After Work Golf Cup Drives Game In Germany

The Mercedes-Benz After Work Golf Cup has entered its 12th year in Germany, and participation continues to gain momentum

After Work Golf Cup Drives Game In Germany

Sometimes the best ideas are the simplest.

As the global golfing fraternity wrestles with different ideas to get people golfing more, taking root in Germany is the Mercedes-Benz After Work Golf Cup, which will see 3,000 tournaments played at 290 clubs across the country this season.

The After Work Golf Cup was originally launched in 2006 and more than 135,000 golfers have taken part since then, with over 30,000 participating last year alone.

Played to a nine-hole, Stableford format and open to men and women, competitions take place after 5pm on weekdays between April and September, with all participants’ scores and ranking details displayed online.

European Tour golfer Marcel Siem was on hand to launch the 2017 series in Munich.

“Something had to be done as golf is a beautiful game," says Siem, 36, and four times a winner on the European Tour. "The fact that it is sometimes described as boring is really a shame, because golf is anything but boring!

“What is now being done on such a massive scale is sensational. I hope this continues and if it does, the game will be in a very good position. I believe we are on the right track.”

The competition includes weekly, monthly and annual prizes worth more than €250,000 in total. The top prize at the end of the season is a Mercedes-Benz CLA Shooting Brake (worth around €45,000).

Dr Jens Thiemer, VP Marketing, Mercedes-Benz Cars, said: "The Mercedes-Benz After Work Golf Cup is designed to promote the compatibility between working life and a time-intensive hobby such as golf. The steadily growing field of competitors, along with the high number of participating golf courses in Germany, is also generating interest in the tournament format in other countries."

Will this new style of tournament be welcomed in other countries? Only time will tell