Reducing Golf Tournament Planning Costs for Organizers

The following information on: Reducing Golf Tournament Planning Costs for Organizers is courtesy of www.eventcaddy.com/blog/

Hosting a charity golf tournament often comes with a steep price tag. Tournament organizers can struggle to turn a profit in the early years as expenses are easily underestimated. Luckily, there are a number of ways to help reduce these costs. Here’s a few professional planning tips for some of those larger expenses:

Marketing:

With a solid team in place there should be very little, if any, money spent on promoting or advertising your event. Remember, the majority of your participants will come from personal or business connections.

Lean on your personal and professional connections as much as possible. You’ll find a good portion of the support will come from those already connected to you. Reach out to individuals and companies who may be willing to help you.

Be sure to create a committee of well connected individuals who can help solicit possible players and sponsors. If you make it a goal for them to obtain 1 sponsor and a couple foursomes, you’ll be surprised how quickly your tournament fills up.  

If your leads are unable to support your event financially, perhaps they can donate some items or even their time. Get creative with your pitches, many local business do have something to offer your event aside from a monetary donation. Local restaurants are typically willing to help out especially if the event is in their backyard. Vouchers, coupons, or even a small display on a hole can provide a lot of value to your participants.

Venue:

As mentioned in our previous blog post ‘Selecting the Right Golf Course for Your Event’ , choosing a golf course is one of the most important decisions that you will make when it comes to planning your big day. It’s essential for the success of your tournament.

Unfortunately, the golf course also comes with one of the biggest price tags. However, the price is just as important as the value the course brings. Many courses will play a vital role in your tournament’s success. Be sure to inquire about the various services and features included in the golf course package. Here’s just a few things the course typically helps with:

• Basic Tournament Planning

• Discounts on gifts and merchandise.

• Staging and setup

• Hole assignments/Cart Signs

• Additional Prizes – Typically a foursome or two would be donated by the course.

When making a final decision on a course, keep in mind that the course is one of the main attractions for your players and sponsors. Don’t just pick the cheapest option as it could have a negative effect on your supporters. Golfers enjoy playing courses that are good value but also well maintained.

Here’s a few tips to help reduce the cost of the golf course when negotiating a deal:

• Bundle items – reception, dinner, drinks, other events, etc

• Date – Find a date/time that not only suites your supporters but also your budget. You can often get better deals if you hold your event on ‘off season’ dates.

• Compare – Shop different courses and use quotes to your advantage. See what each course is willing to offer and whether or not they are willing to beat their neighbour’s price. A course may not have room to adjust price but can always add some additional value.

Gifts and Prizes:

You do not need to break the bank showering guests with gifts and prizes. A fun day with some great company will go a lot further than a couple of overpriced gifts. Way too many tournaments spend money on items that participants will never use again. If you do plan to give out gifts and prizes, be sure to obtain items that participants will actually enjoy and make them remember the amazing time they had at your event.

Don’t be afraid to reach out to some of your sponsors or personal/professional connections to see if they have anything they would like to donate. Many sponsors and local businesses will be more than happy to provide some branded items. This gives both your participants and the sponsor some value. You can also offer some sponsorship opportunities specific to these gift items. Example sponsorships you could offer include:

• Ball Sponsor

• Hat Sponsor

• Tee Sponsor

Whatever you do, don’t spend too much money on gifts and prizes. Let your connections help you. Get creative, and don’t be afraid to ask for support, it is all for a good cause! Your time and effort will always be much better spent on making a memorable fun day for your participants.

Create your free account today and use Event Caddy’s budget tool to help stay organized and up-to-date with your expenses and revenues.

 

 

from WordPress https://ift.tt/2TzYxSd

How The Rotary Club of Bolton Raised An Additional $25,000 with Event Caddy

The post: How The Rotary Club of Bolton Raised An Additional $25,000 with Event Caddy was published from See more

At the Rotary Club of Bolton, we’ve been running our tournament the “traditional” way for many years. This meant, lots of excel documents and multiple committee members collecting checks and cash. Checks and cash were even accepted the day of the event which left us quite worried leading up to the big day. Our committee spent countless hours on data entry. This took time away from some of the more important tasks such as; finding players, sponsors, and improving on the overall experience of the event. 

When our club was first introduced to Event Caddy, we were super hesitant as we’d been running a successful event for so many years prior. Transitioning to an online system seemed like a giant leap but we knew it had to be done. Event Caddy made the whole process super simple. Our team is not very tech savvy but we actually had a lot of fun setting up our tournament website on Event Caddy as a team. It was simple and anytime we got stuck or had a question, the support team at Event Caddy was there to guide us.

