6 Ideas to Raise Money During Your Golf Tournament Fundraiser

Hosting a golf tournament fundraiser is one of the most exciting fundraising ideas—it draws in everyone from golfer dads and college athletes to general sports lovers. So how can you raise the most money from this golf-loving crowd?

There are many ways to earn funds from a charity golf tournament besides registration. Explore six creative fundraising ideas below to sink a hole in one for your event.

Golf tournament fundraiser checklist

Before driving into ideas about how to raise money during the event, let’s first discuss how to organize a golf tournament fundraiser. Here’s a quick rundown of everything you’ll need to get started:

• Location (country club, driving range, or mini golf course)
• Date and time for the event
• Fundraising goal
• Budget
• Volunteers, planners, and organizers
• Event plan (game type, hours, admission costs, etc.)
• Sponsors
• Marketing

Running a golf tournament fundraiser can be time- and energy-intensive, but if it helps you reach your goals, it’s worth it. Once you have a solid event plan, you can explore exciting and profitable ways to earn money during the fundraiser.

Golf tournament fundraiser ideas

Aside from admission prices, you can raise money in plenty of other ways during your golf fundraiser. Some unique and popular options include:

1. Contests or mini-games

Contests and games add an extra layer of fun to golf tournament fundraising. For example, you could host a hole-in-one contest and a furthest-drive or closest-to-the-pin competition. Award the winners enticing prizes like pins, buttons, cash, or gift cards.

You can raise (and save) money with these contests in two ways: 

1. Charge a fee to enter the contest
2. Ask a local business or restaurant to sponsor the game prize

Choose either option or combine both for enhanced earnings. Remember to calculate mini-game costs when setting fee prices or using other fundraising tactics.

2. Gift card sales or incentives

Consider running a RaiseRight gift card fundraiser during your golf tournament to earn even more. Gift cards have multiple purposes, from gifting to budgeting to treating yourself, making them ideal supplements to your fundraising event. With RaiseRight, recipients get the full value of every gift card purchase, with an additional percentage going back to support your organization. 

Not looking to run a sale during the event? You can still incorporate gift cards: purchase large-denomination gift cards for prizes or include small-denomination gift cards in participants’ goodie bags.

Getting started with RaiseRight is free. Here’s the rundown of how it works:

1. Enroll your group or organization in a RaiseRight fundraising program and get approved within just a few business days.
   
   
2. Invite your supporters to join the program if you’d like to run this as a group fundraiser throughout the year. You can also start purchasing gift cards immediately if you just want to use them as incentives for the tournament.
   
   
3. Buy physical, reloadable, or eGift cards, or shop online from hundreds of brands to earn money for your cause. You can choose the brands your players love to shop or dine at, and we’ll ship the gift cards to your organization in time for your tournament.

3. Mulligans

Offer players the chance to buy a “mulligan” or do-over. A mulligan allows a golfer to retake a shot they don’t like. You can sell this as an add-on with registration or offer it as an extra perk that players can buy throughout the day.

Pro-tip: Limit the number of mulligans for each player to two or less. While it’s a fun way to raise extra money, you also want to keep the game fair and enjoyable for everyone.

4. Food and drink tickets 

Golfing builds up an appetite for players and spectators alike. Why not also fundraise with food and drink tickets? Sell tickets before the tournament or at the door. Then, set up food and drink tables throughout the course to keep your golfers well-fueled for every drive, chip, and putt.

Some things to keep in mind with this tactic:

• Find out if your venue or golf course allows outside food and drinks
• Price tickets high enough to cover the food and refreshment expenses
• Secure sponsors or in-kind donations to offset the costs

5. Raffle 

Everyone loves the anticipation and reward of raffles: They create a fun opportunity to earn extra funds during your charity golf tournament. Make the prize whatever you want—from a Target or Cheesecake Factory gift card to a prize basket. 

Or, as Reddit user u/WampingWomper suggests, “Purchase a brand-new fancy driver or putter, and sell tickets at $20 each for a drawing. You’ll typically see $1,000+ in ticket sales on a $600 driver.”

You can offer an initial entry in the raffle with registration fees or sell tickets at the event. Try to secure sponsors or donations to cover the prize. Be sure to announce the raffle prize beforehand to increase excitement and ticket sales.

6. Photographs 

Provide a photo opportunity for players and their families or friends to commemorate a game well-putted. 

Ask a volunteer to photograph each group, then sell the pictures after the event. Post to social media or send out an email blast reminding attendees to order copies of their golfing mementos.

Tee up your fundraising success with RaiseRight 

Whether you’re hosting charity golf fundraisers for your sports team, church, nonprofit, or school, RaiseRight can help you earn more. 

You can run a RaiseRight program whenever you need to earn money, making it a reliable and profitable choice for your fundraising strategy. From annual events like golf tournaments to monthly charity tee-times, you can trust RaiseRight to supplement your earnings year-round.