Local tournament question

swish16 · August 8, 2018

Just wondering if maybe you guys can help me.. I'm not super familiar with golf tournaments but I've played softball tournaments for years and we always had issues drawing teams for tournaments no matter how much we tried to cater to teams by taking feedback and implementing those suggestions.. So maybe you guys can tell me why this event would be having a hard time drawing golfers in and getting on its feet.

The course its being played on is not a goat track at all its easily one of the nicer public courses in an area that has plenty of options. Every week/weekend the course is packed with golfers paying the 35-45$ a round for 18 and a cart.. So you guys tell me is it the course the format the entry to prize ratio? What would keep you from not wanting to play this event?

Tim_Gavrich · August 12, 2018

FWIW, the entry fee might be a little steep. My home county's annual tournament is held at a course in a similar green fee range, and the entry fee is $125.

I see tournaments like this not as money-makers, but rather as a course's annual opportunity to show off and celebrate a bit. Certainly OK to aim to break even, but I think if the event is approached more as a marketing effort to promote and celebrate competitive golf in the area, that will help maximize interest and participation.

Also, have the tournament organizers reached out to area private clubs to gauge interest from reigning Club Champions (incl. Senior and Ladies CCs)? Might be a nice little potential partnership thing.

Best of luck. The more successful local golf tournaments we have, the better, IMO.

mneumann · August 14, 2018

Just a reply from my point of view

#1: I try to play as much golf as I can, but getting out for both days of a weekend is tough due to 2 young kids at home. At this point I pre-reserve 2 weekends at the beginning of the year for my club championship and a member guest that I play in.

Any other times I can get out both days I'm either going to save it for a big state event, qualifier, or a golf trip. My local practice spot has a city championship that is a whole weekend, and although I'd love to play it's just not important enough to use up my golf outing time.

If it was 1 day, or even 2 consecutive saturdays, I'd play every year. Also if you start it at 1 day and build a following, then you may be able to expand.

If i called my wife today and told her I wanted to lay in a cool new tourney next Saturday, and there was nothing on the schedule, I'm in. If I called and said there's a new tourney next month and it's the whole weekend, she wouldnt be happy.

And #2, smaller item, looking at the flyer and just seeing this say posted on the pro shop bulletin board, I'm not sure who the target is.

Greatest golfer in the county. I look at that as say a 15 cap, man or woman, and gloss right over, that's not me, that's for good players. And then on the other end, as a low single digit, seniors, women, flighted, $7000 in prizes, sounds like another 6 hour a day net event where I'm gonna get sandbagged to death, no way I'm going anywhere near that