The Central Oregon Shootout might have some more growing to do.

The 11th Shootout — organized by and held at Aspen Lakes Golf Course in Sisters, the Big Meadow course at Black Butte Ranch and the Resort Course at Eagle Crest Resort in Redmond — will tee off today with an expected tournament record of 344 golfers.

That is good news for a tournament that hosted 225 golfers in 2006 and grew precipitously until recent years, when that growth had leveled to near the three courses’ collective capacity. That has at least some organizers beginning to delve into the idea of expansion, albeit cautiously.

“We’ve kind of discussed (expansion) and we’re going to include it on a survey,” says Aspen Lakes head pro Josh McKinley, referring to a post-tournament survey of all Shootout participants.

Aspen Lakes, Black Butte Ranch and Eagle Crest operate the tournament each year as partners, and the tournament has proven to be a boon during a time of year when the Central Oregon golf business is as inconsistent as this region’s spring weather.

The Shootout is the second-largest annual golf tournament in the region in terms of participation, behind only the Pacific Amateur Golf Classic, which drew 500 golfers in 2012 and has drawn as many as 800 in its 16-year history.

Like the Pac Am, the Shootout draws the overwhelming majority of its golfers from outside Central Oregon. And about 85 percent of the golfers in this year’s field are returning players.

So it is understandable why organizers would be reluctant to tinker with what has been a winning formula.

“It just has to pencil out,” says Jeff Fought, Black Butte Ranch’s director of golf, of any expansion. “There is nothing wrong with being full and there is nothing wrong with keeping a good thing going. It seems to work well with all the courses.”

Shootout participants pay $580 for each two-golfer team. The tournament operates with a unique format: beginning today with a two-player scramble, followed by a best-ball round on Saturday. The tournament will conclude with a Chapman round on Sunday.

To expand the field, the tournament would need to add another course to the rotation. And while Black Butte Ranch and Eagle Crest Resort each has two regulation courses, a fourth Shootout course could add logistical problems.

Any expansion would entail each golfer playing three of the event’s four courses, skipping one course each year. Another option could include expanding the tournament to four rounds over four days, but that would likely make the participation fee more expensive.

“What we don’t want to do is expand it to four, and due to an increase in price and an increase in days … we actually lose players,” McKinley says.

Fought thinks keeping the Shootout as is and perhaps adding a second, separate spring tournament could make sense.

That would allow the Shootout to keep its recipe for success, he says.

“We think we have the right flavor for it because everybody is coming back,” Fought says. “I think we’re the right price and we’re off season, and (the participants) accept the weather and what it could be.”

This year the weather for the Central Oregon Shootout looks like it will cooperate: Forecasts predict sunny skies with a high temperature of about 70 degrees.

Add in top-notch golf and the rest of Central Oregon’s myriad attractions, and the Shootout should enjoy another successful run this year, Fought says.

“Isn’t that what Central Oregon is about?” Fought asks rhetorically. “A couple of good friends coming over here and experiencing the good food and beer and golf. That’s what it is about.”

Central Oregon Shootout

What: 54-hole amateur team golf tournament played at three area courses

Format: Two-person gross and net scramble, best ball, and Chapman

Where: Aspen Lakes Golf Course in Sisters, Big Meadow at Black Butte Ranch, Resort Course at Eagle Crest Resort in Redmond

When: Today through Sunday