June 24, 2021

In the seven months since Minnehaha Country Club rejected an extension of the Sanford International, what organizers called a “huge collaborative effort” ensued to see if there would be a way to save the golf tournament in Sioux Falls.

“The whole process gave us a period of self-reflection as an event,” said Josh Brewster, tournament director.

“It gave us time to think about everything we do and make our impact to the club and membership a little bit easier.”

The length of time the course is impacted by the event, now in its fourth year, appears to have been the driving issue.

“The biggest thing the general public would never see is the tournament has a footprint of 10 weeks or more in the heart of the golf season,” said Bret Coad, who became chief operating officer of Minnehaha Country Club last fall.

“It’s a long time to have construction going on around the golf course, and there’s considerable repair that needs to be made for several months following to repair the course with high traffic and bleachers, so it has a big impact on the club that isn’t well seen outside our membership.”

A November 2020 survey of the membership produced a split decision and prompted the board of directors to decline the extension through 2024, meaning the tournament would have ended in 2022.

“We always retained an optimism that we’d be able to successfully find a solution that allowed for us to extend the tournament,” said Micah Aberson, executive vice president of title sponsor Sanford Health.

“Minnehaha Country Club to their credit never shut the door completely.”

What transpired after the board’s decision became “a steady drumbeat of support from political leaders, community leaders, business leaders and the residents of this region that have continued to be proponents of the tournament,” he said. “There was always an optimism we were going to find a solution.”

Beginning this year, there will be “some noticeable changes, different timelines and things with construction,” Brewster said. “The membership is going to see a lot of different things.”

While the clubhouse will continue to be used solely for the tournament, the banquet side offers hospitality for members, and there are discussions about putting up a new venue on the course for members to use, Coad said.

The most recent survey, after adjustments were communicated, produced improved support from the membership.

“It’s safe to say a majority (expressed they were in favor), and that was an important factor in the decision-making,” Coad said.

This year’s Sanford International runs Sept. 13-19. PGA Tour Champions will need to agree to the two-year extension through 2024.

“The willingness of the members at Minnehaha to allow us this opportunity is not an insignificant ask of them and something we want to be overtly gracious toward,” Brewster said. “It’s, of course, a great benefit to the community and has economic and philanthropic impact that is felt far and wide, and it wouldn’t be possible without a venue like Minnehaha.”

Country club extends agreement to host Sanford International