Countdown to a Successful Golf Tournament
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Ideally, this all starts at least six months out from desired date, but many times courses need to be reserved much earlier. Additionally, many title sponsors are verbally secured in the beginning of each calendar year for budget reasons. By all means, use the checklist below as a starting point remembering that successful planners will always make it work within their given time frame.
1. Pick your course/negotiate the contract.
Tip: Remember player skill levels when considering course options.
2. Choose a theme, and identify your immediate goals for having this event: company goals, attendance estimates, sponsor possibilities, budget considerations.
3. Make the announcement! Publish the dates, price and location as early as possible and include those details with all your promotions.
Tip: Build some excitement by issuing a challenge or offering a good incentive to register early such as a free golf clinic or new pair of golf gloves to the first ten registered.
4. Gather your sponsors. Address what your monetary goals are and also what you are offering in exchange for a title/primary sponsor as well as other levels.
Tip: Getting that top sponsor early in the game usually paves the way for others to quickly follow.
Bonus Tip: Make sure all sponsors are compatible with each other!
5. Think about the player experience from start (arrival) to tee off, to what they see and experience on the course and then the after-glow party, reception or meal. Then think about what you could do to add fun or better player engagement throughout the process with things like trivia contests or pop-up challenges sent via a game app.
6. Build excitement as you meet milestones like ‘now fully sponsored!’ or create some funky team competitions from among your attendees. “Best goody bags ever” will get their attention, too!
7. Monitor your registrants and make sure you’re getting all the necessary information onto one form such as handicaps, team preferences, skill levels, male/female pairings, and whatever else you need. You’ll also want to know who needs transportation, who is bringing their own clubs or who needs to rent and what those prices are.
Tip: If you’re not a player, make sure to rely on the golf pro at whatever venue you’ve selected to guide you and avoid the amateur missteps.
8. Select food and beverage wisely depending on time of day and other activities your attendees will be involved in. If you served a cold buffet at yesterday’s seminar you might want a barbecue at your golf event, and by all means make good choices about your beverage selections.
Tip: It’s always best practice to hold any F&B events immediately following the tournament, beginning the service as soon as the first foursome has finished the course. Don’t make a rookie mistake and hold all F&B service until everyone is done playing because players’ times on the course vary greatly and rarely run concurrently.
9. Make sure you enlist the help of a seasoned pro, usually the one at your chosen venue, to review the course rules, line up all the carts and clubs (preferably with those goody bags and a complete list of all players and sponsors for networking purposes) and make any final announcements prior to your starting time. This is where working with a professional team is very beneficial.
Tip: If your group is large, make sure there is a microphone so everyone can hear announcements and the call to start.
Make it a fun event for everyone, even if this involves you sweating the small stuff!
Tip: Remember player skill levels when considering course options.
2. Choose a theme, and identify your immediate goals for having this event: company goals, attendance estimates, sponsor possibilities, budget considerations.
3. Make the announcement! Publish the dates, price and location as early as possible and include those details with all your promotions.
Tip: Build some excitement by issuing a challenge or offering a good incentive to register early such as a free golf clinic or new pair of golf gloves to the first ten registered.
4. Gather your sponsors. Address what your monetary goals are and also what you are offering in exchange for a title/primary sponsor as well as other levels.
Tip: Getting that top sponsor early in the game usually paves the way for others to quickly follow.
Bonus Tip: Make sure all sponsors are compatible with each other!
5. Think about the player experience from start (arrival) to tee off, to what they see and experience on the course and then the after-glow party, reception or meal. Then think about what you could do to add fun or better player engagement throughout the process with things like trivia contests or pop-up challenges sent via a game app.
6. Build excitement as you meet milestones like ‘now fully sponsored!’ or create some funky team competitions from among your attendees. “Best goody bags ever” will get their attention, too!
7. Monitor your registrants and make sure you’re getting all the necessary information onto one form such as handicaps, team preferences, skill levels, male/female pairings, and whatever else you need. You’ll also want to know who needs transportation, who is bringing their own clubs or who needs to rent and what those prices are.
Tip: If you’re not a player, make sure to rely on the golf pro at whatever venue you’ve selected to guide you and avoid the amateur missteps.
8. Select food and beverage wisely depending on time of day and other activities your attendees will be involved in. If you served a cold buffet at yesterday’s seminar you might want a barbecue at your golf event, and by all means make good choices about your beverage selections.
Tip: It’s always best practice to hold any F&B events immediately following the tournament, beginning the service as soon as the first foursome has finished the course. Don’t make a rookie mistake and hold all F&B service until everyone is done playing because players’ times on the course vary greatly and rarely run concurrently.
9. Make sure you enlist the help of a seasoned pro, usually the one at your chosen venue, to review the course rules, line up all the carts and clubs (preferably with those goody bags and a complete list of all players and sponsors for networking purposes) and make any final announcements prior to your starting time. This is where working with a professional team is very beneficial.
Tip: If your group is large, make sure there is a microphone so everyone can hear announcements and the call to start.
Make it a fun event for everyone, even if this involves you sweating the small stuff!
Terry Matthews-Lombardo, CMP, better known as TML, travels, plans meetings and then writes about all those experiences from the viewpoint of being on the road and in the center of the action. It’s usually a good combination, or at least worth an interesting read. Having worked on both sides of the industry, she writes from the viewpoint of a veteran planner as well as a travel-savvy road warrior. If you want to read more from TML you can follow her at www.MidwestMeetings.com and at www.tmlwrites.com where you’ll find stories covering both destinations and detours or visit her blog at www.hypeorlando.com/hospitality-hive/.
