Sentry to launch golf course insurance coverage

Sentry Insurance will begin offering specialty coverage to golf courses beginning June 1.

The Stevens Point, Wisconsin-based insurer will cover public courses, country clubs and semi-private courses, said Pete McPartland, chairman, president and CEO of Sentry Mutual Holding Co.

Sentry has owned a golf course, SentryWorld in Stevens Point, since 1982; has sponsored a PGA tournament in Maui, Hawaii, since 2018; hosted the USGA’s Junior Girls’ Championship in 2019; and has been the official insurance partner of the USGA since 2021, among other golf-related initiatives, he said.

“One day, maybe a little over a year ago, a few of us started asking ourselves, why don't we insure golf courses? We do everything else involving the game of golf,” Mr. McPartland said.

The policy will include property, liability and umbrella coverage and is offered on an admitted basis, said Mike Schimke, chief underwriting officer at Sentry Insurance. Limits are variable, but the maximum limit for liquor liability is $10 million, he said.

Other coverages include tee-to-green coverage for the courses, business income, third-party liability, abuse and molestation, services errors and omissions, and delivery E&O, which would cover issues related to the delivery of specialty equipment, Mr. Schimke said.

The coverage is approved in 48 states and the District of Columbia and filings have be submitted in Florida and New York, he said.