Prize money

[Dave1980]

Having won a couple of monthly medals a over a few year, when the entry fees was £2 or £2.50 and taking home £50+ in pro shop vouchers, I was slightly bemused a few weeks back winning a golf leaf comp with around 80 players paying £3 to enter and the prize money for winning was only £35. We normally pay out for the top three in each comp and I can't work it out.

How does your club work the prizes out and would you question it?


Thanks

 

[mcbroon]

Having won a couple of monthly medals a over a few year, when the entry fees was £2 or £2.50 and taking home £50+ in pro shop vouchers, I was slightly bemused a few weeks back winning a golf leaf comp with around 80 players paying £3 to enter and the prize money for winning was only £35. We normally pay out for the top three in each comp and I can't work it out.

How does your club work the prizes out and would you question it?


Thanks

I don't have a clue how prize money is worked out at our place and I wouldn't question it.

On the list of reasons I have for playing golf, prize money is right down at the bottom.

 

[HawkeyeMS]

I don't have a clue how prize money is worked out at our place and I wouldn't question it.

On the list of reasons I have for playing golf, prize money is right down at the bottom.

This ^^^

 

[North Mimms]

What's a golf leaf comp?

 

[ArnoldArmChewer]

Not a clue how its worked out at ours, its been a long time since a brown envelope came my way.

 

[TXL]

We have a spreadsheet that works out the prize money for all competitions.

There are a few parameters that drive the process:

1. Number of entries in each division, we normally have 2.
2. Entry fee - usually £3 or £5
3. Committee take - normally 20%
4. Any money withheld for whatever reason:
   • e.g. £20 for best gross in a medal
   • Prize money for knockout stage if event was a qualifier

The number of prizes is then determined. If 12 or less entrants, then only 1 prize. For each 8 entrants above 12, another prize is added. So for 15 entrants there are prizes for 1st & 2nd, for 24 entrants, 1st, 2nd & 3rd etc. The maximum number of prize places is 8.
The amount of money per prize is a percentage of the pot once any deductions (as above) have been made. The minimum amount that can be won is your entry fee.

 

[Fyldewhite]

To me whilst I agree that prizes aren't high up most peoples agenda I do hear of clubs where the prizes seem to be very poor compared with the take from entry fees. Personally it's nice to win a decent prize once in a while. It means a lot and is a reward for what is a good achievement.

Our standard format for main summer comps is 4 qualifying rounds and a final of which we run 6 over the summer. Total take @ £3 entry is around £1500. From that we would pay out roughly 2/3 with the balance subsidising less well supported comps, team hospitality, junior comps etc.

Usual pay out would be something like:
Final: 200/100/75/75/50 for 1st, 2nd, B/G, 3rd, 4th
Subsidiary for those not in final: 150/80/60/60/40
Qualifier winners: 4 x 40

Winter we simply pay out what we take, usually in bar vouchers. Members are happy with the prizes because the above formula is common knowledge and most agree it works well. That said, we have a good bar income and we can afford to ring fence comp fees for golf activities rather than subsidising other areas of the club.

 

[Foxholer]

We have a spreadsheet that works out the prize money for all competitions.

There are a few parameters that drive the process:

1. Number of entries in each division, we normally have 2.
2. Entry fee - usually £3 or £5
3. Committee take - normally 20%
4. Any money withheld for whatever reason:
   • e.g. £20 for best gross in a medal
   • Prize money for knockout stage if event was a qualifier

The number of prizes is then determined. If 12 or less entrants, then only 1 prize. For each 8 entrants above 12, another prize is added. So for 15 entrants there are prizes for 1st & 2nd, for 24 entrants, 1st, 2nd & 3rd etc. The maximum number of prize places is 8.
The amount of money per prize is a percentage of the pot once any deductions (as above) have been made. The minimum amount that can be won is your entry fee.

That's pretty much how the ones I've been involved worked too.
Sweeps get returned 100% on a similar 1sr, 2nd and maybe 3rd basis. 2s get divided from 100% of pool.

 

[TXL]

I have recently made changes to the spreadsheet to allow variable numbers on prize allocation.

Methods of allocating money
1. Old system
One prize for first 12 entrants adding 1 prize per 8 (or part thereof) afterwards. Max 8 prizes per division.
2. New system
One prize for first 9 entrants adding 1 prize per 6 (or part thereof) afterwards. Max 8 prizes per division.

The theory being to shallow the prize money gradient and have more prize winners.

Note: the spreadsheet allows the 9 and 6 numbers to be varied at will to get the desired profile of prizes, although it is thought that the same numbers will be used usually.
Also, if there are less than 30 entrants in total, we remove the divisions.

