers and sponsors. Golfers love to see where teams stand throughout the day on the event’s live leaderboards and you can use it as a call-to-action for folks to donate. Share leaderboards on social media so all your supporters can follow along. You’ll also give sponsors broader exposure with their logo in the live scoring app.

Live scoring via a mobile app keeps golfers engaged throughout the event and lets spectators follow along online.

6. Focus on Sponsorships

Sponsorships are where your tournament will bring in the bulk of its dollars. If your tournament regularly sells out, don’t be afraid to raise prices a bit. Talk directly with prospective sponsors to determine how your tournament can help them meet their goals, whether it’s straight up exposure, engaging with golfers, or something else. Identify new sponsorship opportunities—if you can put a logo on it, you can sell a sponsorship, so don’t be afraid to think outside the box! Including a team in sponsor packages not only adds value, but helps fill your tournament’s field, so price those packages accordingly.

7. Improve Processes

With one or more tournaments under your belt, it’s a good idea to take a look back at what worked, what didn’t, what tasks needed more time and attention, and what things you can omit altogether. Improving your processes lets you be more efficient with planning tasks and better use your time to pitch to sponsors, promote your event, and focus on the overall experience. Fine tune the planning infrastructure you already have in place—event website, graphics, vendors, etc.—to make the next go around less stressful.

8. Streamline & Simplify

Take a critical look at the tech tools you used to plan and execute your event. Did you spend a ton of time managing logins to umpteen platforms? Did you spend too much time bouncing between spreadsheets and tracking checks and receipts? Can all the functions be rolled into an all-in-one golf tournament platform? The lesson here is not to force a square peg into a round hole. Ticketing and event management platforms can’t handle the intricacies of golf tournaments and likely require your team to make time-consuming or complicated workarounds and adaptations. Look for a single software to manage everything from registration, payments, and promotion to hole assignments, sponsor onboarding, and flighting.

Using a golf-specific tournament management platform keeps everything organized in one easily-accessible place.

9. Shake Up Your Planning Team

Don’t force folks off the team if they still want to contribute, but consider bringing in a few new people that can provide a different perspective and connections. Reassign tasks if people are interested in spearheading a different portion of the tournament.

10. Garner Feedback

Make a point to chat with golfers and sponsors to get their immediate impressions of the tournament, then consider sending a quick survey in your post-event communications to ask them for additional feedback on the golf facility, format, add-ons, registration fees, what can be improved, what worked well, etc. Listening to participants gives you concrete ways you can make your tournament even better.

Ask your tournament’s golfers and sponsors directly what feedback they have about the event and implement suggestions that will help you scale.

Final Thoughts

One of the best ways to grow your event is to use a golf-specific tool to plan and manage your tournament. You’ll save a ton of time and get additional ways to raise funds, give golfers the best experience possible, and provide more value to your sponsors. GolfStatus can help with all that, and more. Nonprofits, charities, and those planning golf events to benefit one can use GolfStatus at no cost through the Golf for Good program. Click below to learn more and get qualified!

Golf’s ongoing popularity has led nonprofits and charities of all types and sizes to jump into the sport as a fundraising mechanism. But as popular as golf has been over the last few years, there are parts of the population—non-golfers, beginners who might not feel confident enough to register for a tournament, or individuals that have another barrier to participating—that might be left out of a standard golf tournament.

Fortunately, there are a number of ways you can structure your golf tournament to make it more inclusive, involving those missing folks who can be converted into donors. No matter how you choose to make your event inclusive, a golf-specific event management platform is a necessity to streamline planning for you and your team. Here are five ideas to consider for your next golf tournament.

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1. Choose non-traditional events

Not every golf tournament has to be 18-holes at a traditional golf course. Yes, the vast majority of charity golf tournaments fit that mold, but you might consider an additional golf event, this time with a non-traditional spin. You’ll connect with new segments of your community to raise awareness about your mission and bring in funds for your work. Consider these examples:

• Putt Putt / Mini Golf Tournament: A mini golf tournament can have many of the same elements as a regular golf tournament, just on a smaller scale. With fewer barriers to entry, a putt putt event is a great option to involve families, non-golfers, and the community at large. The Putt Putt Fore Puppies event, a first-year mini golf tournament, raised over $9,200 for the Capital Humane Society. The tournament sold out both teams (41 four-person teams) and sponsorships (21), with the top sponsorship selling for $4,000. The planning team incorporated on-course games and a raffle to raise extra dollars.

