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Golf Simulators (how accurate do you think they are?)

Cjgolf25

Cjgolf25

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So unfortunately now that i live up north I don't have the luxury of playing year round on an actual course. I have to resort to indoor driving ranges, however I found out that there is a place about 15 mins from me that have about ten simulators. A buddy and myself decided to give it a try, we had in itch to play 18 and at $25 why not. One thing that i don't like about simulators and indoor facilities in general is that i am forced to hit of mats. Im not a fan simply because i feel it creates a lot of false hope, i can hit some great shots of the mat but once i get to grass its a different story, I tend to hit a chunky shot. With mats you don't get that feedback.

Im curious to know how accurate the distance is on these things can be? Some of the numbers i was putting up seemed a little to unreal to me, I keep telling myself that its because I'm hitting of a mat and that had something to do with it. How many have you have gone on one? Did it seem like it was playing true to what you normally play?
 
Depends on the simulator.
Some are quite accurate.
 
I played one last year and the driver and iron shots were similar, however the putting and short game piece I didn't feel were that great. The putting was different points on a mat into a cup and after a few putts I had it down pat and was putting pretty well for the round (I understand that it wasn't going to be similar to actual golf just happy we were able to putt). As for chips and pitches I had a few shots that I would try and play bump and run (which is my game in those situations) and the machine had a hard time picking it up (like I said though going into it we knew there were going to be limitations). Overall it was a good time spent with friends and was equal to a fun laid back range session.
 
I agree that the mats can make bad shots not so bad... but the numbers I got from a 3-trak launch monitor when trying to get distances on my new irons ended up proving out on the course. I've seen similar numbers on other launch monitors so I think the good ones are accurate.
 
As JB said, some are extremely accurate. A place near my house opened last year, they have 6 About Golf simulators that I find to be pretty accurate. It's humbling at times because you think you nailed a shot only to find it got 230 yards or something. I find it a little more difficult to get used to it, but after I've played a few rounds there I can get pretty used to it and have found the distances to be real close on all clubs.
 
This one looked very similar to the ones that that is used in Dick's Sporting Goods. I think it uses some for of Microsoft links. The short game and chipping definitely is not accurate I definitely had to manipulate my shot to get it somewhat close, but like you said there will be some limitations. I will probably go back tho just because I need to feed this need to play another 18.
 
I've played on a handful of simulators and I think the ones I played on were quite accurate. The things that are tough to replicate are lies (mats make everything easier) and putting (it's too video game like for me). But, swinging a club, when it's -5 and there's 2 feet of snow on the ground....I'll take it.
 
I don't think there's a good answer to this question because they vary so much. At one Golftown I tend to hit the ball much shorter and with much more dispersion than at another. At the indoor simulator bar that opened up near me I find that I lose about a clubs worth of distance on their simulators. I've chalked it up to the software or perhaps the balls that you have to use there but to be honest I really don't know.
 
The simulators I have used are pretty accurate, driving, short and long irons, its the chipping and putting that is off and I just cant figure it out.....Good timing for this thread as I am meeting a friend tomorrow for a simulated 18
 
The indoor place here in town uses the About Golf simulators, too. I've found it to be pretty accurate, and he's got some better mats to hit off so it's not too horrible and they give some. It's definitely not the same, but at least something nice to be able to do when weather doesn't permit getting outside to practice or play.
 
I've played on a few different ones, and the simulator + the software used makes a big difference. One place I go has an AboutGolf simulator that seems to be pretty accurate. The problem there is the mat, or the thin piece of carpet that pretends to be a mat, that feels like hitting off concrete. Another place has a full swing simulator, and I found the distance to be pretty bad. I hit a 180 yard 8 iron off of one. Not happening. A full swing setup using the E6 software has also been a pretty accurate combination. It is tough keeping a swing going in the winter up north, that is for sure.
 
Accurate enough for comparison. At least the ones I get to. The simulator I swing in is next to a foresight launch monitor. The Foresight is 15-20 yards longer with a driver. The simulator is 15-20 yards off the matt.
 
