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  • Home golf simulators

    So my friend sells and installs sims, he tells me they do well but what does well really mean in this business.

    Which has me wondering...how many of us golf fanatics actually have a simulator at home, or contemplating about getting one?

    Would love to hear about how much use it gets and how it's helped your game.
    Last edited by yertu; Feb 28, 2015, 01:44 PM.
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  • #2
    Re: Home golf simulators

    I have one this winter. Built it myself with a cheap projector, cage and screen. Can hit hybrid thru LW. I hit 100-200 balls a day. I use a skytrak and it's phenomenal. I cannot fathom not having one in the future.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Home golf simulators

      Originally posted by wilson View Post
      I have one this winter. Built it myself with a cheap projector, cage and screen. Can hit hybrid thru LW. I hit 100-200 balls a day. I use a skytrak and it's phenomenal. I cannot fathom not having one in the future.
      Can you play golf on skytrak, or is it just range mode? I do things for foresight and I'd love to do some testings with skytrak if you're interested, it could be fun!
      Larrycheunggolf.com

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Home golf simulators

        Originally posted by wilson View Post
        I have one this winter. Built it myself with a cheap projector, cage and screen. Can hit hybrid thru LW. I hit 100-200 balls a day. I use a skytrak and it's phenomenal. I cannot fathom not having one in the future.
        Could you go into a little detail about your setup and maybe some pictures?
        Thanks

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Home golf simulators

          Originally posted by umbrella View Post
          Could you go into a little detail about your setup and maybe some pictures?
          Thanks
          Ya I'd like to hear more. Just bought a house with a brand new garage with laminate floors. Debating about putting in a sim system
          Rip it and Sip it

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Home golf simulators

            It's a long journey, from a budget net bought at GT in November - ending in the projector, divot mat, cage, to a voice caddie, on to a Optishot then now to the Skytrak beast I have now (on the cheap!). Give me a day or two to get the pics in chronological order and edit the story.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Home golf simulators

              Originally posted by wilson View Post
              It's a long journey, from a budget net bought at GT in November - ending in the projector, divot mat, cage, to a voice caddie, on to a Optishot then now to the Skytrak beast I have now (on the cheap!). Give me a day or two to get the pics in chronological order and edit the story.

              Great look forward to it as I am just starting to try to build one "on the cheap".
              Could you also give a quick little review on your skytrak?
              Thx again

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Home golf simulators

                can anyone post some pics of their home sim? pretty interested in seeing it!
                Just tap it in. Just tatataaaap it in.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Home golf simulators

                  Broken up into posts since there's a limit to the text..

                  =======

                  This is what started it for me:

                  I knew my swing plane often got too steep, leading to more toe side strikes and a tendency to 'Pull the Handle' with too much shaft lean.
                  I saw an ad for a device called "Perfect Release Golf Club Swing Plane Trainer Aid". It looked like this:



                  I thought, that's a neat idea, I can make one myself. Amazon had this weighted trainer on sale for $20:



                  Add in a bungee cord and voila



                  Total So Far:
                  Trainer $19.99
                  Bungees $14.08

                  I can swing this bad boy in my office with my 9ft ceilings no problems.

                  I have a swing byte, and thought that the swing byte would trigger on the downswing, and I'd get great feedback about my plane. Except....swingbyte is smart enough to know that you didn't hit a ball. So there went that idea. No worries, I thought. I'll just do this and that will be fine. So i did that for about a week, and got bored.

                  I started thinking. If I can swing all out in the office, maybe I can do it in the basement. I checked my basement height: 7' 10". The thing is, flattening out my swing meant that this was actually an ideal height for everything from my 23* hybrid on down. If i hit the roof it meant I was too steep on the downswing resulting in a vertical follow thru. So the low roof didn't bother me. It *is* claustrophobic at first. You are very conscious of the enclosed space. And if the toe of your club collects a joist? BAM, bad things happen. But, it was serviceable and I could swing with my weighted club. but then I though....

                  Hmmm, I've also always wanted one of these:



                  An Explanar. I've used the one at Woodensticks and Bond Head and loved it. But i'm not springing $3000 for one. Then I saw martin hall with this idea on one of his shows:



                  but i knew I had one better, I had my kitchen counter left over from when I put in granite countertops. This would be ideal for a plane board, and i could use the weighted trainer as well!

