Triangle Golf Foundation Inc Dba the First Tee of the Triangle

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
562266025
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Raleigh, NC, USA
Phone
9192398056
Rating
74
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Amateur Sports

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,414,990
Expenses
$2,852,830
Assets
$13,789,758
Liabilities
$4,435,226

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

20 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • BRANDON BAKER (PRESIDENT/CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • BRANDON BAKER (PRESIDENT/CEO): $239,480 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To impact the lives of young people by providing educational programs that build character, instill life-enhancing values and promote healthy choices through the game of golf.

What it reported doing in 2025

Triangle golf foundation teaches life skills and key commitments through the game of golf. The first tee life skills experience is based on the key commitments of pursuing goals, growing through challenges, collaborating with others, building positive self-identity, and using good judgment. We are one of 150 chapters of the first tee in the world and one of 7 in the state of North Carolina. This year we provided educational programs which included golf course-based programs for 1,279 participants, drive4success for 573 participants, outreach programs for 328 participants, and camps for 360 participants.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 63% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 72
  • Transparency & Controls: 65
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 63
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 70.3%; rating input score 70
  • Program expense ratio: 84.1%; rating input score 84
  • Fundraising efficiency: $12.52 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 16.5%; rating input score 68; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.83; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.32; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 8.4%; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 19.4% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 14.4% per year; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 22.8% per year; rating input score 100; 87th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 70.3% of revenue deployed · 84.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 19 of 19 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $239K · 20 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $1.1M reported
  • Consistency: 34 of 34 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2011 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 43/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 25/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 39/100.