We’ve been using Event Caddy for the last four years and it’s been a huge help for our club. Event Caddy helped streamlined the registration and management process. Event Caddy not only gave our players/sponsors somewhere to go to signup and pay, but more importantly gave our committee a central location to manage and track this information. 

Prior to using Event Caddy, the emails and communication between committee members seemed to never end. With Event Caddy, all committee members have access to the application and with the click of a mouse can instantly find what they needed.

Our financials use to be quite unorganized. It would often take weeks (sometime months) to calculate event totals. Event Caddy’s live financials has made it super easy to stay on track. Payments were also directed straight to our bank account which makes life much easier on our committee as they no longer have to hunt down missing payments.

Creating an account on Event Caddy was super quick and easy. Our team simply signed up for the free account at eventcaddy.com, entered in our tournament details and we were able to begin the planning.

Creating an account on Event Caddy takes mere minutes. Here’s how you can get started:

1. Navigate to EventCaddy.com

2. Click the ‘SET UP YOUR FREE TOURNAMENT’ button which can be found at the top of the page.

3. Input your desired account login details then press continue

4. Enter the company information
   

5. Fill out your tournament info (this can always be changed at a later time if need be)
   

6. Congratulations, you've signed up! You can now begin to create your tournament website and your registration packages/options.

Our committee eventually decided to upgrade to the PRO version for $199. We typically charge $200 per player so we were able to cover this cost with a single registration. 

Most importantly, the PRO upgrade allowed us to accept donations, sell sponsorships, mulligans, and other non-golf items, as well as give us the option to accept cash and check payments online. 

Full list of PRO features can be found at www.eventcaddy.com/features

We’ve always wanted a website for our tournament but didn’t necessarily have the know-how or team to accomplish this. The Event Caddy website builder was very intuitive and allowed us to get a site up and running in no time.

We loved the customization of the tournament website. The other services we reviewed simply request information and automatically added it to their site without control. When it comes to adding custom content, Event Caddy uses a word style editor which required no coding whatsoever. If you’ve used Microsoft Word before, you can build a website on Event Caddy.

Here’s a quick video to show just how easy building a website on Event Caddy can be:

Our finances use to be a tangled mess. We would have to call in each credit card we accepted. This consumed a lot of our time. With Event Caddy we were able to quickly get setup with a Stripe account and begin accepting credit cards directly on our tournament site. Stripe would then deposit the funds directly to our bank account a few days later. It made life so much easier! 

Setting up a Stripe/PayPal account on Event Caddy

Event Caddy has made it easy to accept payments online. No large application forms, no waiting process and no monthly fees. Here’s how you can get setup with a Stripe or PayPal account right from the Event Caddy dashboard:

1. Click the "SET UP NOW" button found on the tournament home screen.
   

2. Once on the setup page, you’ll need to choose between Stripe or PayPal. Both have no monthly or setup fees and offer the same rate of 2.9% + $0.30 per credit card transaction. (Lower fees available for non-profits)

3. Once you’ve chosen your payment gateway, simply click on the "Get Started" button at the bottom and fill in the necessary business details.

Promoting our tournament each year has become a very simply process now that we’re using Event Caddy. All our information is stored in the system year after year. We simply log in and send out an email to all previous guests. 

Once guests start signing up we can communicate with them through either the email or text messaging tool. We loved the text messaging feature as it allowed us to communicate with the players the day of the event. 

Event Caddy is packed with great marketing tools to help you communicate with players and sponsors through email and text. Here’s a quick video to show you exactly how you can properly communicate with your tournament guests:

While Event Caddy has certainly made our lives as tournament organizers much easier, we’ve also had raving reviews from our players. The signup process for players/sponsors is a much easier process now. They love the fact that they can pay online with a credit card or reserve their spot via the cash or check option. 

We love using the Event Caddy, it’s been a huge time savings for us and has helped us increase revenues, while eliminating all the time consuming tasks. Our committee is as organized as ever.

Since using Event Caddy our tournament has increased net proceeds by over $25,000.  We’re super pleased with this increase but what we love the most is how effortless each year now seems. We wished we had found Event Caddy sooner!

from WordPress https://ift.tt/2pT3I1N

How To Handicap Your Charity Golf Event

The article: How To Handicap Your Charity Golf Event is sourced from www.eventcaddy.com/blog

We’re all familiar with the standard scramble where players all tee off, then one player’s shot (usually the best) is chosen. The team all plays their second shot from that location. Play continues like this until one player holes out.

These scrambles are lots of fun but are often won by the higher skilled teams. You can however make it more competitive by adding a handicap system to your event.

