Golf Tournament Planning: The Official Guide [2024]

A dedicated golf tournament planning committee with the right balance of special events experience and communication skills is key to your tournament’s success.  Here are the members or sub-committees that are typically part of a golf tournament planning committee:

• Event Planner: The primary tournament manager heads up the committee and handles important golf event logistics. The event planner is responsible for being the venue and vendor liaison, managing the day-of-event logistics, approving the tournament website, managing volunteers, and more.
• Treasurer: The tournament treasurer should have a knack for numbers. They work with the committee to project tournament costs and fundraising goals, then assist with bookkeeping, reconciling throughout the event, and reporting the final numbers after the event.
• Secretary: The secretary is responsible for recording and distributing the minutes of each meeting, along with tasks and assignments. 
• Sponsorship Recruitment: Sponsorship recruitment includes obtaining corporate and business sponsorships, monetary donations from individuals, and procuring in-kind donations for prizes or services. 
• Marketing: Marketing encompasses several efforts to raise awareness for your fundraiser. Marketing committee members are tasked with media/public relations, social media, and graphic design responsibilities.

How much money do you want to raise? A reasonable, optimistic financial goal is key to successful golf tournament planning. A successful golf tournament ensures the budget has been discussed and planned to cover your costs and raise the funds needed for your charitable cause.

Knowing your costs is the first step in budgeting. This will also help determine your golf entry fees and awards banquet pricing and set the threshold for monetary sponsorship objectives.  Your goal should be to fill your field with golfers and make enough money from registration fees to cover most expenses.

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Corporate and community sponsors are critical to successful golf tournament fundraisers. These corporations and local businesses help increase awareness of an event by promoting it to their employees and customers via social media, which is helpful when it is time to attract the attention of local media and recruit golfers. Most importantly, sponsors create a financial backbone by helping to offset tournament costs, which are generally quite high. 

Finding corporate sponsorships can be one of the most challenging aspects of planning a fundraising event. Create a list of sponsorship opportunities with clear marketing and golf benefits. Proactive planning, a strong and communicative team, and consistent follow-up are the keys to obtaining adequate sponsors to make your annual golf tournament successful.

Read more on attracting golf tournament sponsors for your tournaments.

Strong volunteers are the backbone of your golf tournament. While the golf course is often the main attraction, the event is enjoyable because a strong volunteer team ensures that every attendee is given attention. While these are some tasks to remember when finding volunteers to help with the event, the volunteer leader is the glue of the team. This may be a tournament committee member or another trusted volunteer with experience, calm composure, and a solution-oriented attitude. 

You’ll need volunteers to help with the tournament setup and take down, registration and welcome, the awards ceremony and presentations, raffle tickets, and silent auction sales. It’s always wise to have a runner that can do anything that comes up, too.

Hosting a golf tournament awards banquet allows you to thank attendees and sponsors for participating and offer recognition for your event’s best players or fundraisers. The banquet can be a full sit-down dinner reception or something less formal – such as a BBQ or taco line.

The awards banquet is a great chance to share your cause and achievements and increase the funds raised at your outing. Individual tickets or tables can be sold to those not golfing, giving partners and non-golfers a chance to enjoy the fundraising event. 

Hosting live and silent auctions can dramatically increase the funds raised at your awards banquet. Selecting or procuring appealing auction items is critical to your success. Live auction items should be limited in number and should be high-value items. Silent auctions are great for smaller items you have received via in-kind donations.