Meeting Management: Golf By Maureen Littlejohn

Take Away

Fore Score

How to figure out if a golf tournament is a good fit for your conference— and, if it is, how to steer clear of sand traps and stick to the fairway.

The first thing that Don Skiados, president of Meetings Nine One One, tells meeting planners whoare considering adding a golf tournament to a conference is, “You’ve got to remember, a golf event is a whole different event from your confer- ence.” Skiados,whowas executive director of the Air-

line Pilots Association for 40 years before retiring and starting Meetings Nine One One, has been planning theGreaterWashingtonAviationOpen

Teeing Off Securing the golf course, gathering prizes, organ- izing signage, collecting payment, and ordering F&Bare just a few of the activities that you have to consider. “Depending on what the golfers eat anddrink, thebill can vary a lot,”Skiados said. “If the weather is hot, it will cost you $5,000 more for cool beverages.” Generally, he says, the food- and-beverage bill runs around $20,000 for a tour- nament of up to 144 people playing 18 holes. Tournaments have to be quite strict

about limitingnumbers of players.The rule of thumb is one foursome on the tee-box and one on the fairway per hole. “Any more,” Skiados said, “and the play becomes too slow.” Before you decide to have a golf tour-

nament, you need to think carefully about its purpose.Doyou want to add it as a fun social event?Ordo you want to make it a fundraiser? “If you are only relyingoneach player’s fees, you’ll break even. Their fees will cover the golf course andmaybe a box lunch and dinner,” Skiados said. “If you want to make money, you need to get your business suppliers involved with sponsorships and prizes. If you have a good cadre of sponsors, you can make $20,000 to $40,000.” Asuccessfulmoney-making event will

have a sponsoronevery hole. “At each tee- box the sponsor provides signage, as well

for more than two decades, and also has helped organize a number of charity tournaments in the Washington, D.C., area. He has watched many seasoned meeting planners pull out their hair when they tried organizing play on the fairway. Why? The strategic planning necessary for a golf tournament needs to be just as finely tuned as the logistics for an annual meeting.

as reps to talk with the players and let themknow about their products,” Skiados said. “Sometimes they’ll have games and prizes as well.” Even the beverage cart—which offers signage opportuni- ties as it drives around the course—can be spon- sored, as can box lunches.Toincrease revenue, Ski- ados suggests adding an auction—silent, live, or both—to your golf tournament.

ON_THE_WEB: Learn more about what it takes to plan a golf tournament from the Golf Tournament Association of America, at www.gtaaweb.org.

44 pcma convene December 2011 ILLUSTRATION BY GREG MABLY

RoughWork How much work does organizing a golf tournament take? “Tons,” accord- ing to Don Skiados. “A big marketing cam- paign needs to kick off around seven months in advance.” A successful tour-

nament usually depends on an organizing commit- tee of around eight people, Skiados said, each with a specific assignment. Often, there will be a sepa- rate sponsorship committee. “You have to

secure the course,” Skiados said, “and then you have to think about your gift giveaway to entice people to register. If it’s a shirt, you need to get their size. To tally the scores prop- erly, you need to get the handicap of each player. Prizes have to be lined up, and, of course, you need to collect the fees.”

Maureen Littlejohn is a Toronto-based freelance writer.