Results of comparing comps.

Saturday Stableford
Div 1 37 players Old System £30/£24/£18/£12/£5 New System £29/£23/£17/£12/£7
Div 2 22 players Old System £26/£17/£10 New System £21/£16/£11/£5

Midweek Stableford
Div 1 29 players Old System £28/£21/£14/£7 New System £24/£19/£14/£10/£3

September Medal
Div 1 48 players Old System £59/£46/£34/£23/£14 (+£20 gross) New System £43/£36/£29/£22/£17/£12/£9 (+£20 gross)
Div 2 22 players Old System £41/£26/£15 New System £35/£26/£18/£9

Millennium Trophy
Div 1 61 players Old System £61/£51/£41/£32/£24/£17/£12/£6 New System £61/£51/£41/£32/£24/£17/£12/£6 – the same, limit 8 prizes
Div 2 26 players Old System £52/£33/£19 New System £42/£31/£21/£10

£xx additional prizes paid.

 

[patricks148]

Like some of the others prizes are pretty low down on my priority when it comes to comps. But sometimes it all appears to be a bit of a money spinner for some clubs, for instance.

I won a open 2 years ago and got £70 as fist prize, prizes went to 2nd and 3rd and Scratch so in total the prizes can't have been more than £220, entry was £10 and there were 180 entries...... nice money spinner for the club

 

[Dave1980]

What's a golf leaf comp?

Sorry a typo there, it should have read "gold leaf" i.e one of the major comps for the year.

 

[muttleee]

I got disillusioned with golf club competitions when I saw how much (often inadvertent) cheating went on.

 

[duncan mackie]

I have recently made changes to the spreadsheet to allow variable numbers on prize allocation.

Methods of allocating money
1. Old system
One prize for first 12 entrants adding 1 prize per 8 (or part thereof) afterwards. Max 8 prizes per division.
2. New system
One prize for first 9 entrants adding 1 prize per 6 (or part thereof) afterwards. Max 8 prizes per division.

The theory being to shallow the prize money gradient and have more prize winners.

Note: the spreadsheet allows the 9 and 6 numbers to be varied at will to get the desired profile of prizes, although it is thought that the same numbers will be used usually.
Also, if there are less than 30 entrants in total, we remove the divisions.

Results of comparing comps.

Saturday Stableford
Div 1 37 players Old System £30/£24/£18/£12/£5 New System £29/£23/£17/£12/£7
Div 2 22 players Old System £26/£17/£10 New System £21/£16/£11/£5

Midweek Stableford
Div 1 29 players Old System £28/£21/£14/£7 New System £24/£19/£14/£10/£3

September Medal
Div 1 48 players Old System £59/£46/£34/£23/£14 (+£20 gross) New System £43/£36/£29/£22/£17/£12/£9 (+£20 gross)
Div 2 22 players Old System £41/£26/£15 New System £35/£26/£18/£9

Millennium Trophy
Div 1 61 players Old System £61/£51/£41/£32/£24/£17/£12/£6 New System £61/£51/£41/£32/£24/£17/£12/£6 – the same, limit 8 prizes
Div 2 26 players Old System £52/£33/£19 New System £42/£31/£21/£10

£xx additional prizes paid.

we are pretty much bang in the middle of you old and new scales!

we have a basic targeted max of around £50; this is an amateur game and the money is basically symbolic.

it's absolutely no coincidence that once significant prizes are on offer a large number of behaviors change; let alone the number of individuals you didn't know existed that turn up!

 

[AlexDarling]

What's this "prize money" you talk of?

 

[mhwgc]

I've never thought or worried how the prize money is allocated. The guys at our Club do a great job, I trust them and if I win anything it's a bonus but I don't play competitions just for the money.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

No idea. Pay my £3 and if and when I get to collect anything (it's been a long time) then I won't quibble on how it's made up

 

[fenwayrich]

No idea how the monthly medal/stableford prize money is calculated, although the formula is posted on the notice board.

I was mildly amused to see the young lad who won the Medal Finals 1st Div last Thursday (67 +1 = 68) received £25, while the old boy finishing 2nd in the Second Division (101-14 = 87!!!!) got £17.50.

 

[louise_a]

Winner gets £15, 2nd get £10, in M&S vouchers. If its a board comp then nothing, just the prestige.

 

[Dave1980]

Thanks for your comments, was just wondering how the prize money had gone down and the entry fees have risen.

as most have said the prize money is not important, it is getting your name up in the clubhouse and the H/c cut that generally follows.