The next generation of sustainable golf tournaments

To mark the conclusion of Scotland’s “Summer of Golf,” GEO Foundation for Sustainable Golf published a new outlook paper exploring the future of sustainable golf tournaments — specifically the collaborative and leadership efforts that support them.

GEO Sustainable Golf Foundation is an international not-for-profit based in North Berwick, Scotland, and active in more than 75 countries. The Foundation is dedicated to helping accelerate worldwide sustainability and climate action in and through golf.

All five of this year’s “Summer of Golf” venues are recognized as GEO Certified for their leadership in sustainable golf practices:

• The Old Course at St Andrews, host of the AIG Women’s British Open in late August
• Dundonald Links, site of the ISPS Handa Women’s Scottish Open played Aug. 15-18
• The Renaissance Club in North Berwick, venue for the Genesis Scottish Open, held July 11-14
• Royal Troon Golf Club, site of The Open Championship, July 18-21
• Carnoustie Golf Links, host of the Senior British Open, July 25-28

A sixth Scottish event, the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, will take place in Scotland Oct. 3-6. That’s technically “autumn.” Nevertheless, this tournament will also be played entirely over GEO Certified courses: Kingsbarns GC in St Andrews, Carnoustie and The Old Course.

“It’s been another very busy summer for golf tournaments and sustainability in Scotland,” Foundation founder and executive director Jonathan Smith said. “This new outlook paper explores some of the key issues shaping those and other events to come — the next generation of responsible and sustainable events.”

GEO has worked closely in recent years with the tournament owners behind all six events: the DP World Tour, the R&A, the LPGA Tour, the Ladies European Tour and the PGA Tour. The Foundation has also partnered with government and dozens of local stakeholders to support sustainability strategy and delivery of these tournament and community assets.

“Collaboration is essential to the approach,” Smith said. “Indeed, this outlook paper relied on the hands-on experience and diverse input from a range of key stakeholders. The goal in sharing findings — in exploring future challenges and opportunities — is to help elevate the understanding and ambitions of golf and wider event organizers in Scotland and around the golfing world. While golf is the lens, we hope the learnings can help accelerate collaboration, innovations and positive impacts across the broader events sector.”

Founded more than 18 years ago as a pioneer in what has become the sport and sustainability movement, GEO Foundation for Sustainable Golf is dedicated to helping golf across the amateur and professional game, providing strategy, industry-wide solutions, and a credible certification label. The Foundation is dedicated to a comprehensive, innovative approach to sustainability, via bespoke platforms available to golf facilities and associations, new developments and renovations, tours and competitions, even professional players as individuals.

The commitment to planning and delivering responsible tournaments events, while a significant evolution, brings with it significant environmental, investment and reputational opportunities. From a pure cost perspective, however, the challenges are clear: rising fuel and energy prices, greater metering of water resources, and transportation of all kinds.

“Put simply, it’s a broad-ranging exercise in maximizing the positives and minimizing the negatives — involving multiple issues and multiple stakeholders,” said Alan Grant, director of partnerships and engagement for GEO Foundation. “I really do encourage anyone who’s even attended a golf tournament, as a spectator, to read the outlook paper. It’s eye-opening to see what underpins a meaningful sustainability commitment.

“What strikes me as critical — be it a national amateur or an event of international standing like the Genesis Scottish Open — is the commitment from organizers to take further actions toward sustainability. That’s the very first step. Yet stakeholders today understand the corresponding, long-term benefits: all manner of employment, revenue for individuals and small businesses, tourism and infrastructure investments, education and charitable giving. More and more, corporate sponsors and government entities are the ones bringing these sustainability goals to the table.”

The Scottish Government has indeed proved hugely influential in the sustainability realm. A refreshed National Events Strategy — Scotland The Perfect Stage 2024-2035 — has been built around the premise that a thriving events sector can and should support delivery of a more fair, greener, wealthier Scotland.

This premise sits at the heart of GEO’s work, Grant confirmed. In everything it does, wherever it works in the world, the Foundation aims to inspire, guide and celebrate sustainable practices that positively impact three primary areas: nature, climate and the local community. Accordingly, GEO has worked alongside the DP World Tour as a partner for years. Case in point: the Genesis Scottish Open, which diverts 100 percent of waste from landfill and, in 2023, removed all single-use plastics in site-wide catering.

Sustainable events are also encouraged to provide positive community impact and value. For example, the Foundation organized a July beach walk and clean-up effort in North Berwick, where Tour pros competing next door at The Renaissance Club took part — and helped raise awareness about local dune-preservation efforts. The Genesis Scottish Open is co-sanctioned by the DP World Tour and the PGA TOUR, which counts GEO as its non-profit sustainability partner.

“One of the biggest sustainability challenges for any event is carbon emissions, stemming primarily from spectator, organizer and player travel to and from the venue,” Smith said. “Alongside some other areas of resource and materials consumption, these are arguably the largest negative impacts arising from temporary events. They are challenges that require a long-term, multi-stakeholder approach to address — challenges that we all must rise to meet. Sustainability and best practices never really stop. We never dust ourselves off and say, ‘Well, that’s over with.’

“At the same time, there are so many positive impacts that can help events to grow. Such as raising widespread fan awareness, influencing behavior-change on the community level, fundraising for important social and environmental causes, identifying catalysts for green infrastructure investments. … That’s why GEO, working with such a great community of partners, creates such detailed frameworks for leadership and collaboration going forward. The outlook paper is an example of this approach. After all, golf is played in a natural setting, in communities. And this has been true for centuries. These are organic advantages that golf can use to be a leader in sustainable events and sports.”