Last November 10, four pairs of Dataw Island Club employees played 288 holes of golf in a single day to raise money for veterans. Midway through that Birdies for the Brave marathon, a member of the club's Marketing & Communications team made a hole-in-one on Morgan River No. 16. That same afternoon, the Adaptive Golf Scramble was underway on the front nine of Cotton Dike, with community members lining the course to cheer.
Neither of those events is the Veterans Classic, the tournament played on Veterans Day. They show what the Celebration of Veteran Service has become over 21 years. Golf is still at the center. Around it, nearly every organized group on the island now runs its own event.
From One Tournament to Seven Days
Tee It Up for the Troops lists the 2026 celebration for November 7 through 12. It is Dataw's 21st annual veteran fundraising golf event and its 10th year partnering with the national nonprofit. The organization describes the event this way: "What began as a golf tournament has grown into a week-long commemoration featuring a variety of activities and events for Dataw Island Club members and guests to enjoy."
The club's own recap of 2025 Veterans Week shows how that growth works. Most days belong to a different part of the community:
| Day in 2025 | Event | Who ran it |
|---|---|---|
| Friday, Nov. 7 | Stars & Stripes Tournaments | DITA tennis and the pickleball players |
| Saturday, Nov. 8 | Hole-In-One for the Heroes | DIGA |
| Saturday, Nov. 8 | Bocce Bakery | DIBC |
| Saturday, Nov. 8 | Sink 'Em for the Vets Putting Contest | DIWGA |
| Saturday, Nov. 8 | Wickets for the Warriors | CCDI |
| Sunday, Nov. 9 | Flag placement, Patriot Par-Tee, silent auction opening, Tip It Up for the Troops at The Pub | Community-wide |
| Monday, Nov. 10 | Birdies for the Brave Marathon, Adaptive Golf Scramble | Club staff and partner nonprofit |
| Tuesday, Nov. 11 | Veterans March and Flag Raising, Veterans Classic Tournament, hamburger cookout | Community-wide, with the Dataw Singers |
| Wednesday, Nov. 12 | Lowcountry Wind Symphony in the Carolina Ballroom | Visiting all-volunteer band |
| Thursday, Nov. 13 | Veterans Breakfast and Fallen Soldier Table tribute | Community-wide, with the Dataw Singers |
Saturday is the clearest example. The golf association, the bocce club, the women's golf association and the croquet club each hosted a separate event that day, each with a patriotic name. Organizers did not build a festival from scratch. The groups that already meet on Dataw courts and lawns every week each took a turn.
That setup also explains how the week grew. Each new event comes with an existing membership that has its own players, volunteers and reasons to participate.
The Money Grew With the Calendar
The fundraising totals rose as the schedule expanded.
- 2018: Tee It Up for the Troops reported that Dataw's week-long celebration had raised $53,775 that year, with donations still coming in.
- 2023: Lowcountry Weekly reported that the events raised nearly $70,000 for Tee It Up for the Troops and local veterans organizations.
- 2025: The club reported raising around $80,000 during Veterans Week.
From 2018 to 2025, the total rose by roughly $26,000, or close to half. The 2025 recap credits that year's results to event chairs Marty Groover and Gary Mignogna, a Veterans Week committee made up of the Groovers, Mignognas, Terrys and Marshalls, and the volunteers, staff and members who ran the week's individual events.
A large share of the money goes to organizations based near Dataw. According to Lowcountry Weekly, 2023 proceeds went to eight groups, including Disabled American Veterans Chapter 12, PGA Reach Carolinas, PGA HOPE Charleston, BMH Adaptive Golf Experience and Adaptive Golf Savannah. For 2026, Tee It Up for the Troops lists Adaptive Golf Experience, Adaptive Golf Savannah, Fairways for Warriors, Friends of Fisher House Charleston and Leashes of Valor as potential local grant recipients. The organization also states that being listed does not guarantee an award.
