Golf simulators just got a whole lot more fun

Playing golf indoors has never been so much fun.

Aussie Golfer was recently asked to go and check out the new indoor golf facility that has opened in St.Leonard’s in Sydney. I had heard of these indoor facilities before and and wondered if was any different to Wii Golf.

I’d been told there was a bar, we would be playing 18 holes and be ready for some serious competition. It was getting more serious by the minute. Would my casual attire be appropriate for such an occasion? Would my shorts and thongs cut it? Perhaps I should take my golf shoes and glove just in case? No, best not to look too serious. It is indoor golf after all.

I walked into Inner City Golf and sat in one of the comfy couches near the bar for a beer to settle the nerves. My golfing mates shuffled in equally nervous and confused by what lay ahead. None were wearing golf shoes but all were looking formal coming straight from the office.

We were led to our “booth” which contained a driving range mat, a set of golf clubs and a large screen. The set up is similar to the club fitting booths you may have seen at your local golf store. The technology is impressive. Two meshed infra-red lasers detect the ball’s initial direction and spin giving a fairly good representation of the ball flight.
We had an absolute ball as we played a round at Torrey Pines. Different surfaces on the range mat provide lie options equivalent to rough and bunker shots. Putting is tricky and a good test on how well you can hit to a point on the screen.
From a purely golf perspective, it took a little while to get used to the direction you should hit into the screen. The booths for lessons are more accurate than those assigned for game play with more numbers and data appearing on screen than a Bloomberg report. I can’t imagine any lesson being as much fun as the game play though.

Inner City Golf have conference room facilities and are running competitions playing on courses aligned with the PGA Tour throughout the year as well as corporate events and tournaments.
It is a great place to get your golfing fix any time of the year or day. Post-round chat centred around how realistic it was compared to a real round of golf. Opinions were varied with one customer claiming the round of golf was just a game.
“It’s a computer game. That’s all it is really. It’s great fun but it’s only a game. Not really golf”.
I’m not sure I agree. But isn’t golf just a game too? Either way I loved it. I’m wearing taking my golf glove next time. The golf shoes might even get a run too.

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