Not all nonprofit organizations have access to the resources needed to throw a golf tournament—time, money, and location.
Many inner city nonprofits have no nearby golf courses they can rent, nor can some rural organizations afford to rent a golf course for their sole use on tournament day.
If you are on the hunt for additional revenue sources, by throwing an event, look at these ideas for incorporating the best of an event, without fully committing resources your organization may not have:
Driving Range/Top Golf
Popping up all around the country is a new type of driving range that brings golf and entertainment together in a unique setting. One of the more notable is Top Golf with locations across the nation and internationally. If you’re unfamiliar, think of a driving range with a unique style of competition. Your ball has a chip inside that looks at where you hit the ball, assigning points. The highest point wins! Contact the nearest location to rent out the facility for the day, sell foursomes to the stalls, and conduct a tournament to determine a winner. Rain or shine, you’re guaranteed to play!
Clay Shoots
While golf may be a popular spring/summer activity, skeet shooting is more accessible in some areas of the country in late summer/early fall as well as regional preference. Conduct a tournament by selling tickets, foursomes, and sponsorships to a unique style of outdoor sports.
Miniature Golf
Looking for a way to let the children you serve be involved in your fundraising events? Let corporations and major donors sponsor foursomes of kids to participate in a miniature golf tournament. In some areas, this may be the only accessible course and a fun outing for kids.
With alternative events such as these, or traditional golf tournaments look at different ways to maximize revenue streams by adding these easy to incorporate ideas.
If you’re renting out the course for the day, consider having two tournaments to maximize the use of the course. In the morning the competitive players have use of the course, and after lunch, the recreational players can have use of the course.
Consider adding an auction for players to peruse while off the course. Using Greater Giving’s Event Software to sell tickets & sponsorships, you can also set up auction packages and raffle games. Go one step further by adding Online Bidding and text guests on their mobile device, reminding them of program start times. Use Greater Giving’s Storefront feature on an iPad to sell mulligans at each hole, adding to their tab at the end of the day.
Encourage spouses to participate by having a spa day at the clubhouse for those who don’t want to golf, but still want to participate in helping out your organization.
The key to a successful tournament style event is finding resources or persons with expertise that can help navigate all the moving pieces. Greater Giving has a series of golf resources that show different ways to make sure your golf tournament or golf tournament alternative is a hit!
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