Here’s a couple of ways you can incorporate golf handicap system into your tournament.

 

How to Calculate Golf Handicap

 

Modified Peoria System

This works well for charity golf tournaments as you’re able to calculate a team handicap after the event has concluded.

The committee secretly selects a par 3, par 5, and four par 4 holes from an 18-hole course. The par-4 holes should include two from the front nine and two from the back nine.

The handicap is determined by calculating the teams strokes over par on the six selected holes, and then multiplying that number by 2.8. This will be the number that is deducted from the gross score. Please note, a maximum of three over par should be used on the par 3 and 4 holes, while a maximum of four over can be used for the par 5 hole.

 

Calculating Handicap Score:
Team score is 74, with a score of 2 over on the six selected holes.
2 x 2.8 = 5.6 for a net score of 68

 

If you can obtain handicaps from the players prior to the event, the 50 percent method works quite well.
 

50 Percent Method

Add all players handicaps together for a given team. Divide the team’s total handicap number by twice the number of players.

 

Calculating Team Handicap:
Handicaps of 2, 4, 14, 18 for a team total of 38. 
38 ÷ 8 = a team handicap of 4.75

 

Subtract the handicap number from the team’s gross score at the end of the event to determine the team’s net score.

from WordPress https://ift.tt/2JjD2iO

2018 Masters Picks

The following article: 2018 Masters Picks is sourced from Event Caddy’s Blog

The 2018 Masters is now a couple of days away and we’ve once again put together our not so expert picks:

 

Tiger Woods:
When someone gives you an opportunity to pick Tiger, you take it! Following a runner-up at the Valspar and a solid performance at Bay Hill Woods definitely looks like he’s in top form coming into Augusta. If Tiger can find the fairways this week there’s no doubt he’ll be in contention come Sunday.

Dustin Johnson:
The world number 1 is always a good pick when it comes to majors. Last year Johnson was the favourite to win before he had to withdraw due to injuries. If DJ can avoid the use of stairs this week we expect him to be at the top of the leaderboard.

Ian Poulter:
We’re not huge Ian Poulter fans but the way he was able to steal the last Masters spot was quite impressive. His match play game is quite strong so if he can put himself in the final pairing come Sunday we expect to see a good battle.

Bubba Watson:
Coming off a recent win at Riviera, you have to like Bubba's chances at Augusta National. His imagination and ability to work the ball will no doubt prove to be beneficial once again this week. 

Rickie Fowler:
With three top-12 finishes in his last four appearances, Fowler is no stranger to Augusta National. We expect him to have a legitimate chance come Sunday. He’s certainly got the experience contending in Majors but it’s about time we see him pull one out.

Master your charity golf event with 25% OFF our PRO upgrade:

 

 

 

from WordPress https://ift.tt/2GzNV2S

2018 Masters Picks

The following blog article: 2018 Masters Picks is published from http://eventcaddy.com/blog

The 2018 Masters is now a couple of days away and we’ve once again put together our not so expert picks:

 

Tiger Woods:
When someone gives you an opportunity to pick Tiger, you take it! Following a runner-up at the Valspar and a solid performance at Bay Hill Woods definitely looks like he’s in top form coming into Augusta. If Tiger can find the fairways this week there’s no doubt he’ll be in contention come Sunday.

Dustin Johnson:
The world number 1 is always a good pick when it comes to majors. Last year Johnson was the favourite to win before he had to withdraw due to injuries. If DJ can avoid the use of stairs this week we expect him to be at the top of the leaderboard.

Ian Poulter:
We’re not huge Ian Poulter fans but the way he was able to steal the last Masters spot was quite impressive. His match play game is quite strong so if he can put himself in the final pairing come Sunday we expect to see a good battle.

Bubba Watson:
Coming off a recent win at Riviera, you have to like Bubba's chances at Augusta National. His imagination and ability to work the ball will no doubt prove to be beneficial once again this week. 

Rickie Fowler:
With three top-12 finishes in his last four appearances, Fowler is no stranger to Augusta National. We expect him to have a legitimate chance come Sunday. He’s certainly got the experience contending in Majors but it’s about time we see him pull one out.

Master your charity golf event with 25% OFF our PRO upgrade:

 

 

 

from WordPress https://ift.tt/2GyYsXS

Marketing & Promoting Golf Tournament Fundraisers

The following information on: Marketing & Promoting Golf Tournament Fundraisers was available on http://www.eventcaddy.com/blog/

Everyone loves golf and hosting your own tournament can be profitable. It’s true, there’s lots of golf lovers out there but getting them to attend your charity golf tournament or fundraiser can actually prove to be quite difficult.