The Nonprofit That Shares Monday
Adaptive Golf Experience is the closest of those partners. It began in summer 2014 as a joint project between Steve Giammona, a physical therapist at Beaufort Memorial, and Andy Hinson, a PGA professional at The Legends Golf Course on Parris Island. The group left the Beaufort Memorial Hospital Foundation in 2018 to become an independent nonprofit. It serves veterans and civilians with physical challenges, including spinal cord injuries, strokes, traumatic brain injuries, amputations, multiple sclerosis and joint replacements. It also runs free monthly clinics at The Legends at Parris Island and other partner courses.
The organization has close ties to Dataw. Its board page lists Dataw's Phil Marshall as veterans outreach chair and a coordinator of Veterans Week activities. Lowcountry Weekly named Phil and Mary Marshall as event chairs in 2023. In 2025, Sgt. Phil Marshall received a Quilt of Honor at the Veterans Day cookout.
For 2026, the 12th Annual Adaptive Golf Experience Skills Challenge & Mini Scramble is set for Monday, November 9, at Dataw Island Club. Details:
- Schedule: Registration at noon, shotgun start at 1 p.m.
- Cost: $25, which covers golf, carts, a swag bag, a Lowcountry boil dinner and prize eligibility.
- Format: Four-person scramble with five holes on Cotton Dike and four skills stations on the driving range and practice putting green.
- Who can play: Golfers of all physical abilities, with flights for adaptive golfers with different disabilities and for able-bodied golfers.
2026 Adds a Triathlon
Every event on the 2025 schedule fits an existing Dataw activity, whether golf, tennis, pickleball, bocce, croquet, singing or dining at The Pub. The headline addition for 2026 is the first major event that isn't tied to any of them.
The new mini triathlon starts at 8 a.m. on Monday, November 9, at the Dataw Community Center. It is designed for beginners, and participants can race on their own or as part of a relay team.
- Swim: 400 yards
- Bike: 6 miles
- Run: 1.5 miles
The individual divisions use military rank names: New Recruits for racers under 40, Officers for ages 40 to 60 and Generals for racers over 60. Awards go to members of the top two relay teams, the top two women and men overall, and the top two women and men in each age division. Individual entries are capped at 30, and the listing tells participants to register early.
With the triathlon in the morning and the adaptive golf scramble in the afternoon, November 9 is the busiest confirmed day of the 2026 week. The relay format also means people who would rather not swim can still race. A neighbor who swims, another who bikes and a third who runs can enter as one team. Questions go to Dataw's event chair through Tee It Up for the Troops.
What Is Confirmed, and What Isn't Yet
As of October 8, the 2026 public listings confirm the November 7–12 dates and the two Monday events. Neither listing includes a full day-by-day schedule for the week. The 2025 table above shows how last year's week ran. It is not the 2026 schedule.
The calendar is different this year. In 2025, the week ran from Friday through Thursday, and Veterans Day fell on Tuesday. The 2026 window starts on Saturday, November 7, and ends on Thursday, November 12. Veterans Day, November 11, falls on a Wednesday. Expect the anchor events, including the Veterans March and Flag Raising, the Veterans Classic, the Wind Symphony evening and the Veterans Breakfast, to fall on different days than last year. Check the club's announcements before planning around a specific date.
Last year's breakfast was the most formal event of the week. The Dataw Singers performed military songs, attendees paid tribute at the Fallen Soldier Table, and Maj. Gen. Scott A. Hammond received a Quilt of Honor. In 2025, the Veterans Classic paired veterans as guests with members to support Tee It Up for the Troops. Those events give the week its purpose, and the events hosted by Dataw's clubs account for much of its growth.
At The Agency Hilton Head, we follow how Dataw's community calendar changes from year to year because those traditions matter to residents. If you're weighing a move to the island or thinking about what your Dataw home is worth, we'd be glad to talk. Request a Complimentary Market Valuation.
