Corey Herlickson, the 2012 Dakota Chapter Facility Promoter of the Year and 2013 Dakota Chapter Junior Golf Leader of the Year, is the PGA head professional at Meadows Golf Course in Moorhead, Minnesota.

Started in 2015, World Golf Scramble (WGS) is four-person scramble event that begins at the local level and culminates with a big finale in Las Vegas for a large purse. It is similar to the vehicle manufacturer scrambles of the past, but the professional does not join the golfers in Vegas. The WGS provides golfer with an opportunity to play in a competitive tournament while having the chance to have a buddy trip in Vegas if they advance. The scramble format is one in which golfers of all levels can compete as there are gross and net divisions for low and high handicap teams. We hosted a WGS qualifier this year, and it was crucial for us because as organizers of the tournament we received incentives for the more teams registered in the form of golf shop gift certificates as part of the entry fee. In other words, we received guaranteed revenue in the golf shop. Meanwhile, the WGS is important to the facility because it drives revenue in every department whether it’s green fees, cart fees, range, golf shop or food and beverage. It also allows the facility to show what it has to golfers not from the area.

Each facility participating in the World Golf Scramble is able to set their own rate which is nice as each facility has a different clientele. We charged $450 for the four person team. We kept $150 for green fees and range balls. The World Golf Scramble qualifier drove an increase in revenue of $ 1500 over same day sales that month including an on-the-spot driver purchase for a participant. The benefits we saw were an increase in traffic from golfers from outside of the area. We also saw an increase in traffic on our Facebook page due to WGS advertisements that tagged our facility’s page. I would highly recommend to other courses to host the event as there was a lot of buzz at the 2015 PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando. It was a tournament many golfers have been asking for over the past 10 years and it was a great success for us.

Editor’s note: The above comments reflect the opinion and experiences of the submitting PGA Professional and are not endorsed by PGA Magazine or the PGA of America.