You’ll want to promote your event as much as possible through as many channels as possible, but remember to avoid swinging for the fences. We all want to land that huge sponsor or large group of players but consistency and solid base hits will no doubt generate the best result.

When you’re marketing your charity golf tournament it’s important to remember that nobody actually needs to attend your golf event. Your focus should be on selling something else such as the cause, great prizes, the experience, and so on.

Here’s a few pro tips to make your event more attractive to those golf lovers:

The Venue:
Finding a venue that your guests will be excited to play at is a huge component in your turnout. Location is by far the most important factor. Be sure to find a venue in a central location, it ensures your guests can get to the event with ease. No one wants to have an hour or two drive home after a long day on the course. If it’s going to be a hike for a good portion of the attendees be sure to provide appropriate accommodations.

Secondly, you’ll want to find a course that suits the eagerness and skill level of your guests. If you’re expecting avid golfers, try and find a course that will excite them. Often times a private course can help with this. Many golfers will jump at the opportunity to play on a private course that they would not normally have access to, especially if it’s for a good cause.

If you’re expecting a booze filled day with sub par golfers, then the 19th hole and available beverages may be the important factors in your decision.

The Cause:
Promoting the cause rather than the event itself can go a long way when trying to increase numbers. Getting players away from the office for a day of golf isn’t usually too difficult, but if they can associate it with supporting a good cause it’ll prove even easier. Be sure to utilize any resources you can to promote the charity. Youtube videos, links to the foundation, or even foundation goals can go a long way in helping a potential guest to make a decision.  

 

Prizes & Contests:
Let’s face it; a good venue and an even better cause are huge factors in generating a good turnout, but nothing beats an event with great prizes and lots of activities. This may not be atop of the list for potential sponsors, but we can guarantee when executed correctly can bring the players out in the masses. 

Promoting some great prizes on your invitations and registration site are a good way to seal the deal with those potential players. Also if you’re hosting an auction don’t hesitate to list a few of those items as well. Many players love this component of the tournament as it’s a chance to walk away with some great deals.

Here are a few prize/contests options that we like:

• Hole in One Prize

• Chance to Win a Car

• Closest to the Keg (for those beer lovers)

• Team Skins – Chance for players to win some cash

• Sports Tickets

• Golf Clubs

 

Simplified Sign-Up:
Your tournament has a lot of moving parts and it’s hard to keep things simple on your end. However, you should strive to make it as easy as possible for players and sponsors to sign up for your event. The days of pdf forms and mailing in checks should be well behind you. Make it easy on your players and sponsors!

Relationships:
It’s extremely important to utilize your current relationships to attract golfers and sponsors to your event. Don’t be afraid to hit them hard… Friends and co-workers are always willing to play a game of golf to help a friend.

If it’s a company tournament, make sure you contact all of your customers and reach out to those businesses who you are closest to. If your tournament has a committee, make it a task for each committee member to bring in a couple foursomes. You’ll be surprised how quickly your tournament will fill up.

Fishing with Dynamite:
Post information about your event in as many places are you can. Just remember, players/sponsors usually come from your own network so don’t waste too much time promoting your event to the rest of the world. Here’s a couple suggestions:

• Social (Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram)

• Local Newspapers

• Charity/Foundation Website or Newsletters

• Email Blasts

• Personal Phone Calls

Marketing and promoting your charity golf event can certainly help increase the numbers, but it’s important to remember that each tournament is different. Find out what works best for your event and keep at it.

from WordPress http://ift.tt/2InrJ9a

2018 Waste Management Open Picks

This post: 2018 Waste Management Open Picks is courtesy of Visit Source

The Waste Management Phoenix Open is set to start this week and we’ve made our not so expert picks. Unfortunetly Tiger isn't in the feild so we've been forced to pick a few others:

Phil Mickelson – As a two time winner of the Waste Management Open (1996, 2013) it’s safe to say Mickelson feels right at home at TPC Scottsdale.  We expect no shortage of fan support as Mickelson attended Arizona State University where he won 16 times. We’re anticipating lots of hat tips and smiles as Mickelson makes his way up the leaderboard this week.

Rickie Fowler – Coming off of a 4th and 2nd place finish the last two years, we expect Rickie to be on the first page again this year at the Waste Management Open. Rickie is always a fan favourite, but especially popular at the TPC Scottsdale with an abundance of support from the college kids in attendance. Rickie also has a lot to prove after his missed cut last week at Torrey. Rickie loves the heat and the attention and we expect he’ll be pumping up the crowd at the 16th again this year.
 

