Entry fees fill the field, but the contests are what people remember. A scramble with no games is just a long round. Add three or four well-run contests and the same day turns into a fundraiser people talk about for a year. Bolt these onto whatever you are running, whether that is a straight scramble or a quirky tournament format like the Flags format.
Contests also happen to be where a surprising amount of the money lives. Mulligans, beat-the-pro buy-ins, and a ball drop can quietly out-earn the entry fees, and most of it is nearly pure profit on top of the round.
This is the contests deep-dive of our complete guide to how to run a charity golf tournament. If you are building the whole event, start there; if you are the one choosing and running the on-course games, this is your playbook. And if you are organizing any golf event, our wider planning guide maps out the rest of the day.
Why On-Course Contests Earn Their Spot
A good contest does four jobs at once, which is why it earns its place in the plan. First, it breaks up the round: a longest-drive hole or a beat-the-pro station gives every group something to look forward to between shots.
Contests are one slice of the money picture. To see where they fit alongside raffles, auctions, and sponsorships, browse our complete guide to golf tournament fundraising ideas.
Second, it gives every skill level a moment. The fifteen-handicap who will never win the scramble can still sink the longest putt or land inside the circle, and that little win is what makes a beginner come back next year.
Third, contests create sponsor visibility. Every contest hole is a natural home for a sign and a logo, which means a business can fund the prize and own that hole for the day. More on that later.
Fourth, and the reason organizers care, they stack real revenue on top of entry fees. The rule that ties it all together: keep every contest simple to run. A game a volunteer cannot explain in one sentence is a game that stalls the pace and never gets played.
Closest to the Pin
This is the classic, and it belongs on a par 3 where every group hits the green. Pick a hole with a fair tee shot, not a 220-yard carry that only the low handicaps can reach, so the whole field has a real shot at it.
The setup is dead simple. Plant a marker by the cup and leave a measuring tape: any player who beats the current closest mark moves the marker and writes their name on the card. The last name standing at the end of the day wins.
Closest to the pin is the easiest contest of all to sponsor, because the prize is modest and the signage is obvious. Announce the winner at dinner with a measured distance and you give the room a clean, satisfying moment.
Longest Drive (and Its Cousins)
Run longest drive on a wide, forgiving par 4 or par 5 where big swings are safe. The one rule that keeps it honest: the ball must finish in the fairway to count, so a sliced bomb into the trees does not win.
Mark the spot the same way as closest to the pin. A volunteer or an honor-system card tracks the leader, and each new longest drive moves the marker down the fairway with a fresh name beside it.
Two cousins keep the longest-drive idea fresh if you want more than one swing-for-the-fences hole:
- Straightest Drive: run a string straight down the center of the fairway and measure each drive’s distance from that line. Closest to the center wins, which rewards control instead of raw power and gives a different player a chance.
- Longest Putt: on a chosen green, mark the longest putt that actually drops. It is a low-cost contest with a big payoff moment, since a 40-footer falling in front of the group is pure theater.
Hole-in-One Contest
This is the showstopper that gets people talking before they even tee off. Put a huge prize on a par 3: a car, a vacation, or a cash jackpot for the player who aces the hole.
Here is the part that makes it safe to offer. You fund the prize through hole-in-one insurance, so your cost is a small fixed premium rather than the full value of the car. If nobody aces it, you are out only the premium; if someone does, the insurer pays the prize.
The one thing insurers require is proof, so station witnesses at the hole all day. Two volunteers who watch every tee shot satisfy the policy and turn an ace into a verified, celebrated moment. Shop a couple of insurance quotes early, because terms and minimum distances vary. Quotes usually run $200 to $1,000 depending on your field size, the prize value, and the hole yardage, and a sponsor will often cover that premium in exchange for their name on the hole.
Putting Contest
The practice green is dead space before and after the round, so put it to work. A putting contest runs there without touching your pace of play, which makes it one of the easiest add-ons to bolt onto any event.
The standard format is three balls from about 20 feet, and most made putts wins. Run it as paid entries: charge a few dollars a try, let people buy as many tries as they want, and watch the competitive ones come back twice.
For a bigger draw, offer a single long putt for a headline prize: one attempt from across the green, drain it and win cash or a gift card. It is cheap to run, sells well, and gives the green a crowd while groups wait to start.
Beat the Pro
Beat the Pro is a reliable earner and one of the best draws on the course. Station a local club pro on a single hole, usually a par 3, and let groups take a swing at outdriving or out-shooting them as they come through.
Players pay $10 to $40 per shot to take the pro on. Beat the pro and they win a prize or double their money. Come up short, and the buy-in goes straight to the prize pot or the cause. Either way the contest collects on every group, all day.
The economics are friendly because the pro wins most of the time, so most buy-ins are close to pure profit. Ask a local pro to donate the time, or fold their fee into a sponsorship, and the hole becomes one of your highest earners.
Wager Games: Par-3 Circle and Ball Drop
Wager games are where contests turn into a money machine, because the odds quietly favor the charity. Two are worth setting up at almost any outing.
The Par-3 Circle Challenge draws an 8–10 foot circle around the cup on a par 3. Players wager $5 to $20 before they hit. Land inside the circle and they double their money, miss and the prize pot, or the cause, keeps the buy-in. On a tough enough hole, most shots miss, and the math runs in your favor all day.
The Ball Drop is a near-pure-profit, raffle-style game. Sell numbered balls in advance (often $10 to $20 each), then drop the entire batch over a green from a lift or a tall ladder. The ball that lands closest to the cup wins, and the rest is profit.
Ball drops work because you can sell far more balls than there are players: one golfer might buy five. Cap the prize at a flat amount or a percentage of sales, and a single drop can rival your entry-fee take.
