Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How can I or my company become involved?
A. There are many ways you can support the Special Olympics Florida Golf Classic. You can become an official sponsor by registering to play in the tournament; you can donate items for the live and silent auctions; even if you’re not a golfer, you can still make a donation to the tournament.

Q. Who do I contact if I or my company wants to be involved?
A. Contact Michelle Braxton at Special Olympics Florida, at 352-243-9536 x 512 or e-mail her at michellebraxton@sofl.org

Q. When do you need to receive my registration and payment?
A. As soon as possible to ensure you will have a spot in the tournament. This event has sold out every year of its existence, so you’ll want to send in your registration and payment as soon as possible. Note: receipt of registration form alone does not guarantee you or your company will have a spot in the tournament, only receipt of sponsorship payment secures your spot.

Q. When is the event?
A. Monday, October 6, 2008. The tournament offers two shotgun starts: 11:30 a.m. at Red Tail Country Club and 12:00 p.m. at Heathrow Country Club. The course you play will be determined on a first come, first served basis, determined by course availability.  Please arrive at least 30 minutes before your scheduled shotgun start.

Q. Where is the event?
A. At the beautiful Heathrow Country Club, just outside of Orlando, 1200 Bridgewater Dr., Heathrow, FL 32746, phone 407-333-1469 and at the new Red Tail Country Club, 26026 Member Lane, Sorrento, FL 32776, phone 877-408-0123.

Q. Do I have to be a member of the Heathrow or Red Tail Country Clubs to play?
A. No! This is a rare opportunity for non-members to play these beautiful courses!

Q. If I am playing at Red Tail, how long should I plan on it taking for me to drive to Heathrow for the evening activities?
A. Players should plan on it taking 20-30 minutes to drive to Heathrow from Red Tail.

Q. How do I get to Red Tail Country Club?
A. Visit their web site for maps and driving directions or download our detailed driving directions now. Driving directions from I-4 to Red Tail click here. Driving directions from Heathrow to Red Tail click here.

Q. How do I get to Heathrow Country Club?
A. Download detailed driving directions now. Driving directions from I-4 to Heathrow click here. Driving directions from Red Tail to Heathrow click here.

Q. What is the tournament format?
A. This year’s format is a “Shamble” with best two balls (scoring). A shamble combines elements of a scramble with elements of stroke play. Like in a scramble, all members of a team tee off and the best ball of the four tee shots is selected. All players move their balls to the spot of the best ball. From this point, the hole is played out at stroke play, with all members of the team playing their own ball into the hole.

So…select the best shot off the tee, move all balls to that spot, then play individual stroke play until each member of the group has holed out.

“Two best balls” means you will take the two best individual scores (out of your foursome) for each hole and add them together and that is your team’s score for that hole. For example, if you’re on a Par 5 and the two best scores are a Par (5) and a Birdie (4), your team’s score for that hole will be 9.

Q. Are these walking courses or are their carts?
A. Your foursome will enjoy the course in their own, reserved golf carts.

Q. Will there be on-course contests?
A. Yes!

Ladies: to be eligible for hole-in-one contests, you must play from the white tees. All players: first winner is the only winner for each of the hole-in-one contests.

Contest, Mulligan and Raffle package:
A $25 donation gives the individual one mulligan, entry into the hole-in-one contests and one raffle ticket.  Purchased at registration, day of tournament. Mulligans can not be used on Hole-In-One contests.

Mulligans can not be used to win an on-course contest or game (i.e., Hole-In-One prizes, Longest Drive, Closest To The Pin).

Q. Will there be food served?
A. Yes! A fantastic lunch and dinner will be served, as well as on-course snacks and beverages (alcoholic and non-alcoholic), courtesy of The Country Club at Heathrow, Red Tail Country Club and Gator’s Dockside Restaurants.

Q. How long should anticipate the event taking?
A. We recommend you arrive at least one hour before your shotgun start so that you can check in, get your tee gifts, have lunch, warm up and get to your cart. After you’ve finished playing, should you wish to shower and/or change, both clubs are making their locker rooms available to Tournament players.

For Red Tail players, we suggest you plan on a 20-30 minute drive time to travel to Heathrow Country Club for the cocktail reception, silent auction, awards dinner, and grand prize drawing, from 5:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

If you have an afternoon shotgun start, we recommend you arrive by 11:00 a.m. so that you can check in, have lunch, warm up and get to your cart. From that point on, plan on staying through the after-golf activities, described above.

Q. Is my contribution tax deductible?
A. The majority of your charitable donation is tax deductible: sponsors must deduct $125.00 per player from the total cost of the sponsorship. For example, if your company is a $5,000 sponsors and you therefore receive one foursome, you would multiply $125 by four and deduct that from $5,000. Therefore, the amount you can deduct for your contribution would be $4,500.

Q. How can I learn more about Special Olympics Florida?
A. Visit Special Olympics Florida's website at www.specialolympicsflorida.org