                  So I made a convoluted poor mans explanar:








                  Total So Far:
                  Trainer $19.99
                  Bungees $14.08
                  Hinges $5
                  Screws $10
                  Chain/Timber $Free

                  Since the swing byte needed an impact to register a shot, I had a small scrap of carpet i could hit a foam ball off. Did this for a week, and saw some really neat improvements:



                  Except, the foam balls made a big fat dent in my unfinished basement insulation. That's not going to work...
                  Back to Amazon. They had this on sale for $44



                  I thought, this is perfect. Just spins, will trigger the swing byte and no problems. As soon as I got it it was amazing, i was hitting wedges inside in winter! It was perfect. I was so pleased. i could use my poor mans explaner and swingbyte anytime I wanted:

                  Then it broke:



                  And my hands hurt. It was a hard board and it hurt like hell since I take a divot. So i returned that to Amazon.

                  But now I had tasted the nectar of winter golf.
                  The joy of hitting balls 4 times a day whenever I wanted.

                  I could not go back.

                  I needed to find a solution.

                  Then I saw.....

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Home golf simulators

                    Then I saw.....



                    The SKLZ Golf flex thingy. I thought, hey maybe that triggers the swing byte? $46? No problem. I got my refund for the other junk, and Golftown sell this for $60. Bargain.
                    So I got that and it's actually really good. It stretches you in the warmup very well, and it does help with rhythm and timing.

                    But...

                    The swing byte doesn't like it. And it's not hitting a ball. And its not my clubs. So I got thinking again. I did some research. I scoured ottawa golf forum and Golfwrx. And I found some good reviews for this:



                    The Voicecaddy Radar. Ok, it's expensive but it will be able to help dial in my distances AND ballspeed on mishits. And it was on SALE!

                    Total So Far:
                    Trainer $19.99
                    Bungees $14.08
                    Hinges $5
                    Screws $10
                    Chain/Timber $Free
                    vC SC100 $294

                    So now i needed a net, and a mat. Oh well, Golftown 20% off sale???? How nice to see you. So i wandered over and found these:



                    The Hank Haney net looked perfect and after my ordeal with the hard wooden base of the swing ball thing, I knew I wanted a soft divot mat. Problem was you also need a stance mat. This is now getting costly....





                    The stance mat was nothing special but i knew i wanted a 4x4 one, but the SKLZ Divot Mat is really nice. It slid forward easily and really makes a shot hit fat go nowhere like in real life. So far so good. Waiting for the Radar to arrive I strung up the net. Didn't look so hot, and sh*nks were sorta dangerous when they ricochet back off the stairs. And don't even ask how it feels when a wedge shot hits the joist....





                    But it was working. Mrs Wilson was very non-plussed about what was going on here, and knew that it was going to get worse before it got better. She was right.

                    Total So Far:
                    Trainer $19.99
                    Bungees $14.08
                    Hinges $5
                    Screws $10
                    Chain/Timber $Free
                    vC SC100 $294
                    SKLY Flex $44
                    SKLZ Divot Mat $79
                    Haney Net $50

                    You see, I realized I now needed a cage.

                    Again, I did homework. Found out you need not only the cage, poles and joints but the netting. None of that is cheap. Although the professional ones are A1 and sturdy and no doubt worth the money. I looked at Par2Pro and Westcoast Netting, a Montreal Site and Even local Fishery Stores for netting prices and cages. Minimum was $500+ tax for something including pipes, netting and ancillaries.




                    But hey, I'm a resourceful guy. I love adventure, and I can build this. I saw someone do this on youtube:


                    This is a project to make a golf practice net out of PVC material, netting, and some very basic skills with power tools. It is easily put together and taken...



                    Well, i don't want just the back i need the whole cube. So i fired up google sketchup and made this model:



                    I knew I could use 1 1/2" ABC pipe from HD. I could use more Hankers Nets from Golftown, stick a tarp in the back for a baffle held up with eyelets and voila. So off to Homedepot I went

                    Total So Far:
                    Trainer $19.99
                    Bungees $14.08
                    Hinges $5
                    Screws $10
                    Chain/Timber $Free
                    vC SC100 $294
                    SKLY Flex $44
                    SKLZ Divot Mat $79
                    Haney Net $50
                    ABS Tees $17
                    ABS Pipe $70
                    Tarp $27
                    Cableties and Eyelets $14
                    2 Sheets of 4x2 1/4" $20

                    Now let me tell you, make sure you think this through before you do it as it's a bear to do by yourself (try assembling a cube without someone holding the opposite side of an 8ft pipe) and consider how you fasten your nets.
                    I drilled holes in the pipe to coincide with the Haney Net eyelets, and then added 8x1 1/4" screws to help hold them up. It works and when you pull the netting tight it can hook over the screw head holding it in place nicely.







