Past charity recipients and amount distributed

Beginnings of the CIRI Golf Classic

The Calcutta is a form of auction-pool wagering that is commonly used for golf and other sporting events. At the CIRI Golf Classic, Calcutta participants bid, auction style before the tournament, to “purchase” the team of golfers that they think will win the tournament.  Money raised from the auction goes into a pool.  Half of the pooled cash is given to the charitable donation fund and the other half is set aside for the bidders who purchased the winning golf teams. After the tournament, the owners of the top-placing teams are paid a predetermined percentage of the pool, based upon his or her team’s place.

CIRI’s Calcutta Pool operated until 2001, with bidding taking place at a golfer reception that was held prior to the tournament. The Calcutta was discontinued because CIRI was advised that the Department of Revenue construed state law as prohibiting Calcutta-type fund raising. State law changed and the Calcutta returned to the tournament in 2006. During the intervening years the tournament used a raffle to raise money in place of the Calcutta.

Raffle ticket sales failed to match either the excitement or the revenue of the Calcutta. In 2005 for example, raffle ticket sales generated $28,000 in net revenue, compared to $41,000 in net revenue from the 2001 Calcutta.