On August 1st, 2012 Chris Gustad lost his battle with Kidney Cancer. Friends and family were devastated to lose Chris at such a young age (30) and took it on as their mission to eradicate this ugly disease. Although Chris' fight was over, our fight was not, and The Big Goose Open golf tournament was formed. The name Big Goose stems from two nicknames Chris accrued over the years (Goose, which comes from his friends growing up in Platte, SD) and Biggie (stemming from his college years at Lake Area Tech.). Check out our Kidney Cancer Research Blog with the latest updates!
2013 Kicked off the first ever tournament with 21 teams and raising 3x more than planned thanks to businesses such as Nortec Seed believing in them from the get go. The success made such an impact on the owner of Samuelson Tire and Oil, he knew they had to be a part of it for the long run also, and the Big Goose Open (BGO) officially had it's tournament sponsors. For the past 7 years (written in 2019) Nortec, Samuelson, and the BGO have been Teeing Off on Kidney Cancer. Please visit our Donors page to see all our other sponsors and thank them for believing in us. The donors page is also a great avenue if you would like to become a partner of the BGO.
When the BGO started, the secondary mission was to give back to education and the fields in which Chris most loved, Aviation and Agriculture. For the first 5 years, half of the profits of the BGO went to maximize a scholarship fund through Lake Area Tech, Chris' Alma Mater. When it was filled, the Board of Directors for the BGO decided it was time to give back to the Community that supports it so much, and the first ever Big Goose Open Scholarship was started. Funds were saved for a few years, and in 2018 the first two recipients were selected. To find out more about the BGO Scholarship....please visit our Scholarship Page.
Every year the BGO happens because of a dedicated group of individuals that sit on the Board of Directors (also known as the Board of Geese) and thanks to the Continued Support of Chris' Family. To learn more about the individuals that make the BGO happen each year, please check out our Who's Who, of the BGO Page
