The Applied Underwriters Invitational said its annual golf competition raised a record-breaking $15.2 million for charities across the nation.
The record exceeds last year’s $14 million, and boosts Applied Invitational’s 38-year total to over $316 million in charitable contributions.
There are 85 tournaments supported by over 2,700 corporate sponsors and played by 12,000 golfers while being manned by more than 2,500 volunteers.
The local tournament series will conclude in a four-day, 85-hole final competition to be held April 29 through May 3, 2026, at Big Cedar Lodge in Ridgedale, Missouri. The golf resort has been USA Today’s number one golf resort in the United States, offering golfers the rare experience of playing on a challenging world championship course designed and played by such professional golf legends as Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Tom Fazio, Gary Player, Ben Crenshaw, Bill Coore and Tom Watson.
Invitational golfers at Country Club of the Rockies, on September 22, 2025, golfing to raise funds for The Bright Future Foundation, an organization dedicated to the prevention and intervention of domestic violence in Colorado.
At the finals each team will play three tour-quality courses plus one day of 31 holes of Par-3 golf on some of the finest courses in the world, including the remarkable new Cliffhanger course that sits on a steep hillside adjacent to Payne Valley’s famous 19th hole. Cliffhangers’ 18 holes range from 60 to 165 yards featuring dramatic elevation changes, large and small targets, tucked pins, precipitous slopes, waterfalls, and caves. The team with the lowest score for four rounds will be named Applied Underwriters Invitational National Champion. To make it to the finals, players at all skill levels compete in local and regional four-person scramble tournaments.
“Our Invitational Tournament has had an impact on so many levels: it is no surprise how it has grown in participation, prestige, and practical results for so many charities,” said Steve Menzies, chairman of Applied Underwriters. “For us as the event’s leaders, applying the principles of entrepreneurship to a charitable undertaking, the result is unimaginably rewarding as we see all of this concerted effort bringing to fruition the experience of high-level competition, the dedicated voluntarism of more than 2,500 men and women across the country, the commitment of 2,700 generous corporate sponsors, and the guidance and active participation of legends from the world of sports, entertainment, music, and public life.”
He said hospitals, patient care organizations, research foundations, scholarship funds, youth organizations, mentoring groups, and nutritional support institutions benefit from the invitational.
“We are proud to support so many charities, including Boys & Girls Clubs, the Habitat for Humanity, the United Way, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, Chinese Hospital of San Francisco, Wide Horizons for Children, Reimagine Life Foundation, the Addiction Education Society, the Autism Society, and multiple cancer fighting organizations, including the American Cancer Society,” Mr. Menzies concluded.
“The Reimagine Life Foundation supports people who have experienced traumatic brain or spinal cord injury though adaptive recreational sports such as golf, wheelchair ballroom dancing, and tennis. We also support research and community outreach to help people transition from hospitalization and therapy to home life. The Applied Underwriters Invitational has been a partner and supporter of our cause for many years and the funds we raise at the Invitational golf events make a real difference in the lives of so many Michiganders who are desperate for our services,” said Katie Spillane-Knight, CEO of the Reimagine Life Foundation.
Golf legend, long time Invitational advocate, and two-time winning European Ryder Cup Captain, Luke Donald stated, “What Applied is doing charitably is truly special—bringing people together to support causes that really matter. Playing at Big Cedar is a bucket list event for amateur golfers. It’s the closest thing to stepping into a major. We wish the best of luck to all the finalists.”
Among plans for next year are events to be held on prestigious golf courses, including Riviera Country Club, Oakland Hills, the Olympic Club, Bighorn, Sleepy Hollow, the Quarry, Lake Nona, and Quaker Ridge among many others, according to National Tournament Director Loren Shapiro.
Shapiro thanked this year’s National Presenting Sponsors and National Marketing Partners:
National Presenting Sponsors
Cobra PUMA Golf
Bridgestone Golf
Bass Pro Shops
Balance of Nature
Popticals
The Experience St. Andrews
Stanley
Big Cedar Lodge
National Marketing Partners
Casa de Campo
Brush Creek Ranch
Global Golf Post
SportsBox AI
Charity Golf Today
Style Driver
The Fish Guyz
Photo: Invitational golfers at Country Club of the Rockies, on September 22, 2025, golfing to raise funds for The Bright Future Foundation, an organization dedicated to the prevention and intervention of domestic violence in Colorado.
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