Unlike anything else in golf. #TOURVault pic.twitter.com/wYog7QRELj

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 31, 2018

Hideki Matsuyama – How can we not pick Hideki? Fresh off back to back wins and a 2nd place finish in 2015, it’s quite clear Hideki loves this track and this track loves him. We look forward to watching him go for the three-peat; something that hasn’t been done here since Arnold Palmer in 1963.

Adam Hadwin – We’ve gotta support the team!  We proudly take Hadwin as our sleeper. He’s coming off a few top 20s here in the last few years and a T3 finish at the Career Builder Challenge. Not quite sure if he has what it takes to win but we’re still betting on our boy! 

from WordPress http://ift.tt/2FAlv3B

2018 Waste Management Open Picks

This blog article: 2018 Waste Management Open Picks is available on http://www.eventcaddy.com/blog

The Waste Management Phoenix Open is set to start this week and we’ve made our not so expert picks. Unfortunetly Tiger isn't in the feild so we've been forced to pick a few others:

Phil Mickelson – As a two time winner of the Waste Management Open (1996, 2013) it’s safe to say Mickelson feels right at home at TPC Scottsdale.  We expect no shortage of fan support as Mickelson attended Arizona State University where he won 16 times. We’re anticipating lots of hat tips and smiles as Mickelson makes his way up the leaderboard this week.

Rickie Fowler – Coming off of a 4th and 2nd place finish the last two years, we expect Rickie to be on the first page again this year at the Waste Management Open. Rickie is always a fan favourite, but especially popular at the TPC Scottsdale with an abundance of support from the college kids in attendance. Rickie also has a lot to prove after his missed cut last week at Torrey. Rickie loves the heat and the attention and we expect he’ll be pumping up the crowd at the 16th again this year.
 

Unlike anything else in golf. #TOURVault pic.twitter.com/wYog7QRELj

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 31, 2018

Hideki Matsuyama – How can we not pick Hideki? Fresh off back to back wins and a 2nd place finish in 2015, it’s quite clear Hideki loves this track and this track loves him. We look forward to watching him go for the three-peat; something that hasn’t been done here since Arnold Palmer in 1963.

Adam Hadwin – We’ve gotta support the team!  We proudly take Hadwin as our sleeper. He’s coming off a few top 20s here in the last few years and a T3 finish at the Career Builder Challenge. Not quite sure if he has what it takes to win but we’re still betting on our boy! 

from WordPress http://ift.tt/2DSzdTc

Golf Tournament Websites: What to Include

The blog article: Golf Tournament Websites: What to Include was courtesy of Read it here

In this day and age it’s crucial that your golf tournament has an online presence. With easy to use website builders anyone can now quickly launch a website and start to create that online presence.

When building out your golf tournament website it’s important to keep it simple. Your players/sponsors do not want to read paragraphs of information or sort through multiple pages to find what they are looking for. Here’s what we believe you should focus on:

Tournament Name:
Your name identifies who you are and what you’re doing. Add a clear and catchy tournament name to your site so guests can quickly understand the purpose of the event. If possible, try and avoid the typical tournament names such as; Golf Fore Kids or Golf Fore Charity. You’ll want to create one that’s unique to your cause and easy for players and sponsors to remember (E.g Event Caddy’s Chipping for Children).

Tournament Info:
When creating content for your golf tournament website be sure to keep your info light. We suggest just a quick note outlining the event, date, schedule, and of course prices. Remember, your players/sponsors are there to register and find some basic info. Don’t make them sort through pages and pages of info.

For you Event Caddy users,  you can always add more info to the automated registration email that will be sent to your players.

Call-to-Action:
When building out your golf tournament website be sure to add some call to actions. Adding links directing players or sponsors in the right area will ensure that those computer illiterate guests will be able to find what they need. Remember, the goal is to get your players/sponsors to sign up so be sure to add multiple registration links within the content.

Also consider adding in some social links so your guests can quickly share the event. This may help generate some new leads for your event.

Photos/Videos:
Adding photos/videos to your golf tournament website is a great way to show off your event. Not only will it give your past players a great memory of your event it will help newcomers gain a quick understanding what they can expect. Your past players may even be interested in sharing these images/videos on their social networks which could help increase the visibility of your tournament and encourage newcomers.

Contact Info:
No matter how much information you provide, when running a golf tournament you’re without a doubt going to receive some inquiries. Be sure to have a clear ‘contact us’ section so guests can quickly obtain your information. This will also give newcomers the ability to reach out prior to registering.

 

from WordPress http://ift.tt/2Ai2rE9