| Charity
Golf Tournaments – Part 1
Teeing
it up for Charity
By Eric Tracy (aka The Mulligan Man)
erictracy@earthlink.net
Published in FORE Magazine November/December 2002
Editor's Note:Soon after joining the Dodgers radio
broadcast team in 1982, KABC General Manager George Green
invited me to play in my first charity golf tournament.
I had a fabulous time. The day at El Caballero Country
Club was wonderfully full everything golfer’s like; great
weather, a terrific golf course, lotsa good food, good
drink, some good and no-so-good golf and getting to pal
around with ‘the guys’ which really was my favorite part.
Little did I know twenty years ago that charity
golf tournaments would become such a big part of my professional
life. To date I’ve either played, organized, sat on the
committee, been the celebrity host, acted as a consultant,
served as the Master of Ceremonies or performed as my
golfing alter ego--The Mulligan Man--at more than 400
charity events.
In this issue of FORE Magazine I’m going share that
20 years of tournament experience to encourage the golfers
reading this who’ve never played in a charity tournament
to pony-up an entry fee to support a worthy cause. Not
only for the community good your dollars will do in the
name of charity but for the good time you will certainly
have. And don’t worry; you won’t have to look hard to
find a tournament. It’s been estimated there are 5,000
charity golf tournaments a year in Southern California…and
I think that number is drastically short.
Then, in the next issue of FORE, due out in January,
I’m going to shift gears and speak to charity tournament
organizers, tournament committee members, organizations
thinking of having a charity tournament and as importantly
FOR golfers who pay play in these events. After 400 of
these things I think I’ve got a handle of what works..and
what doesn’t, what golfers like and what they don’t so
I’ll share my recipes for tournament success.
Here we go.
 “I’LL
BE HOME LATE, DEAR”: Charity golf tournaments are all-day
tickets so plan on playing hooky from work. (I know that
breaks your heart). Your entry fee to a good tournament
will include a Golfer Goodie Bag. This is a thank you
for attending. Golfer Goodie Bags are like a present from
your Aunt in Iowa. Sometimes it’s good stuff, sometimes
you wonder what she (or the tournament committee) was
thinking. But, hey, it’s a gift, be nice, don’t complain.
Prepare to attend the tournament hungry and rested. Some
days starts early with a continental breakfast. Then it’sall
the balls you want to hit on the range. Maybe there’s
a putting contest to get you loose. Some golfers show
up right before the tournament starts. Not me. I love
hanging with golfers, being a range rat, telling dirty
jokes on the putting green. Soon it’s time to start. Everybody
takes off at the same time starting on a different hole
in what’s called a ‘shotgun start’. You’ll either have
a BBQ lunch at the turn or they load your cart with (yech!)
a box lunch. (We’ll address that awful truth in the next
issue). Look for tubs of iced-down drinks (water, soda
and sometimes beer) on the course. During the 18-holes
there will be a few skills contests on the course. Maybe
a longest drive, a couple closest to the pins, maybe you’ll
be lucky and win a car for a hole-in-one. Charity golf
tournaments are wonderful if you are a) a new golfer;
b) play only a few times a year, or; c) just aren’t very
good. 90% of these events are a ‘Scramble’ format. In
a Scrambe you play as a team picking the best shot of
every four shots played. You’ll meet new people(if you
don’t come in a twosome or foursome of your own). Maybe
you’ll make a business contact or two. During the round
you’ll make a handful of team birdies, a couple of bogies
if any at all and lots of pars. After golf there’s a cocktail
party, dinner and an awards banquet. Usually there’s a
raffle, sometimes a silent auction, sometimes a live auction.
The later three items usually cost you a little more dough,
so bring some cash, grab a check or don’t forget your
credit card. Plan on being at the course for at least
8-hours…more if you’re like me and like to get there early
and/or leave late. Domestic advice: stop on the way home
and grab a bunch of flowers for your significant other,
you’ve been gone a long time…or give him/her the trophy
you won.
 MIX
PLEASURE WITH BUSINESS: If you already spend money on
client/vendor entertainment, playing in charity golf tournaments
is another great way of building business relationships.
Aside from getting a chance to spend a considerable amount
of time with a new prospect or valued customer it’s also
an efficient use of your time and money. The charity benefits,
you benefit and heck…when you invite customers to golf
it’s not really playing hooky, is it?
PLAY GREAT COURSES FOR GREAT CAUSES: If you’ve always
wanted to play Riviera Country Club and you don’t know
a member how are you going to play it? In a charity golf
tournament, that’s how. On almost any given Monday places
like Riviera, Wilshire, Sherwood, Dove Canyon and about
3-dozen other member-only country clubs regularly book
charity golf tournaments. Entry fees for tournaments at
clubs like these can be on the pricey side. But, writing
a $300 check to a charity to play Dove Canyon is still
a lot cheaper than the having to fork over the price of
a Mercedes to join the club.
TRY IT YOU’LL LIKE IT! Whether the tournament benefits
a local women’s shelter, a huge national charity like
the American Red Cross or you just want to honor the effort
of someone who cares (like Operation Progress, a foundation
started by a LAPD officer who raises funds to help  ghetto
kids get out of the ghetto) charity tournaments fund lots
of terrific good work in our community. You’ll find tournament
listings in the pages of this magazine. You’ll find them
in other regional golf publications. You’ll see flyers
posted at golf shops and driving ranges. The best source,
listing nearly 1,000 tournaments every year on more than
100 courses from San Diego to Santa Barbara, visit Charity
Golf Online (www.CharityGolfOnline.com ), the Internet’s
only clearinghouse of local charity golf tournaments.
It’s often said that even the worst day of golf is better
than your best day at work but how bad can the golf be
when you’re on the tee for charity
Eric Tracy is a sportscaster on KFWB NEWS 980. To find
out more about The Mulligan Man visit www.TheMulliganMan.com
or send email to Eric@TheMulliganMan.com
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