Yes, the amount of fun, game improvement and time with family and friends is hard to match! Access to play golf 365 days a year regardless of rain, snow, temperature or course access is simply impressive.
Update: I have now played over 1,000 rounds and am thrilled with my decision to invest in a golf simulator!
For those of us that love the game of golf, we often dream about playing as often as possible. Some of us aren’t fortunate enough to live in a location where we can play golf for 12 months out of the year.
In fact, some of us are lucky enough to play golf for 6-8 months a year. This leads to dreaming about golfing and golf trips to warmer locations during the early spring months.
Many serious golfers have considered the question below at some point during their golf journey.
Should I Buy A Golf Simulator?
I asked this same question during the 2016-2017 season and did a ton of research over the course of about 7-8 months and eventually made the commitment to buy a golf simulator. I must say if I had to answer this question again I would do it the same all over again and buy the golf simulator.
I have now played over 500 rounds on my golf simulator and want to share my experience with those considering buying a golf simulator. Here at golfjourney365, we have over 20 posts on all golf simulator related questions and can be your guide and resource to help you answer many of the questions I had back in the 2016-2017 time period.
Check out Pricing on Rain or Shine Golf Simulator Packages
Below we will take you through the following topics:
- Why I Love Having a Home Golf Simulator
- What Golf Simulator I Purchased and Through What Vendor
- What Software Do I Use?
- Has My Golf Game Improved?
- How Realistic Is A Golf Simulator?
- Take Action
Throughout the topics below, I add additional resources you can access to dive further into these topics.
Why I Love Having A Golf Simulator
Access
It is all about access. Living in the part of the United States that I do, we can realistically play golf March through November. This leaves the months of December, January and February as unrealistics months to play any quality golf in.
What Space Is Needed for A Golf Simulator?
Even the months of March and November are a bit of a stretch as the weather gets cold, the ground gets soft and there aren’t that many quality days. However, with my golf simulator I am able to play at any time of day, on some fabulous courses and the weather conditions outside do not impact if I can play golf.
- How To Build the Ultimate Golf Simulator for Under $7000
- Can I Build A Golf Simulator for Under $1000
This has allowed me to play over 500 rounds during my first 30 months of owning my golf simulator. I ended up building my golf simulator in my 3rd bay of my attached garage. I average over 20 rounds a month on my simulator and it only takes me 40 minutes to play an 18 hole round of golf because simulator golf plays much quicker than traditional golf.
As far as access, I have access to the best courses in the world. My favorite courses to play include Augusta, Whistling Straits and Pebble Beach as my top 3 go to courses. I have also played Bethpage Black, Bay Hill and TPC Sawgrass. There are over 100,000 courses to choose from on my TGC software and the graphics are phenomenal. Can you imagine being able to play Pebble Beach in January while it is 20 degrees outside and snowy?
There is nothing better than relieving some stress after a difficult day at work than getting in a quick 40 minute round of golf and practicing your game. I can head out to the garage, hit some warm up shots and start my round of golf. I never lose a ball and I get plenty of practice shots in.
My game has improved over these first 30 months as I have gone from averaging in the mid to upper 70s to shooting pretty consistently around par to several over. To have a 3-5 shot improvement at this point has been very nice. My overall consistency in actual golf has improved as I am able to practice more and hone my swing. I have studied many different instructors to learn more about the golf swing and to improve my overall swing.
The cost of golf simulators used to be 30-40 thousand dollars, but realistically a solid setup can now be built on average for between 5 and 7 thousand dollars and or a little as one thousand. There are different places to spend your money or to save you money depending on what is important to you.
What Golf Simulator I Purchased and Through What Vendor?
After much research and the two finalists being the ProTee setup and the Skytrak, I went with the SkyTrak. The versatility, ease of setup and access to the TGC software made this my choice. I have enjoyed utilizing the SkyTrak and believe it is pretty realistic to actual golf.
SkyTrak Golf – My Top 11 Reasons to Buy
My misses in real golf and simulator golf are very similar and my distances are within several yards. I have two sons who play lefty and we are able to easily move the SkyTrak around and play from both sides. There are other more expensive options, but I wanted to stay in the 5-7 thousand dollar range and was able to accomplish this with the SkyTrak.
I can’t say enough about how pleased I am with this purchase and the benefits to my game and my overall mental health of being able to play golf year round on some of the world’s most famous and spectacular courses.
I went through Rain or Shine Golf and was very pleased with the deals and the customer service. They have some impressive package deals that are worth checking out. Once you have made the decision to buy a golf simulator, you will not regret the decision, your golf game will improve and you will enjoy life that much more. It has been a game changer for me!
Check our Rain or Shine Golf Simulator Packages
What Software Do I Use?
Again, something I researched at great length. I ended up going with THe Golf CLub (TGC) software. The graphics are incredible and the access to the best courses in the world is not matched by any other software.
In fact, when I stop in to visit a certain commercial software location, the graphics are underwhelming and the list of courses does not even come close. The TGC software is simply amazing and makes the golf simulator experience seem very real.
There are many options on the market, but there is only one software that I think stands above the rest and that is the TGC software.
The Golf Club Software Overview – Plus My Top TGC Courses
Has My Golf Game Improved?
I touched on this a bit above, but for sure it has improved. I now play much more consistently and the number one area where I have seen improvement is in my Greens In Regulation.
Just yesterday, I was able to hit 15 of 18 greens and shoot par as a result of consistency. I didn’t hit as many great shots as I would expect, but I hit the middle of greens and was able to roll in some birdie putts.
I have a great command of my swing and where the ball is going. Overall my shot dispersion has improved and I hit my driver much better than before.
Can A Golf Simulator Improve My Game?
How Realistic Is A Golf Simulator?
I have written at length on this topic and have compared data between traditional golf and simulator golf. The SkyTrak has about a 2-3 second delay and I can now pretty accurately predict where the shot is going. What this says is that the SkyTrak is accurate.
When I hit a good shot, I get a good shot. When I hit a poor shot, the SkyTrak knows I hit a poor shot. There is no tricking the SkyTrak simulator. The shots are very accurate to what you would hit on the course. On the course I hit a draw, on the simulator I hit a draw. My miss is an overdraw and on the SkyTrak my miss is an overdraw.
Take Action
Are you ready to finally make your dreams a reality. Do you find yourself dreaming about playing golf when you are at work, during the winter months or at any point. Do you love the mental and physical challenge of playing golf? Would you love to have a driving range, practice area, and a golf course in your basement or garage? Then it is time. Life is too short, we need to play golf more often and enjoy the game that we love.
Here are our many resources that you can utilize to learn more about the golf simulator world. Don’t forget to check out Rain or Shine Golf for packages to start to price out where your budget might need to be.
As far as your golf game. Can you say yes to any of these statements?
- Are you tired of playing inconsistent golf?
- Are you tired of being the worse one in your group?
- Do you wish you hit the ball further?
- Do you struggle with course strategy?
If you said yes to any of the above 4 questions, check our our recipe to playing better golf today:
What You Can Do Today to Get Better?
What does this mean for you? I believe in the following recipe to get better:
1 – Improve your motion in the golf swing by identifying a golf instructor. Here are some options:
Here is a list of golf instructors that we have reviewed:
2 – Train to swing faster and improve your swing speed. Here are some options:
Looking to gain more Speed and Distance in your swing. Two Options:
3 – Understand course strategy and work to break through your next barrier. Here is a series on breaking through:
We have provided guides on how to break 100, 90, 80 and 70. Check out more below, if interested.
Don’t Forget to Check out our 15 best golf swings of all time.
