Dear Carl How to run a successful one-day golf tournament

Please notice that throughout the book I have paragraphs highlighted in green and here are but a few of them. If you read between the lines you will realize that some of these points are emphasized because of a mistake I've made in the past and I'm trying to help you avoid the same mistakes.

Deciding on Tournament Date and Time section, pg 3.

"Note: Don’t assume that your selected tournament date is going to be safe from opposing tournaments year after year. Since you are reading this manual your tournament is guaranteed to be a success—if you adhere to these common-sense principles—and you’ll want a repeat performance next year

(your customers will demand a replicate of the fun they had). Check your tournament date for safe-scheduling every year to avoid any bad surprises that tend to sneak up on you (and they will, believe me)."

Tee Prizes section, pg 5.

"Note: You will notice several statements during your reading of this manual as to the limited time you will have at your post tournament party. This is where prizes are awarded and winners announced which sounds easy enough but don’t be fooled, this is the peak moment of an already very hectic day. This is one of

the most stressful days of the year for me and as I get through it in what seems like organized chaos to those of us behind the scenes, because of preparation and hard work it appears to the players involved to be a smoothly running machine. This perception is what needs to be accomplished and that is exactly what you will achieve if you follow this manual."

Hole Sponsor Prizes section pg. 9.

"Note: It is imperative that all markers are collected and not forgotten (team captains can be assigned to help in collecting if they are the last team to play the hole). Players with their name on the lists need to be acknowledged for their excellent shots at the awards presentation and the K.P. money must be distributed. In announcing the prize I will always mention everybody’s name on each list (remember the importance placed on individual recognition?)."

Signups section pg 14.

"The very last thing I want to be doing the night before a tournament is to be calling up people asking if they are still going to play. I have watched this happen over and over with people running other tournaments and this is what I do to avoid that:"

Sorry, next paragraph deleted. (What? No teasing allowed?)

Individual Handicapping section pgs 15 and 16.

After explaining the simplest way (by far) in assigning a player a handicap who does not have one, I close with these paragraphs:

"If your player objects to their given handicap as being too low, simply explain that:

•

A golf course rated at 67 is considered a fairly easy course,

•

Every player given a handicap is achieved by using the same formula,

•

They are not expected to carry their team,

•

This is used for team drawing purposes only,

•

They should establish their own handicap through their local golf association.

Be kind but firm about this (remember my policy of “speak soft with big stick”). You will keep seeing the words “be firm about this” constantly in this writing. This is for a reason (everything I do is for a reason—yes, I am one of those you would refer to as “anal”). One consolation given to a player that other players will not receive

will likely reap you consequences not wanted."

Dealing with a No-show in the Scramble Format section pg 18.

"In the event a player is late or an alternate has been called in, the golf staff will catch the player up to his/her group when they arrive at the golf course. Either waiting for the fourth player to show or when forced to play a threesome because a player could not be found to fill in, there is only one acceptable procedure to follow."

Yeah, I know, more teasing but I just can't help it.

Team Selection/The not-so-blind draw section pg 23.

This section has some very important points in it that reveals some of the nuances of running a golf tournament that you will need to take into consideration. It closes with this paragraph:

"These points are to be used by you at your discretion, but keep in mind the ultimate goal is the success of the tournament which, again, can only be measured by how

much fun everyone had. Keeping everyone happy is sometimes much more complicated than can be seen on the surface."

Team Selection/The draw section pg 24.

This little nugget closes out a long green section where I give an account (example) of a situation I was forced into:

"To the surprise of everyone they played very well (you’ll read of The Formula in a later section) and took second place money, over a hundred dollars apiece (I just love seeing captains with egg on their faces). The end result was that I had kept a good customer involved without offending anyone, everybody had a great time so the tournament was a success and a potentially bad situation had been eliminated. (Remember the prevailing assumption that women weaken a team? Not so, especially in a scramble format. A bad player is simply a bad player regardless of sex and I have found that high handicap women are usually much better putters than high handicap men.)"

Team Selection/Tournament Handicapping section pg 25.

The following paragraph reveals one of my common-sense secrets so I am hesitant to show you, but you need to realize the true value of the manual so here goes...

"The team will use the captain’s shot the majority of the time, period (remember that a good portion of players in a bar tournament will struggle to break 100). Over the years I have found that the best solution is if I base the team handicap on the percentage of shots used by the captain, and here is why: on fifty percent of par

4 holes, the team will have used the low handicapped captains’ ball three of the four shots on the hole. There are exceptions, of course, because a captain can have a bad day, but these numbers play out year after year." I then proceed to give you my formula

for assigning a team their team handicap.

And on page 26:

"I have found that always taking the averages and numbers over time periods gives the best methods of leveling out the playing field even though exceptions happen from time to time."

K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Stupid) and The Formula section pg 28.

This section alone is worth the "price of admission" and here are the final paragraphs:

"I have had to deal with other similar instances where the teams did not win but did very well those years (remember the example I gave you of the 14 handicap male captain and his three woman team? Just one of many stories I could tell you).