                    I also put up on the joists 4x4 of 1/4" board to keep errant irons from hitting the joists with some rubber matting to deaden the sound.
                    Much trial and error later:



                    It was awesome. I was working with the swingbyte, my iPad and the SC100 and it was wonderful. There was good feedback from the SC100 when you worked out what an optimum speed was for your irons, the divot mat would slow down fat shots and that impacted ballspeed, and toe hits would show the same reduction.
                    Combined with my Graffiti Stand for iPad, I was able to use the V1 app to do video drills and sessions with the SC100 and really get some good work on the swing changes




                    I loved it for about a week....

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Home golf simulators

                      Then I returned the SC100 for a refund. Because I found this:



                      Amazon had a steal of a deal. $259 all in for the new 2.0 Version of the Optishot. I got to thinking. Why have just the net and radar. I can pound balls but i don't know what the shot shape looks like. I love simulators but could never afford a GC2 or Flightscope. nd as fate would have it, Optishot had just upgraded to the 2.0 version of software which EVERYONE was saying was so much better than the original.
                      I knew Optishot was pretty rudimentary, and many complained about it so i knew thought it as an option. But the new reviews of 2.0 and the ability to adjust your clubs made me think this would be different.

                      So I asked Mr Amazon to send it this way:

                      Total So Far:
                      Trainer $19.99
                      Bungees $14.08
                      Hinges $5
                      Screws $10
                      Chain/Timber $Free
                      SKLY Flex $44
                      SKLZ Divot Mat $79
                      Haney Net $50
                      ABS Tees $17
                      ABS Pipe $70
                      Tarp $27
                      Cableties and Eyelets $14
                      2 Sheets of 4x2 1/4" $20
                      Optishot $259
                      Optishot Grass Replacement $79
                      PC $Free
                      WiFi $12
                      Pebble Beach Course $24

                      I had laying around a PC with the bare minimum specs they needed, and a 24" monitor so I knew I was ok for that. I just need a wifi usb device for the online play. So added one of those. I setup the PC next to the mat and waited for the Optishot to arrive.

                      It was awesome! But the grass was terrible again. Very thin. So I ordered the turf top replacement from

                      For either Optishot1 and Optishot 2 In stock and ready to ship today! (… For orders received by 1pm (weekdays) …) And, It's reversible! Like receiving two mats for the price of one.


                      And it was sensational. Really changed the feel of the device to a much better feel. And added a bit of that error for fat shots. I checked all my clubs, changed the settings and immediately bought Pebble Beach online to play.
                      It was bliss. Problem was my mat was about 1" below the optishot. So i need to make a higher stance mat.
                      No problem. I have some timber, and a Can-Do attitude. So i made this complex wooden stance box, to put the mat on top of and add in the optishot:



                      Unfortunately it was LOUD.... As in, wild herd of Elephants loud. So then I had an idea: I could cut up Wifey's aerobic floor mats! (Did I mention the forgiveness thing?) Well, that worked out better. I could put the optishot in the piled up mats or i could put the divot mat in there depending on what i was doing. It was quiet and it was nice an pliant under my feet:







                      2 cable ties on each end keep it seated right.

                      I had the PC monitor in front of me as I hit shots, and I started to get really lazy and just spin around straight away after a shot, I knew that would be a bad habit in the making. I knew what i really wanted.... I wanted a projector!

                      So I begged the old 'Ball and Chain' to allow me to get a projector. We could use it for the kids I said. We could play games on it! Think of all the things it could do! She nodded, sighed and asked I not buy the most expensive one....So i bought the consensus best one from AVS Forums and Red Flag Deals - BenQ W1070. Does 1080P and is supposed to be good for games. Also got a mounting kit for the roof.



                      Wow, really made a difference. I get like I was back at Lakeshore Links, drinking beer and playing Pebble. Much better effect than the monitor. Very pleased. The biggest issue was deciding where to put it. The throw on the projector was 1.2:1 So it needed to be about 11' back from my 9' screen to fit. And that is right in the eyeline of your backswing. Talk about freaking out. Swinging a metal club up and near my $800 projector is not for the faint of heart. I eventually found a spot i could move the mat to where I didn't hit the cage on the follow thru, and was a comfortable distance from the projector to swing full out. The problem for me is that i have only 7' 10" of space to play with. Had i known, i would have ticked the box with the builder for a 9ft basement....


                      Total So Far:
                      Trainer $19.99
                      Bungees $14.08
                      Hinges $5
                      Screws $10
                      Chain/Timber $Free
                      SKLY Flex $44
                      SKLZ Divot Mat $79
                      Haney Net $50
                      ABS Tees $17
                      ABS Pipe $70
                      Tarp $27
                      Cableties and Eyelets $14
                      2 Sheets of 4x2 1/4" $20
                      Optishot $259
                      Optishot Grass Replacement $79
                      PC $Free
                      WiFi $12
                      Pebble Beach Course $24
                      BenQ 1070 $799
                      Ceiling Projector Mount $30

                      So now it looked like this:



                      I was Happy. ...

