FOREST PARK GC professional Mark Winterburn believes the popularity of next week's York City Golf Day is yet another sign of the burgeoning course's ability to stage big events.

The event, staged at the Stockton-on-the-Forest course on Monday, is completely full with more than two dozen teams signing up to tee off alongside Minstermen manager Russ Wilcox and his assistant John Schofield.

City legend Andy McMillan, who plays off an eight handicap, will also be taking part along with head of football operations Richard Cresswell and a number of the first team squad - including Luke Summerfield and Michael Coulson.

Every hole is sponsored and York Audi have provided the use of an Audi TT for the weekend for the player who is nearest the pin on the 16th hole.

The day is fast becoming a big fundraiser for the Bootham Crescent-based outfit and Winterburn said Forest Park would do whatever it could to help the football club.

"If we can help in any way we can to get more teams in and more people playing - and make it better and better each year - then obviously we are doing a good job," he said.

"It's a good day to have York City players about and the members, who are football fans but not necessarily York City fans, like to see them here as well. It just makes for a great day.

"It helps us and shows we can host big events - and the course is probably as good as it has ever been - and it works well for both parties."

Hot on the heels of the footballers, the course will once again play host to some of the Yorkshire PGA's best professionals in the Forest Park Trophy on August 24.

But, this year, there will be a different format which Winterburn hopes will make the tournament even more popular with golfers around the region.

He explained: "It's an Order of Merit ranking event for the Yorkshire PGA. We get great feedback from the professionals, some of whom have never played here before. The format has changed this year. Rather than it being just an out-and-out pro event, they are making it a pro-am.

"The leading pro in that event will win the Forest Park Trophy. But we are hoping that because it is an Order of Merit event and counts for ranking points that it will bring in 40 or 50 teams. If 40 or 50 professionals that would normally all play in the tournament bring a team then it will make for another massive day for us.

"We are a relatively young course and not everybody knows about us. If the pros are going away and telling members at their club that it is a great course, hopefully it gives them more of an opportunity to come and have a game in the event.

"When I spoke to one of the Yorkshire PGA officials last year we had one of the highest entries across all the events - including the Yorkshire PGA Championships and the Classic and the Masters. It is getting popular and we just want to make it grow."