So, You Want To Put On A Golf Tournament

     Have you ever put on a golf tournament?  I'm not talking about a professional event like The US Open, but that small--or large--company or organization event.  It can be a lot of fun, but it also can be a challenge as well.  I am in the middle of planning and pulling off a first and hopefully annual tournament at our church.  Its something that I have done before and enjoy, but it does have its challenges.
     As the process of hosting that event unfolds, I am going to share it with you. Today I am just going to comment on a few things that are involved in bringing a social tournament to the day of playing the tournament.  There are many elements that are involved and I would like to briefly mention a few of the details that must be considered and arranged. The main thing is to not get frustrated as you will encounter all kinds of challenges in hosting the tournament and the outcome should be fun and rewarding.  Remember to that being flexible is very important as things have a tendency to change before the event. What I am going to mention is pretty basic, but if you have never put an event together you may inadvertently overlook these.
     I would start by saying that you must first secure approval and blessing from the organization that is to sponsor the event.  If you are personally hosting and running the event, this isn't a problem in that you can just say, "Let's do this." However, if you are coordinating the event for an organization such as a church or school, that event must be approved.  The same is true if you are doing the event for a business. This may sound a bit basic but you have to have the seal of approval from the business or organization that is going to benefit from it. You also need to consider what kind of event you are going to have, whether it will be a fundraiser or just a fun get together. Many decisions need to be made before you even begin to think about the actual details of holding of the event.
     You have the approval of the board to hold the event, now what? The event is just going to be a time for the organization to get together and have some fun. Its not going to be a fundraiser, just a good time for all.  Are you ready to tackle the big three--date, time and place?  That's easy, right?  Not so fast cowboy, it isn't as easy as it sounds.  The organization's events calendar, the regular calendar, the time of day the tournament is to be held and the location of a course all come into play here. The stars all have to align for this.
      Organizations sometime have events scheduled on Saturdays, which the tournament can't be held because of those events. You have to consider holidays in there as well for a couple of reasons--people take trips and are gone, plus holiday times are a premium at golf courses so the course generally doesn't want to give up these times. You also have to schedule play so that the whole tournament can finish.  Ideally the tournament shouldn't have to finish using coal miner's lamps. You want the whole field to finish before the sun sets and darkness falls. So, what time the tournament starts is very important.
     How about the course and securing a course to play on. I would venture a guess that if you are going to have a golf tournament, this would be a fairly crucial component. The course has to have the date open in order to host the tournament. How expensive are the green fees at the course, and if the cost of the tournament is too high, will it limit participation?  What is the location of the course? What is included in the tournament cost?  Will there be a dinner and how about prizes?  Is the course going to supply prizes or do you have to come up with them? What will the format be? Is it going to be an individual event, or are you going to have a "scramble" format?  Is the tournament designed for experienced golfers or do you want golfers of all level and non-golfers to play?
     There is a lot that goes into hosting a golf tournament. I know that much of what I have said is very simple, but I hope that it helps some of you that are new to the process and are considering putting a tournament on.  They are a lot of fun to play in and to take that a step further and actually put one together actually adds to the fun. What the heck, take a shot at it.  The rewards are many and you should have a lot of fun doing it.  It is quite an experience playing in a tournament that you have put together.

And they're off!  Enjoy the tournament and remember dinner afterwards.