Society days prizes

[TurfEater]

I have been given the task of arranging a day out for our society. My only problem is that I am not sure how to allocate prizes, you see; I have to cater for abilities ranging from 6 to 28, and ages from 17 to 80. If I were to go for the normal longest drive and nearest the pins I would be limiting the number of players able to compete. I have thought about fewest putts per round or mixing up the four balls and going for team events.
I would imagine this is not a new problem. So, I am asking for help from you all.
Thanks in advance

 

[brendy]

In our society we usually do low section 0-14 high section 14-28, front nine and back nine. Then third second and first. Captain and president days get longest drive and nearest the pin extra.

 

[justhitthething]

Weve done shortest drive before. Balls still has to be on the fairway.
Straightest drive also works, but requires greenkeepers to string out a rope, and not all will.
Best nett score on par 3s tends to be all inclusive.
For big societies, divisional prizes works. 0-16, 17-28 or similar.

 

[USER1999]

Best stableford points on par 3s, and also again on par 5s, a couple of nearest the pin, then split into two handicap groups (but do it so there are approximately even numbers in each h/cap group) for the main event.

Longest drive is a waste of time. There are probably only 3 possible winners out of 40 odd members, and everyone will know who they are before hand.

 

[jammydodger]

Nearest the pin in 2 on a shortish par 4 is always a favourite i've found , gives everyone in the field a chance.

add up all the points on par 3's or par 5's.

Or pick out a par 3,4 and 5 and add up the points gained.

Just think outside the box a little

 

[GB72]

I have played nearest the pin in 3 on the 18th before. Gives everyone something to watch on the last green as the others come in. Only problem is if more than one person birdies the hole but not normally a problem in my group and it is a long par 4.

 

[TurfEater]

Thanks all, plenty of ideas which i had not thought of. Day out is at Machynys, which on a still sunny day can be quite pleasent, but, when the wind picks up we will be lucky to have a winner above 30points. I have a while before I have to decide on the format, so once again thanks, but if anyone else has any ideas please feel free

 

[CVG]

I've been involved in a society for the last 10 years and you have found a common problem for all of us. We always have the nearest the pin on a sensible par 3, as then all players will have a chance of a prize. However for a bit of fun we do sometimes have nearest the pin in 2 on a short par 4. This has mean that again the big hitters may get closer after the drive but then they need to produce a good pitch or chip to get close. Shorter hitters also have a chance with two mid irons!
The best thing we did was to investe in a handicap system to keep all our members records, it has been worth it's weight in gold. We play off the 'sociey handicap' unless your club handicap is lower and as we only play stableford competions, it keeps the handicaps fair, as therefore we get a whole range of winners, over the year.