How to Plan a Seamless Corporate Golf Outing

Whether you’re hosting a golf tournament fundraiser, organizing a team-building social event for your employees or bringing industry leaders together to network, golf tournaments are an invigorating and memorable way to spend the day. Planning a golf outing well in advance, selecting excellent service providers and ensuring you’ve covered all the little details is paramount to success. These guidelines will help ensure your corporate golf outing scores a hole-in-one.

Essential Steps for Planning a Corporate Golf Outing

While some details of your event are left to fate — like the weather — you’re in control of many cardinal decisions that determine whether your golf tournament is above par. Fortunately, you can provide your guests with a grand experience simply by covering the following five bases:

1. Decide on the Purpose of the Golf Tournament

You should clearly define your event’s purpose before making any big decisions. Companies tend to host golfing outings for four primary reasons: 

• Boosting staff morale and engagement
• Increasing their brand awareness
• Building relationships with clients and partners
• Raising funds for the community

In all these cases, it’s beneficial to dedicate the event’s profits to a good cause if finances allow it. Even if you’re giving your staff a fabulous day out, making it a charity golf tournament lets the public know your company has good intentions and a respectable sense of responsibility. Golf tournament fundraisers should collect money for a cause that aligns with the company’s industry or ideals, lending good connotations to your brand’s image and genuinely helping people or animals in need.

2. Plan the Event’s Timeline and Logistics

Once the purpose of your corporate golf outing is clear, it’s time to decide on specific details. Consider the following questions and use those answers to plan your tournament:

• What is the date and time of the event?
• How will guests be transported to the venue?
• What is your overall budget, and how will you distribute it?
• Who will attend as guests, and who will run the event?
• Where will you host the event so most invitees can attend?
• Which equipment will participants use at the tournament?
• Will you partner with sponsors? If so, which ones?

3. Promote the Golf Outing and Communicate

Now, it’s time to promote your golf tournament fundraiser or team-building event. The most appropriate way to invite your guests depends on who you’re hosting:

• Team-building golfing events: If you’re inviting only company staff, send an invitation via email and have all attendees confirm their attendance, automatically adding the date to their work calendars. Add reminders in meeting notes and newsletters to build excitement and encourage attendance.
• Industry and community golf tournaments: If your company is hosting a charity golf tournament for executives, clients, stakeholders, sponsors or partners in your industry, send out elegant physical invitations that reflect your company’s brand. Be sure to include RSVP information and complement the physical invitation with a digital one for easy communication.

4. Organize Merch and Prizes for Attendees to Take Home

Corporate golf tournaments usually provide prizes for the top performers and branded merchandise for guests to keep as mementos. These tokens can be branded with the company’s logo to boost brand awareness or showcase sponsors’ branding. Some ways you can distribute merch to participants include:

• Swag bags: You could gift your guests water bottles, golfing accessories and sponsored or branded products in a handy, branded tote bag.
• Prizes for top achievers: Participants with the best scores could receive trophies, plaques, gift certificates, cash prizes or other big-ticket items.
• Contest or raffle winnings: To include more people in prize-giving, hold a raffle or award special prizes for specific achievements like holes-in-one.

5. Pick an Outstanding, All-Inclusive Local Venue

Selecting an exquisite, capable venue for your golf outing is crucial. You’ll want to choose a premium venue with excellent amenities and experience in hosting corporate golfing get-togethers. It should have facilities that wow attendees and meet the needs of everyone at the event. Essential factors to consider when picking a venue are:

• Capacity: Ensure the golf course can at least accommodate the number of golfers you’ve invited.
• Location: Book a venue close to where your guests live and work to improve your turnout and make traveling convenient.
• Catering: Pick somewhere with an on-site catering service so guests can easily access amazing food.

Things to Consider When Hosting Corporate Golf Tournaments

There are many variables to keep track of when hosting a golf outing, particularly if you’re inviting a large group of people. Be prepared for the odd hitch to occur at the event so you can quickly remedy any issues and make a swift comeback. Two variables to account for when planning a golf outing are:

1. The Weather Forecast

Research your area’s climate and schedule your event for a month with low rainfall, minimal wind and pleasant temperatures. Harrisburg’s hottest month is July, while its coldest is January. Early fall and late spring are the best times to schedule golf tournaments outdoors, as they also have lower wind speeds. The area’s rainfall is fairly consistent throughout the year, so select a date based on the optimal temperature and watch the weather forecasts to avoid wetter days.

If the heavens do happen to open during your corporate golf outing, you’ll want to provide a safe, dry shelter for your guests. Pick a venue with indoor facilities like a spacious restaurant that can comfortably accommodate your party. For hot, sunny days, ensure you have plenty of outdoor shade.

2. The Venue’s Facilities

The venue you pick should be well-equipped to handle unexpected circumstances during your event. It should have:

• Fully functioning, reliable golf carts.
• Extra golfing supplies.
• Clear signage.
• Ablution facilities.
• Safe grounds.
• Well-trained staff.
• Event coordination support.

Make Your Corporate Golf Outing Exceptional

At Colonial Golf & Tennis Club, we know how to plan a seamless corporate golf outing because we’ve had decades of experience hosting them to the highest standard. Our venue provides a myriad of services, from meticulous, efficient event planning to exceptional on-site catering and an expansive restaurant and pub. Our picturesque 18-hole golf course can accommodate up to 144 golfers and has a championship layout adorned with trees over 100 years old.

If you are in the Harrisburg area and looking to host a corporate golfing event, you can rely on Colonial Golf & Tennis Club for expert event planning and coordination. We’d love to make your life easier, so contact our dedicated team and have us take care of your golf outing from start to finish.