How to Organise a Charity Golf Day

At some point in our golfing lives, most of us will take part in a charity day. They serve two main purposes - raising money for a good cause and, if organised properly, they can be tremendous fun.

Many of you could well be involved in charity days supporting Prostate Cancer UK's Big Golf Race this year or be asked to organise one.

So how on earth do you go about setting up a charity golf day? Funny you should ask that. It just so happens that I am a member of Dunston Hall Golf Club’s seniors charity day committee and we have just held our first meeting to plan this year’s event, which will take place on September 9. I was also involved in helping to set up last year’s captain’s charity, held in aid of a suicide bereavement charity that held a special place in our 2024 captain’s heart. And we managed to raise the magnificent sum of £8,000.

Set Up a Committee

It is absolutely vital that you set up a committee that meets at least once a month and that everybody knows exactly what they are doing. I have been asked to find hole sponsors and auction and raffle prizes, although I have made it perfectly clear that other committee members are free to come up with sponsors too.

Get The Charity Involved

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This year our captain has chosen to support the Hemsby Lifeboat, which receives no funding from the RNLI but looks after the stretch of coast off Hemsby as well as huge parts of the Norfolk Broads.

We have decided not to set ourselves a financial target but I will be disappointed if we do not at least match last year’s total.

Whatever your chosen charity, be sure to get them involved - they will be able to give you merchandising and will have experience of fund-raising.

Set a Date & Plan Early

So the first thing you have to do is agree a date with your golf club, telling them how many players you expect to be playing in your event and getting a price for food. You will be having a shotgun start and that means that a lot of golfers will be finishing their 18 holes at the same time - so keep the food simple and ensure that your golf club is going to have enough bar staff to cope with the sea of faces who will swarm to the bar in search of a drink afterwards.

It is important that you price your day competitively. Charge too much and people will think twice about playing. Last year we charged club members £20 and non-members £30. They were also charged a further £5 for raffle tickets and £5 for two mulligans and entry to a putting competition. And why not ask your pro to station himself at the easiest par three on your course and challenge everybody to pay £5 a pop to try to get the ball closer to the hole? 

(Image Credit: Kevin Diss Photography)

Find Sponsors

We have every hole sponsored. This has turned out to be easier than you may believe. 

I contacted a host of local businesses and asked them if they would be prepared to pay £100, and we were astonished by the response. A local car dealer actually offered £200 for the first hole. And in no time at all we had found sponsors for almost every one of our 18 holes. We then asked our members if anybody would be happy to sponsor a hole. The response was incredible.

Many businesses said that although they couldn’t sponsor a hole they would be prepared to give us auction and raffle prizes. You should also ask your members to help with raffle prizes - you will be pleasantly surprised by the response you get to this.

Before a shot had been hit on the day we already knew that it was going to be a success.

It is worth noting that the car dealer is this year sponsoring our first hole to the tune of £500 as well as offering a car for a weekend as an auction prize. Not just any old car but a Porsche.

We did look at the possibility of offering a car as a prize for a hole in one but quickly ruled this out when we found out how much the insurance would cost!

And the Hemsby Lifeboat crew will be offering somebody the opportunity to head out to sea with them. 

Consider Other Fundraising Activities

Other fund-raising activities you might want to consider are a series of quiz nights, maybe even a dinner-dance. And don’t forget to speak to your club professional to ask him or her to offer some prizes, maybe even a series of golf lessons as an auction prize. 

I cannot stress how important it is to be fearless in your approach - contact as many businesses as you can. Many will not even bother to reply. And do not over-promise things. You also need to decide whether you are going to invite your sponsors to enter teams.

Contact Local Media

Be sure that you contact the local media (TV, radio, newspapers) well in advance of the event to tell them all about your charity day and the cause you are supporting. You will be pleasantly surprised by how much interest this can generate.

On the day you will need some volunteers to get out on the course early and set up the advertising pop-ups for all your sponsors (and somebody to remove them at the end of the day). You will also need somebody to head out and place nearest-the-pin markers on all your par threes and a longest-drive marker.

Choose a Format

You need to decide on a format. We are going for a Texas scramble with teams of four. Some of these will comprise entirely of Dunston members, others will be visitors and there will be a mix of both.

It is vital that you word your entry forms properly and that you make them available to all local golf clubs. Ensure it clearly outlines the cost of entry and any other costs such as your raffle, and encourage people to bring cash.

One of the highlights of the day for us was the charity auction at the end of the round. First and foremost, you need to identify an auctioneer - and provide him with a microphone. We had some sensational auction prizes in 2024 and set minimum bids on a number of those - and it could not have gone more smoothly for us.

Ensure that your chosen charity is given the chance to say a few words to everybody. You should do this BEFORE you hold your auction to ensure that you still have a full house.

You will also need somebody to tally up all the money and provide your captain with a final amount ahead of the presentation.

Ensure that somebody records the day’s events and, finally, enjoy the day.