Fairfield Chamber hosting Blast Off Golf Tournament Friday

FAIRFIELD — The Fairfield Area Chamber of Commerce will hold its annual Blast Off Golf Tournament Friday.

The event is one of the Chamber’s two major fundraisers during the year, the other being its annual banquet in the spring. Fairfield Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Darien Sloat said the event was held last year, after a delay, and had a good turnout, and he’s expecting another good turnout this year.

There are still a few open slots for the men.

Sign-in will begin at 7:30 a.m. on Friday, with tee-off to follow at 8:30 a.m. This year, the women's teams will play at the Fairfield Golf and Country Club while the men's teams play at the Walton Club.

All registered attendees are welcome to begin the weekend’s festivities a day early with mini games on from 6-8:30 p.m. at the Walton Club. Participants are encouraged to try their best shot at: longest putt, chip shot, closest to pin, fairway iron shot and inner tube on lake chip shot.

Sloat said the Fairfield Economic Development Association had a floating target on the water for its golf outing last year, and it was popular, so the Chamber decided to try one, too.

Another new thing this year will be “Bang a Gong,” which involves a gong (a couple of garbage cans painted gold, Sloat said) on one of the holes. If a player hits it with their tee shot, they can win $40 in Chamber bucks.

Sloat said the Chamber is offering $3,000 worth of prizes at the event. He noted that participants are getting a nice deal this year because the cost of carts has risen during the pandemic, but the Chamber is not charging extra for their use compared to prior years.

Bill Corrick, manager of operations at Taco Johns, is sponsoring a promotion on the men’s side offering $10,000 to someone who makes a hole in one on a designated hole.

“It takes a lot of volunteers to pull off this event, and we really appreciate all the folks helping us out,” Sloat said.