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Home golf simulators

                        Until I wasn't.

                        I thought Optishot was too prone to error. Literally 3 out of 10 shots would do weird things. 300 yard 5irons. 10 yard 9 irons. It was immensely frustrating. I was told to change my lighting. So.....off to Homedepot and I got some of these LED ones:



                        It's a screw in LED that should give the right 'K' type light for the optishot. BUT. I had to move the light since it was in the middle of the cage, and Opti say you should have it right over the top of the ball for less shadows. So I moved the light to above the mat and changed to the LED. Still no change. Things would go awry.
                        I was very worried that I was beginning to change my setup and swing to fit this optishot. What happens in the spring when i go outside and i've hitting 50 yard cuts and draws because I was compensating for 7 foot ceilings and buggy software simulators?....

                        Then I saw this:



                        Skytrak. It looked exactly like what I wanted. It was camera based, and used actual ball flight calculations. It had support for range and games and it was tested to be near as damnit to GC2 for accuracy. And....$2000 USD.
                        Hmmm, how to sell this to the better half?

                        ...It's better to ask forgiveness than permission right? So i got one.

                        Aaaand I returned the Optishot.


                        Total So Far:
                        Trainer $19.99
                        Bungees $14.08
                        Hinges $5
                        Screws $10
                        Chain/Timber $Free
                        SKLY Flex $44
                        SKLZ Divot Mat $79
                        Haney Net $50
                        ABS Tees $17
                        ABS Pipe $70
                        Tarp $27
                        Cableties and Eyelets $14
                        2 Sheets of 4x2 1/4" $20
                        Optishot Grass Replacement $79
                        PC $Free
                        WiFi $12
                        Pebble Beach Course $24
                        LED Lights x 2 $60
                        BenQ 1070 $799
                        Ceiling Projector Mount $30
                        Skytrak $1999

                        First time with the Skytrak I knew it was good. What I saw on the iPad was my draw in real life. Yardage was right on and the numbers were consistent with Flight Scope Optimizer and various general recommended launch, ball conditions. It was presented well, although still rough around the edges in the software. I'll go more into the Skytrak if anyone is interested, but suffice to say I'm a believer. And when the E6 software or WGT Software hit it will be even better.

                        I used the iPad and i already had an Apple TV so i could use Airplay to project the screen. Problem was - I had the net in front of the tarp. So the projector made 2 sets of shadows on the screen. And after a while you tended to get vertigo. I tried many many times to re-arrange the net to reduce the blurring. I even tried putting the net behind the tarp. One hybrid later i had a nice hole in the tarp, the net AND an embedded ball in my back wall. Not good.
                        There's a few places that make higher danier tarps (like 50 or 80) and claim you can use them for golf. But some reviews were iffy on the quality and the lifespan of them. Eventually I ponied up for the Par2Pro Mesh Screen. The cheapest, non flimsiest screen i could find that had great reviews:




                        I also bought some new bungee ties to go into the eyelets, and used a credit I had for a cheap foam mattress protector to muffle some of the rebound and/or sound

                        Total So Far:
                        Trainer $19.99
                        Bungees $14.08
                        Hinges $5
                        Screws $10
                        Chain/Timber $Free
                        SKLY Flex $44
                        SKLZ Divot Mat $79
                        Haney Net $50
                        ABS Tees $17
                        ABS Pipe $70
                        Tarp $27
                        Cableties and Eyelets $14
                        2 Sheets of 4x2 1/4" $20
                        Optishot Grass Replacement $79
                        PC $Free
                        WiFi $12
                        Pebble Beach Course $24
                        LED Lights x 2 $60
                        BenQ 1070 $799
                        Ceiling Projector Mount $30
                        Skytrak $1999
                        Screen $550
                        Bungee Ties $10
                        Mattress Top $free

                        Now THIS is living! Such a difference without the net in your way. It's really immersive. Just like the corporate ones.
                        The last piece of the puzzle was to get 2 sets of cheap black curtains to hang off the sides. This really completes the aesthetics of the thing, and helps with the illusion of the range or course when playing. It also makes it nicer when watching TV.

                        And here's 240fps video of me hitting 9i into it:



                        The end result.



                        Last edited by wilson; Mar 3, 2015, 01:36 PM.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Home golf simulators

                          This is an amazing set up.
                          Congrats on the end product.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Home golf simulators

                            Can I come over?

                            Nice work!

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Home golf simulators

                              The story from start to finish was a fun read. Finished product looks pro, enjoy!

                              Comment

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