Mulligans and the Survival Kit
Mulligans are the simplest money-maker in golf. Sell each do-over swing for $5 to $10, or three for $20, and let players use them to replay a bad shot anywhere on the course.
The trick is to pre-sell them at registration, before the round even starts. Cash flows in early, the volunteers selling them have a captive line, and almost everyone buys at least one when they are already reaching for their wallet.
To raise the average sale, bundle a Mulligan Survival Kit for about $20. The kit packs a mulligan, a length of string (good for a free drop or to move the ball), a foot wedge (a sanctioned kick out of trouble), and a throw, all in one cheap, fun package that is nearly pure profit.
Contest Pricing at a Glance
Here is the whole menu in one place, with how each game works and what golfers expect to pay. Lift it straight onto your registration table and adjust the prices to your crowd.
| Game | How It Works | Typical Price |
|---|---|---|
| Mulligans | Do-over swing to replay a bad shot | $5–10 each, or 3 for $20 |
| Mulligan Survival Kit | Mulligan + string + foot wedge + throw | ~$20 |
| Beat the Pro | Take on a stationed pro for a prize or your money back | $10–40 per shot |
| Par-3 Circle | Land in the circle to double your wager | $5–20 per try |
| Ball Drop | Numbered ball dropped over the green, closest to the cup wins | $10–20 per ball |
| Closest to the Pin | Par-3 contest, nearest tee shot to the cup wins | Free entry, sponsor-funded prize |
| Longest Drive | Par-4/5 contest, longest drive in the fairway wins | Free entry |
| Hole-in-One | Par-3 big prize for an ace | Free entry, prize via insurance |
Notice the split: the free-entry contests draw everyone in, and the paid games drive the revenue. Run a mix of both and you get a fun day for the field and a strong number for the cause.
How to Run Contests Smoothly
The games are easy; the logistics are where outings stumble. A few habits keep every contest clean and the pace moving.
Contest payouts are just one piece of your prize table. For result awards, novelty prizes, and the rules around them, see our guide to golf tournament prizes and awards.
- Put clear signage at each contest hole. A sign that states the game, the rules, and the price means groups know what to do without flagging down a volunteer.
- Staff it with a volunteer or an honor system. Wager games and beat-the-pro need a person to collect money. Closest-to-the-pin and longest-drive can run on the honor system with a card.
- Stock a measuring tape and markers. One kit per contest hole is all it takes to settle every distance fairly.
- Decide self-report versus verified up front. Self-report is fine for small prizes but use witnesses for anything big, especially the hole-in-one.
- Collect results on one master sheet. Have a runner gather the cards before dinner so you are not chasing winners while the room waits.
- Announce and award at the dinner. Build the contest winners into the awards program so every game gets its moment in front of the crowd.
Contests are just one station in a much larger day-of operation. For the volunteer roster, the run sheet, and the rest of the day-of plan that keeps all of this humming, see our guide to running a charity golf tournament.
Turn Contests Into Sponsor Holes
Every contest hole is a sponsorship waiting to happen, and it is one of the easiest sponsorships you will ever sell. A business funds the prize and gets signage at that hole, so the closest-to-the-pin sign reads “Closest to the Pin, sponsored by Smith Insurance” all day long.
The pitch sells itself because the value is concrete. The sponsor covers a prize you were going to buy anyway, you pocket the difference, and they get their name on a hole where players stop and pay attention. Beat-the-pro and hole-in-one holes are especially attractive, since that is where crowds gather.
If you want to package contest holes into a full sponsorship menu (tiers, pricing, and how to make the ask), see our guide to golf tournament sponsorship and sell every contest twice: once to the sponsor, once to the field.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the most popular golf tournament contests?
The staples are closest to the pin, longest drive, a hole-in-one contest, and mulligans, because every one of them is simple to run and easy for golfers to understand. Beyond those, beat the pro, a putting contest, and wager games like the par-3 circle and ball drop are crowd favorites that also raise serious money. Most outings run a mix of free-entry contests for fun and paid games for revenue.
How much should I charge for mulligans?
Price mulligans at $5 to $10 each, or bundle three for $20 to nudge players into buying more. Pre-sell them at registration so the cash comes in early and almost everyone grabs at least one. For a bigger sale, offer a Mulligan Survival Kit (a mulligan plus a string, foot wedge, and throw) for around $20.
Do I need hole-in-one insurance?
If you are offering a big-ticket prize like a car, a trip, or a cash jackpot for an ace, yes. Hole-in-one insurance lets you advertise a huge prize while your actual cost is just a small fixed premium, so a hole-in-one becomes the insurer’s expense, not yours. The policy will require witnesses stationed at the hole, so plan to staff two volunteers there all day.
Which contests raise the most money?
The paid games are your earners: mulligans, beat the pro, the par-3 circle, and the ball drop. The ball drop in particular can rival your entry-fee take, because you can sell far more numbered balls than you have players. Free-entry contests like closest to the pin pull people in and are best funded by a sponsor, while the paid games do the heavy lifting on revenue.
How do you run a closest-to-the-pin contest?
Pick a par 3 the whole field can reach, then place a marker by the cup and leave a measuring tape. Each group measures any tee shot that beats the current mark, moves the marker, and writes the new leader’s name on the card. Collect the card before dinner and announce the winner with the measured distance during the awards.
Final Thoughts
The best charity outings are not the ones with the most expensive course; they are the ones with the most fun packed into the round. Pick three or four contests, run a mix of free-entry games and paid earners, and keep every one of them simple enough to explain in a sentence. That combination is what makes golfers open their wallets and come back next year.
Contests are one piece of a great event. For the course, the format, the sponsors, the volunteers, and the day-of checklist that ties it all together, head back to our full guide on how to run a charity golf tournament and build the rest of the day around the games you just lined up.
