Running Your Event - 2024 Halloween Scramble (PDF)

This graphic provides an example overview of the suggested date of your event for 2024 and how you can allocate time to your event using a shotgun start format. The event should be 3 hours in length to give enough time for all teams to complete 9 holes and attend the award ceremony. You have the fl...

This graphic provides an example overview of the suggested date of your event for 2024 and how you can allocate time to your event using a shotgun start format. The event should be 3 hours in length to give enough time for all teams to complete 9 holes and attend the award ceremony. You have the flexibility to schedule the event on a date and time of the day to suit your requirements, but this is recommended to be within a 2 week window before or after Halloween. The Halloween Scramble is specifically designed to provide a fun and welcoming experience to all participating. The event is specially designed to promote inclusivity for those on the program and their friends who may or may not have golf experience. The event should run in a traditional scramble format, where all players on a team hit drives. The best shot is selected, and each player plays from that selected spot. This process continues until the ball is holed. The events should be run over a maximum of 9 holes on your adapted course. Guidance is provided on how you should position players on the adapted started positions, however you have the flexibility to adapt the event to suit your needs. The event is a team based event where attendees participate in a team of 4. Participating juniors on your program should be encouraged to invite a non participating friend to the event and then made into a team of 4 with another pair. It is recommended that you setup a golf course with each hole being a Par 3. This set-up allows everyone to play from the same "tee", improves pace of play, and creates a fun and inclusive atmosphere for all skill levels. The scoring system is recommended to be a traditional scramble format with the team entering the score they have achieved for the hole. The lowest score overall for the event will be the winner. We recommend that you appoint a team captain who is responsible for helping their team to navigate the course and also for marking the scorecard. You the coach, will be best placed to appoint the team captain. The exact timings of your event will vary and be specific to the needs of your day. You should plan for your event to last around 3 hours. You should be ready to confirm registration on the day, welcome families and those participating to the event and distribute scorecards. You should outline the itinerary for the event and also direct participants to their correct starting position. You should conduct a fun warm up before the juniors head to the course and outline the event rules! Be on hand to answer any final questions and direct juniors to their starting position to ensure that attendees arrive at their tee on time. Be on hand throughout the event to support participants and assist with any issues. After the completion of the event, be ready to welcome participants in from playing and collect scorecards. At this stage you can also direct them to the award ceremony and the social area where they can wait until all participants have finished. Keep the environment fun by awarding juniors for their participation off the golf course, as well as thanking families for their support. You should allocate time to chat to families and promote future events and your program, as well as life at the club. It is recommended that you set your golf course up as a 9-hole, par 3 course, utilizing any yardage from 50-150 yards. This set-up allows everyone to play from the same "tee", improves pace of play, and creates a fun and inclusive atmosphere for all skill levels! To assist you with this and for ease of running your event, you should use your JGA adapted course that you already have setup. You should choose from either The Ace, Albatross or Eagle Tee on each hole, and holes should not be longer than 150 yards. Use your judgement and adapt any teeing positions, or use a mixture of teeing positions on your course to keep within these guidelines. It is up to you to develop your event to suit the needs of your club and expand on the event to drive engagement and enjoyment. There are additional ways that you can add to the event that have provided success at other facilities. As the event is specially themed to Halloween, you should encourage all attending the event to dress up and you could award prizes to those who make the best effort. You can also get the juniors to create a fun team name to use during the event. Consider including a fun food and beverage component, like a BBQ cookout or a light buffet following the event. This can be included in your event fee or at an additional cost. You could add a fun element to your event by incorporating fun skills challenges on the course. This could include a long drive competition or nearest to the pin. Based on the needs of your event and the ability of the participants that you have signed up, you can tweak the rules of the event by defining the number of drives for each player over the course of 9 holes. Prior to or after your event you could organise fun games to include the whole family such as a fun putting competition. This will build inclusion for all and sense of fun and comradery. To run your event effectively, you will need some equipment and you may also need to supply this to your juniors, especially those new to the program. Where necessary, this is available to you within the Coaches Toolbox. You will need Scorecards for each participant and these can be downloaded from the Coaches Toolbox, which includes the adapted rules. You should organize a welcome table to add a professional impression of your event and ensure you have all the equipment available to those attending and any information about your event. You should set up your Academy Course and the relevant starting positions using at least colored cones. Where feasible, the starting positions can also be sprayed at the relevant yardage on the cart path or be a permanent addition to the course. You should add a themed twist to your event by adding Halloween equipment in the club house, practice facility and on the course. This will add an engaging element to your event and also create great marketing collateral for making your program success at your club and to your wider database. Some of the participants attending your event will not have equipment and you need to make sure you can supply left and right handed equipment in the correct size and weight. You may choose to supply basic on course equipment such as pencils, balls, ball markers and pitchforks. This will also help with the education of those attending. How well you prepare, plan and execute the event on the day will make a huge impact on your JGA program and activity at the club. You should be organised with material to help you promote your program and the club. Ensure you allocate enough time in your schedule to engage with juniors and their families at the end of the event. Prioritize the time spent at the start of your event. Make sure you are there at the welcome area to meet the participants and their families. This will create a friendly and welcoming atmosphere. Remember the day is built to welcome the participants to the club, give them an experience of playing the game and make new social connections. Keep the day fun and be supportive to all. You should award the event winners based on the lowest score achieved across 9 holes. You may decide to make awards based on the first 3, 6 or 9 holes depending on the age of those attending. Try not to focus too much on winning, as the event is about fun and inclusivity! At the end of the event, take some time to gather feedback from those attending to help shape any future event you run. You can also gather testimonials, imagery and engaging video content to promote your program and the club.