Sundowner Rounds and Sundowner Leagues in Golf

What is a "sundowner" in golf? This is a golf term with a couple meanings, but the most common one applies to tournaments. A sundowner tournament is one that is played late in the afternoon, typically nine holes in length, in which the golfers are trying to finish before the sun sets.

Such tournaments are often part of a golf league's weekly schedule. Sometimes the term "sundowner" is applied to such leagues themselves, as in a "sundowner league." In other words, if a golf association sets a slate of tournaments that are scheduled to begin in the late afternoon, it might call such events "sundowner tournaments" or refer to the whole schedule as a "sundowner league."

You'll most commonly find such events scheduled during the summer months, because the sun sets at a later time. That makes sundowner tournaments that begin after golfers get off of work a possibility in some locales.

"Sundowner tournament" and "twilight tournament" are interchangeable terms, with "twilight tournament" being the more common term.

"Sundowner" can also apply to an individual golfer. A golfer who gets up and tees off at the crack of dawn is a "dewsweeper." One who tees off late in the day and finishes as the sun is setting is a "sundowner."