2023 State Golf Tournament

What is State Golf?

State Golf is one of 13 state sports competitions. It is the final competition for those participating in Golf. Traditional, Unified, Individual Skills and Young Athlete Golf Competition will be offered to more than 200 athletes this weekend and bring the joy of sport to Decatur.

Competition Information

The State Golf Tournament represents the final tournament for our golfers as they show off their love of the game and demonstrate the skills they have developed. Athletes may compete in Individual Skills Competition, Three-Hole Competition, Six-Hole Competition or Nine-Hole Competition. Athletes may choose one event. Athletes/partners competing in Unified golf may only compete in Unified competition.

Competitors are expected to walk during the competition. Request for use of a power cart must be made to the Director of State Championships, Brianna Beers at the time of the entry deadline. Requests will be handled on an individual basis and proof of medical need will be required from a doctor. Unapproved cart usage will result in disqualification.

Individual Skills athletes will be showing off their golf skills in short & long putt, chip shot, pitch shot, bunker shot as well as iron & wood shot. They will be competing against others within divisions for the best scores.

• Individual Skills, three-hole and six-hole will take place on Saturday only. Athletes will compete in final divisions during Saturday competition and will receive awards upon completion of their event September 9.  
• Three-hole will be playing from silver tee markers.
• Six-hole golfers will be playing from gold tee markers.
• Traditional and Unified Nine-Hole will take place Saturday and Sunday.  All nine-hole athletes will compete in preliminary divisions for Saturday competition. Athletes / partners will be re-divisioned into their final divisions for Sunday competition. Please check the website on Saturday evening for those divisions. Athletes/partners competing in Nine-Hole Competition will receive awards upon completion of the division on September 10.
• Traditional and Unified Nine-Hole golfers, will be playing from the gold tee markers. 

Caddies:

Special Olympics Illinois will not provide caddies for the competition.  Athletes are free to bring their own caddie.  Caddies must register online by Sep. 8, 2022 by clicking on the caddy volunteer button further down on this page.

Facility Information

Location

SITE: Hickory Point Golf Course, Decatur, IL

• Golf – Hickory Point Golf Course
• Young Athletes – Hickory Point Golf Course

Event Details

Registration for golf will begin at 7:30 am on Saturday, September 9 at Hickory Point Golf Course.

All times listed below are tentative and subject to change once event specific schedules are determined. Times only reflect actual competition times and do not include time frames for coach meetings, weigh-in times, etc. For a final schedule please check the Supporting Documents section close to competition day.

• Saturday, 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
• Sunday, 9:00 am – 12:00 pm

Golf Live Scoring

1. Please enter iWanamaker.com into your google search and open
2. Register if you don’t already have an account:
   1. Create user name using your email
   2. Password must contain 1 capital letter, 1 number and a character
3. To sign in:
   1. Click “Sign In” in upper right
   2. Enter user name and password
   3. Enter the 4 digit code sent to you via email
4. To Find Event and Athlete:
   1. Click “Search” in upper right
   2. Type “SOILL” into the search box and press “Search”
   3. Click “View More Results” on bottom right of screen
   4. 4 events should pop up
   5. Click on event you would like to follow
5. Watch Scores:
   1. Leaderboard listing all athletes in that event will pop up
   2. You will need to click refresh button (small circle with arrow above scores) to make sure you have the most up to date scores

Young Athletes

Young Athletes aged 6 and 7 will be invited to participate and showcase their talent in Decatur! Young Athletes will have the opportunity to participate in Golf Individual Skills.

Volunteer Information

General Volunteer Opportunities

Special Olympics Illinois needs your help as a volunteer at our State Golf Tournament in Decatur on Saturday, September 9 and Sunday, September 10.

If you are interested in volunteering, please click on the button below.

Caddie Volunteer Opportunities

Saturday, September 9 and Sunday September 10.

Caddies assist one golfer in their selection of clubs and may give athlete verbal suggestions.  Caddies are expected to walk with golfer for the entire nine holes. Caddies must know the athlete and be familiar with their golfing style. Golf clubs must stay on carts. Click the button below to register as a caddy.

Opening Ceremony

The Opening Ceremony is always one of the highlights of any Special Olympics Games. A short Opening Ceremony will be offered in the morning prior to the nine-hole shotgun start departure on Saturday, September 9 at Hickory Point; which will include the athlete oath, lighting of the torch, and the singing of the National Anthem.

Souvenirs

State Golf Tournament specific items are available by preorder only. The pre-order deadline is August 28.

Use this link to connect to State Golf Tournament merchandise options:  https://orders.minervapromotions.com/soill_state_golf_tournament/shop/home

• 2023 State Golf Souvenir Information

Families

Stop by the Families registration area at the golf venue to receive you event packet and a raffle ticket for the FREE Raffle. Hours are as follows:

• Saturday: 7:30 am – 1:00 pm     

Saturday Dinner

Dinner will be offered to athletes and coaches in the form of a voucher to McAlister’s Deli. See handbook for more information.

McAlister’s Deli is located at 850 US-51, Forsyth, IL 62535

Text Alerts and event Status Updates

In case of inclement weather, schedule changes or cancellations check the website here for updates. You can also subscribe to our text alert system by texting “Golf” to 1.844.393.0980.

Supporting Documents

2023 State Golf Sunday Schedule

2023 State Golf Event Handbook

2023 State Golf Coach Proof – Final

2023 State Golf Family Information

Healthy Habits Golf Warmup Flyer

3 Hole Course Play Schedule

6 Hole Course Play Schedule

9 Hole Traditional Course Play Schedule

9 Hole Unified Course Play Schedule

Individual Skills Schedule

For assistance in securing a hotel room for this event please visit: www.decaturcvb.com

To see a complete list of all state tournaments, click here.

To find out more information about the Knights of Columbus, who support Special Olympics Illinois throughout the year, click here.

Results

2023 State Golf Results

Who We Are

Special Olympics Illinois is a not-for-profit sports organization offering year-round training and competition in 18 sports to a community of more than 55,000 traditional athletes, Young Athletes, Unified partners, coaches, volunteers, and more. It strives to be a global leader in shaping a culture where people with and without intellectual disabilities are fully integrated into the community by providing year-round opportunities in competitive sports, health education, leadership and personal development. 

If you are interested in being a part of Special Olympics Illinois and its vision, contact your local region, call 800-394-0562 or visit our website at www.soill.org. Follow Special Olympics Illinois on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok and Twitter.  

COVID Procedures

Unless a venue has specific COVID protocols in place, Special Olympics Illinois is following Illinois Department of Public Health and CDC COVID protocols and guidelines.  Please refer to event specific information or website page (if applicable) to determine if the venue has any specific COVID protocols. 

Special Olympics Illinois is committed to providing the best athlete, volunteer, coach and supporter environment possible.  While we are excited to resume in-person events, the health and well-being of our constituents remains our top priority.  All of our in person events follow the COVID-19 recommended IDPH and CDC guidelines.

Please review the COVID High-Risk fact sheet for more information:

https://www.soill.org/wp-content/uploads/2-High-Risk-Fact-Sheet-7.9.20.pdf