Believe me, K.I.S.S and The Formula works.

You can bank on it."

Tournament Organization/Communicating with the Golf Course section pg 30.

"If you don’t see them taking annotations at the second meeting this is where you need to make a note to yourself that you will emphasize this/these particular need(s) at your final meeting with the golf course rep during Hell Week. What you are trying to do here is avoid any possible snafus on Tournament Day and we do not want items to be missed." Just what the heck is Hell Week?

"On a personal note: I will guarantee you that if they bring out a manila folder with your tournament’s name on it at every meeting you have with them you will feel much more secure and confident not only about the professionalism of the golf course but that they are also determined to take care of your every need. Seeing

a small detail like this can really put your mind at ease but still use the list you create to double check the details with them. Now on with “The List”:"

Tournament Organization/Video section pg 34.

"While the freelancing method can occasionally capture some amazing golf shots (I was once videoed holing a 40 foot snake from the opposite end of the putt with the camera held at ground level—just as incredible piece of camera work as it was lucky on my part) the time to edit the video to be shown at the awards party is very limited; by containing the video length to taping everybody’s tee shot no editing is needed yet the video is still very entertaining and will capture everyone’s attention within direct viewing when replaying on a T.V. monitor. (Everyone likes to see themselves on T.V. and take turns laughing at each other—this type of bonding is

very important in creating a traditional event)."

Tournament Organization/Hell Week section pg 38.

"Note: By acquiring the golf course’s hole assignment sheet you can further organize your seating arrangements by color coding different “sections” of the golf carts by either using different paper color for your cart assignment signs or changing your ink color of your printing. By preparing your seating chart in a like manner you can direct players to the color coded signs on the carts (remember

to keep these colors separated and in their own section) and they will be very happy with a “targeted” area to go to and will quickly and simply find the cart with their name on it. “Going the distance” in being fully prepared and organized will tremendously simplify things on Tournament Morn (remember the K.I.S.S.principle?)"

Tournament Organization/Announcements section pg 41.

"During the pre-tournament announcement is usually when the cart keys are handed out (courses usually keep the cart keys to prevent carts running amok here and there—the exception being private community courses and resorts where players often have their own carts) and a well organized and experienced golf course will escort the players out to their designated holes. If the golf course is not prepared to escort the carts to their assigned holes (or not staffed for this), always ask in your announcement if everyone knows which hole they have been assigned to and mention to the team Captains to make sure the players in the other cart know which hole they are starting on. (I have had players lost when captains have roared off

assuming the other cart knew where they were supposed to go, but did not)."

Post-Tournament Duties section pg 42.

"Always let greeting the teams appear to be the primary function here.

Collecting golf tournament data is a “behind the scenes” task but is critical in finalizing the tournament and crucial to the awards ceremony. If you are missing any hole prize marker sheets you or a volunteer need to hop into a cart and search the course. Look in returned golf carts (the marker might have been left in one) and ask

about in the clubhouse (the marker might have been turned in elsewhere). The main priority is retaining possession of the marker sheets; if any player does not get recognized for a great shot (and they know their name is on a certain marker) the mud ending up on your face is not only very un-becoming, it stings a little, too."

Tournament Party/Preparation and Presentation section pg 44.

After explaining options on how to break ties if the post-tourney party is held at the golf course, I then explain how I do it at our restaurant (off-site).

"If there is a tie for any place but 1st I just combine the prize money we had designated for the two places and now divide by 8 (the number of players of both

teams). We would now have to reshuffle the denominations of the bills in the envelopes as an odd number we weren’t prepared for is bound to pop up.

If there is a tie for 1st place this is how I break the tie:"

ah-ah-ahh. Sorry Charlie, ya gotta buy the book.

The Finishing Touches section pg. 47

"I keep all my tournament notes, lists, flyers, captain’s sheets, hole sponsor sheets--EVERYTHING that has to do with the tournament ‘til the following year. This will not only save me some stress for the next year but it also gives me a pattern to follow for the subsequent year’s tournament: an outline, a plan, a blueprint on which to base the following year on. I also make and keep notes on any problem that I ran into involving the golf course; I want to make sure these issues are resolved and not repeated the following year."

Wow. So why have I given you so much information so freely?

First, you must realize how much work running a golf tournament actually is. If you are not prepared or willing to dig deep and follow through with stout commitment and effort please do not waste your money on my product.

Second, I needed to show you exactly what you're getting for your money. I have one heckuva product here that is chock-full of advice and wisdom (I doubt anyone needs more convincing that I am giving away 20 years of

experience here) and is well worth the price I have put on it.

This book has over 20,000 no frill words divided amongst 35 heavily detailed sections covering every aspect of a golf tournament that could involve a small business while organizing one. If you are willing to put in the work, you will definitely get out of it exactly what you've put into it, I guarantee it.

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