The Island Golfer: Local golf clubs grand tradition of giving back

BY SCOTT COTHERMAN 

Tune in to any televised professional golf competition, and you will see an interview with the tournament’s sponsor citing the significant impact of fundraising for local charities.

According to the National Golf Foundation, no sport in America has a higher charitable impact than golf. Its latest industry report on the economics of golf cited that 80 percent of golf course facilities in the U.S. hosted some kind of charity event in the past year. That level of support, which extends from the local to the national level, was 18 percent greater than the previous estimate from 2016. The PGA TOUR claims to have contributed $4 billion to various charities since its inception, supported by 100,000 volunteers annually.

On a lesser scale but with significant hometown impact, local organizations partner with area golf clubs to raise funds for worthy causes. Frequent beneficiaries of these charitable initiatives include students, health-related causes, and military veterans. Coral Creek Club, Gasparilla Golf Club, and Lemon Bay Golf Club host annual fundraising events to support local, regional, and national organizations. So do many public golf course facilities in the area.

One of the most unique local fundraising events is held at The Gasparilla Golf Club to benefit The Island School (TIS). Promoted as the $1,000,000 Shootout, the event features a par-three setup on each of the eighteen holes. Six-person teams compete in a scramble format for closest-to-the-pin honors on each hole. The eighteen golfers closest to the pin on each hole then participate in a shootout for the chance to win the million-dollar grand prize, which requires making a hole-in-one.

Last year, the Shootout, which is run by The Island School (TIS) Foundation, raised $285,000 to benefit the school. The Foundation’s $10 million endowment resulted in an additional $430,000 for a combined $715,000 contribution to The Island School’s annual budget. Without the Foundation’s support, there would be no Island School to speak of. Forty-four percent of the school’s annual budget is a direct result of the golf event’s net proceeds and endowment earnings contribution.

The Shootout is a rich community event supporting a critical part of the Boca Grande human infrastructure: island-based workers and their families. Support from the Gasparilla Inn, provided through complimentary use of the grounds, facilities, and the event’s food and beverage offering, is essential to the Shootout’s financial success. So are the twentyfive teams that participate, resulting in high demand for participation in the annual event. The 2025 event will be held on February 6.

Tom Hofmann, President of the TIS Foundation, explains it this way: “It’s an easy school to like; they do a great job. Most of the kids who go to the school are children of people who work on the island. Boat captains, people who work at the bank or a store like Barnichol Hardware. That’s really who the school is for.”

Christine Oliver, Head of The Island School, makes sure the school kids have a role at the tournament. They take a walking field trip to the golf course just before tee time, where they play instruments and sing the National Anthem and Island School Song before waving the participants off.

“The participants love seeing the kids because that’s where the money is going, towards their education,” said Oliver. “They are our future, so when the students are there and participating, it is really the most memorable piece for the participants.”

At Lemon Bay, the members’ philanthropic efforts are focused on growing the game of golf while lending a hand to local area students. Thirty years ago, A Better Shot Foundation was created to give back to the community via a summer junior golf program. Today, the Foundation boasts a $2 million endowment that funds over $120,000 in scholarships annually at technical schools, colleges, and universities to anyone who participated or volunteered in the junior golf program.

The A Better Shot Summer Program runs for eight weeks. The program most recently had 218 participants, split evenly between boys and girls. Forty-two coaches and student volunteers, some of whom came from as far away as Fort Myers, provided instruction and assistance to the playing groups, which were based upon the student’s ability, not age. The student volunteers earned community service hours, while local PGA Professionals and high school golf team coaches earned a modest weekly stipend for their time and commitment to the program.

If there is a poster child for Lemon Bay’s efforts to grow the game among local youth, he must come in the form of Ryan Hartnett, the Head Golf Professional at the club. Hartnett started in the junior golf program when he was six years old and volunteered with it through college, helping to teach and oversee kids in the summer program.

“It was probably the best thing that ever happened to me, definitely changing the direction of where I went from that point on with golf,” said Hartnett. “Just getting here and finding a group of kids like me that thoroughly enjoyed the game, being able to get out and enjoy playing it. It started that passion for the love of the game.”

But it was not all just fun and games for the kids in the program. Hartnett recalls how co-founder and Executive Director of the A Better Shot Foundation, Cindy Claude, was a stickler for teaching kids the proper etiquette expected of program participants.

“I will never forget the second I walked on property,” recalled Hartnett. “It was, ‘Ryan, tuck your shirt in right now, hat straight.’ You know, just sort of teaching those basics of golf. But what was really important was what time you showed up and how you acted when you were here. The founders created, and the members have generously supported, a golf program that teaches kids life skills, gives them an opportunity to play golf, earn community service hours, and offers scholarships.”

At Coral Creek, the members are just now wrapping their heads around the role they expect the club to play with respect to supporting charitable causes. Coral Creek’s Board of Directors recently embarked on a strategic planning initiative that will define the type of golf club the members desire to have. Included is how to support and promote philanthropic initiatives. Previously, the club hosted fundraising events for the Barrier Island Parks Society, the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, and the PGA’s Folds of Honor initiative.

Expanding upon the club’s support of the PGA’s veterans and active-duty military golf development programs, Coral Creek’s golf professionals partnered with PGA HOPE (Helping Our Patriots Everywhere) this fall. Local veterans had the opportunity to learn the game of golf over two hours each week for six weeks. The purpose of the program is to enhance the physical, mental, social, and emotional well-being of the participants, led by PGA Professionals trained in adaptive golf and military cultural competency. The cost of programming is free to all Veterans.

Coral Creek’s Head Golf Professional, Jim Lohbauer, spearheaded the program at the club, which included thirteen participants from all branches of the military. “I went through intensive training about a year and a half ago in Tampa,” cited Lohbauer. “The training is about what to do if you encounter someone that’s blind or deaf or missing a limb, and most of them have some form of PTSD. How do you adapt your teaching to handle those situations? How do you make them feel comfortable?”

Golf, in so many ways, is more than just a sporting pastime. It helps to make a real difference in the lives of people. From raising money and awareness for important causes to creating partnerships with local businesses to fostering community spirit and volunteerism, charity golf events create opportunities for doing good. And they are fun, presenting an outdoor, low-impact sport that can be played by people of all ages, fitness, and skill levels.

Taken together, those who play golf, operate golf courses, and sponsor charitable outings pay it forward like no other sporting pastime. Whether a golfer, supporter of charitable organizations that rely upon golf events, or worker in the golf club industry, the sport provides a reason to feel great about the elevating effect of giving to a higher purpose than oneself.

Scott Cotherman writes about all things golf-related in and around the Cape Haze Peninsula. He is a retired marketing communications professional, member of Coral Creek Club and an avid golfer. Contact him at the.island.golfer@gmail.com