• Golf Simulator Events: Golf simulators like TopGolf are extremely popular among golfers and non-golfers alike. Much like a mini golf event, there’s a broader audience for a golf simulator event and options to sell sponsorships, charge an entry fee, and leverage add-ons like a raffle or auction. Avery’s Hope, the 2023 winner of Play It Forward, chose TopGolf as an inclusive option to allow the families they serve (those dealing with rare and undiagnosed pediatric GI conditions) to participate.

A putt putt or mini golf tournament is a great addition to your fundraising calendar, involving those who aren’t able to participate in a traditional golf tournament.

2. include adaptive elements

If your nonprofit serves an audience or has a supporter base that requires specific adaptations, there are ways to incorporate them into a golf tournament. The key here is to know your audience. Start by thinking through any barriers they might face to participating in a golf tournament, physical or otherwise. You could even survey a subset of your donors or constituents to gather information to help guide you in what adaptive elements to offer.

For example, Outlook Enrichment is a Nebraska-based nonprofit that serves the visually-impaired. They paired sighted golfers with visually-impaired golfers to serve as their eyes on the course. What’s more, they offer a blind golfers clinic in conjunction with the golf tournament, with coaches that specialize in working with the blind and visually-impaired. They worked with GolfStatus to make their event website and the entire registration process as accessible as possible to those with vision impairments.

Outlook Enrichment is a nonprofit that serves the visually-impaired. A blind golfers clinic is held with the annual golf fundraiser to help those with a vision impairment try their hand at golf.

When choosing a golf course for your tournament, you might also consider accessibility for those that have mobility issues. Ensure ramps are available, restrooms are handicap accessible, and work with golf facility staff to have golf carts available to accommodate different abilities.

3. use beginner-friendly tournament formats

The vast majority of charity golf tournaments utilize the scramble format. Here’s how it works: Each golfer tees off, then the team chooses the best shot and each player hits their ball from that spot. This continues until the ball is holed. The beauty of this format is that it makes the tournament approachable for golfers of all skill and experience levels, from beginners to scratch golfers. One roadblock to participating in a golf tournament, particularly for those who have never played golf before or don’t play often, is the intimidation factor. They have the perception that they’re not good enough to play so they don’t even consider it. The scramble format, whether it’s two or four-person teams, levels the playing field a bit and makes the round much more fun for all golfers.

Another way to encourage beginners or non-golfers to participate is by flighting your tournament. There are several approaches to flighting, which organizes teams into different groups, or flights, based on skill levels so teams or players of similar skill levels are competing against each other. This can happen before or after the tournament, depending on your preference. You might offer a women’s flight or beginner’s flight so folks can choose those options when they register, or you can flight results at the end. Whatever way you choose, flighting can help create an inclusive and enjoyable experience for all golfers. You’ll want to use a tournament management software that allows for easy flighting, so golf staff doesn’t have to manually sort through paper scorecards at the end of the round to finalize the results.

The scramble format is a great choice for charity golf tournaments because it makes the event more approachable for golfers of all skill and experience levels.

4. offer golf clinics or lessons

Tacking on a golf clinic or lessons to your golf tournament is a great way to target beginners. Whether you schedule it for immediately before the tournament or a day or two prior, a clinic working on basic golf skills gives beginners the confidence boost they may need to commit to playing in your golf fundraiser. You have the option to include the cost it in the registration fee (after all, even more experienced golfers can use a few pointers to improve their game), charge an additional fee to participate, or find a sponsor to underwrite the whole thing (and give them exclusive naming rights to the extra event!).

Work with the pro at the golf facility you’ve chosen to see if they’re willing to lead the clinic. You could tailor it specifically for beginners or offer a series of clinics for beginner, intermediate, and advanced skill sets.

5. add other activities 

To include non-golfers in your golf tournament, consider adding supplemental activities that attract families, spouses, partners, or friends of those playing in the event or members of the community who want to support your organization but don’t want to play golf. Some ideas include:

• Putting contest

• Live and/or silent auction

• Wine tasting event

• Cocktail hour

• Movie screening

• Musical performances

• Crafts

• Volunteer activities

• Meet and greet with nonprofit beneficiaries

• Speaker or workshop

A musical performance can help attract non-golfers to your golf tournament.

These add-ons can occur during the round or just prior to any post-golf awards ceremony or banquet. Pitch the add-on activities to a local business as a sponsorship and highlight the additional exposure they’ll get—both to golfers and to the non-golf attendees.

Final Thoughts

Inclusivity is a big deal, especially for nonprofits. Making your golf tournament more inclusive not only gets more folks involved to support your mission, but shows that your organization seeks to involve all segments of your community. As you start planning your charity golf tournament, think through how you can incorporate these ideas to remove barriers for people to support you through golf.

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