The Habitat Classic Tees Off to Help Build 65 Eastern Connecticut Homes

The Habitat Classic Tees Off to Help Build 65 Eastern Connecticut Homes tees off Monday, Sept. 28, bringing golfers to Mohegan Sun Golf Club for a first-year tournament with a goal far bigger than anything written on a scorecard.

Habitat for Humanity of Eastern Connecticut says it currently has land available for 65 new homes across its service area.

Families are waiting. The land is ready. The nonprofit now needs money to turn those building sites into homes.

That’s where the appropriately named Habitat Classic: Fore the 65 comes in.

The day includes an 18-hole scramble, breakfast, lunch, snacks and dessert, drink tickets, contests, prizes, raffles and golfer gifts, with proceeds going toward Habitat’s affordable-home-building work across eastern Connecticut.

And someone could leave with considerably more than a trophy.

Make a Hole-in-One, Drive Home in a New Kia

One of the tournament’s biggest prizes comes with one of golf’s most elusive shots.

A designated hole will offer a new Kia Sportage from Kia of Groton as a hole-in-one prize.

Players will also compete in more attainable contests throughout the round, including longest drive and closest to the pin, along with prizes for top teams and individual performances.

The tournament uses a scramble format, which makes the event considerably more approachable for casual golfers.

Each member of a team hits a shot, the group selects the best result and everyone plays the next shot from that location. The process continues until the ball is holed.

It keeps the game moving, takes some pressure off individual players and means one ugly tee shot doesn’t necessarily destroy the hole.

Habitat is specifically welcoming golfers across skill levels.

Why 65?

The number attached to the tournament isn’t arbitrary.

Habitat for Humanity of Eastern Connecticut says it has land available to build 65 homes across New London County, Windham County and the eastern portion of Tolland County.

The affiliate describes funding as the major obstacle standing between those sites and completed homes.

That’s an unusually concrete fundraising goal.

Instead of raising money for an abstract future expansion, the organization already knows where its next major wave of homebuilding can happen.

And the need extends beyond those 65 properties.

Habitat reports that more families are currently seeking affordable homeownership opportunities than it can serve.

Habitat Homes Aren’t Giveaways

There’s a persistent misconception about Habitat for Humanity that’s worth clearing up: families don’t simply receive free houses.

Habitat for Humanity of Eastern Connecticut works with qualifying households to make homeownership affordable.

Prospective homeowners must demonstrate a need for better housing, meet income and financial requirements and be able to afford ongoing housing expenses.

They also become active partners in the process.

Habitat homeowners complete sweat equity, which can include helping construct Habitat homes, attending homeownership preparation classes and volunteering in other ways.

The completed home is then sold to the homeowner with an affordable, no-profit mortgage.

The local affiliate currently serves households earning between 50% and 80% of area median income, providing another route to homeownership for families who may struggle to compete in the conventional housing market.

Nearly Four Decades of Building in Eastern Connecticut

Habitat for Humanity of Eastern Connecticut has been doing that work since 1987.

The nonprofit says it has partnered with more than 110 families through its homeownership program while developing a service area that is now the largest Habitat affiliate territory in Connecticut.

That territory covers New London and Windham counties along with eastern Tolland County.

Its work extends beyond construction sites.

The organization operates Habitat ReStores in Waterford and Plainfield, where donated furniture, appliances and other household items are resold rather than discarded. Revenue supports Habitat’s mission while usable materials get another life.

Habitat also offers homeowner-readiness programming covering subjects such as budgeting, credit, the homebuying process and preparing for the responsibilities that come with owning a house.

But construction remains at the center of the mission.

The 65 planned homes represent the next significant chapter.

A Full Day at Mohegan Sun Golf Club

Golfers will have plenty of time to settle in before the first drive.

Registration and breakfast begin at 8 a.m.

The practice facility opens at 9 a.m., followed by a 10 a.m. shotgun start, meaning groups begin simultaneously from different holes around the course rather than everyone waiting to tee off from No. 1.

The tournament runs through approximately 4 p.m.

Registration includes the round, golf cart, meals and drink tickets. Players also receive a golfer gift bag and raffle entry.

Fall-inspired food and drinks are planned throughout the day, including breakfast, lunch, snacks and dessert.

A Course With Nearly 60 Years of History

The tournament takes place at Mohegan Sun Golf Club in Baltic, about 20 minutes from the Mohegan Sun resort.

The 18-hole course was designed by noted golf architect Geoffrey Cornish and originally opened in 1960 as Pautipaug Country Club.

Mohegan Sun purchased the property in 2007 and later undertook a major renovation, transforming it into its current resort golf course.

The layout runs through the rolling countryside of Sprague, with native fescues, elevation changes, wooded sections and water coming into play.

Multiple sets of tees allow the course to play at different lengths, an especially useful feature for a charity scramble intended to welcome golfers with a wide range of experience.

The property also includes a driving range and practice areas, which will be available before the tournament.

One Day of Golf, 65 Future Front Doors

Golf tournaments are a familiar part of nonprofit fundraising, but the strength of this one is the specificity of the target.

Sixty-five isn’t a fundraising slogan.

It’s 65 places where a house can be built.

Habitat already has the land. It has families looking for a path toward stable, affordable homeownership. It has volunteers and construction experience.

Now it needs the resources to connect those pieces.

So Monday’s golfers will spend the day chasing birdies, longest drives, closest-to-the-pin prizes and perhaps the extremely unlikely but considerably more exciting prospect of driving home in a new Kia.

Habitat will be keeping its eye on a different number.

Sixty-five.

More information is available at the Event Website link below.

To register to play or inquire about sponsorship opportunities, click the Event Registration link below.

Details

Event: The Habitat Classic: Fore the 65
Date: Monday, Sept. 28, 2026
Time: 8 a.m.–4 p.m.
Location: Mohegan Sun Golf Club
Address: 7 Dows Lane, Baltic, CT 06330
Beneficiary: Habitat for Humanity of Eastern Connecticut
Format: 18-hole scramble
Skill Level: All skill levels welcome
8 a.m.: Registration and breakfast
9 a.m.: Practice facility opens
10 a.m.: Shotgun start
Registration Includes: Green fees, golf cart, breakfast, lunch, snacks, dessert and drink tickets
Also Included: Golfer gift bag and raffle entry
Contests: Team and individual prizes, longest drive, closest to the pin and additional contests
Hole-in-One Prize: New Kia Sportage from Kia of Groton
Fundraising Goal: Supporting Habitat’s plans to build 65 homes across eastern Connecticut
Service Area: New London County, Windham County and eastern Tolland County
Development Contact: Melissa Kibler, 860-442-7890 ext. 204
Mission Engagement Contact: MaryLou Gannotti, Habitat for Humanity of Eastern Connecticut

 

 

 

Featured image is an artistic representation inspired by the event and may not depict the actual people, location, or activities shown.