The 2 simulators I've played on tend to leave me about 2 clubs short of my usual...
 
I haven't tried them yet but I plan on trying out one of the two places we have here in Tampa to see how they are
 
Like JB said, some are very accurate and some, not so much.
The business down the road from me had 3 bays and I played on a league every winter for the last 4 years.
The sims in there were a joke, but it was close to home and gave me a place to keep my swing somewhat loose over the winter.
The ball flights on those were so ridiculous at times, it made us laugh. You could hit a drive that felt great and it may go out what looks like 125 yards and then suddenly make a 90 degree left and fly off the screen and out of bounds or 90 degrees and go straight up.
Unfortunately they closed down a couple of months ago. Rumor has it, that someone else may be taking over.
If they don't, it will require a 15 mile drive for me to get to another one this winter.
 
I went to one that was just a driving range so I could prevent the rust on my swing. As I was hitting the ball I noticed my distances were long. I thought it was because I was hitting off of a mat, but as I was leaving I looked at the computer and they had their simulators set up with a 10mph wind behind the players.


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I play a couple different simulator places in Northern NJ & they're actually pretty good - for the most part, I find them to be about a club short. If I take one club more on every full shot, works out about right. I find chipping the toughest part to get right ... always seem to chip it too long - can't seem to back it off enough ...
 
depends on the sim....i play in a winter league at plumb creek in batavia ny. they have software that lets the pro set the accuracy. he has it dialed in pretty close. hit on sims at dicks and golf galaxy, seems they have it juiced up a little bit, drivers are about 8-10 yards longer, they can also increase or decrease side spin also, remember, the stores are trying to sell clubs!!!
 
I wonder how often those things are calibrated. I hit today at the PGA SS and while I really didn't care about the numbers on the screen for today's purposes, I do plan to use their LMs for my driver shaft experiment. I normally drive the ball at least 250, sometimes 270 with a good strike and can occasionally roll them out close to 300 in good weather with a giving fairway. I tried hard and couldn't get the machine to register a distance beyond 220 with my driver. It was also short on my 8 and 6 irons. I'm usually 155ish with the 8, and it was showing 135. The 6 is a 180 club for me and it was showing a max of 165 on my purest of swings. My "usual" numbers are based on GPS on the course, with the same clubs I was swinging in the bay. I have no idea if the spin numbers were good or not, but I suspect they weren't, given the inaccuracy of the distance. I think it may boil down to the speed calculation being off, as it was giving me club head speeds 10% or so lower than normal. My normal driver SS ranges from 100-105 based on multiple other monitors and my swingbyte. Today it was registering as low as 88 with a max of 95.

Could be I had an off day, or could be that the radar needed to be calibrated. Either way... it makes me wonder what I have to do to be sure I'm getting good numbers. Very soon I plan to use one of these monitors for some scientific shaft experimentation. Right now I'm not sure where to go for that.
 
I have played on a couple and they aren't too far off when I hit the ball correctly. If anything I feel like my misses aren't as severe on a simulator.

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Golfing tomorrow at a new place that opened up near me. Pouring rain so there's no way I'm heading out in this. Hopefully it's fairly accurate and fun.
 
Played a round today (Turtle Bay). It was enjoyable. They had a video camera feature for your drives which showed your form. Really showed me I wasn't getting enough shoulder turn. Short game was tricky and putting was suspect but I can see how this can benefit your game. Round took two and a half hours including warm up and it went by fast. We had 4 guys playing the same course on two simulators and luckily I didn't have high score. I can see going once a week until winter is over.
 
idunno what brand they use at my golf galaxy but they have one launch bay that is dead accurate, and they have one right next to the other one that you flat out can't trust. don't know why, but it is how it is. on the other hand, at a course near me, they use trackman, and those launch monitors typically seem to be pretty accurate.
 
I think it all depends on the simulator. As my pop has stated we play in a sim league on an About Golf PGA Tour Sim and it's scary accurate. The only thing that is ify about it is the putting. Other than that the yardages and misses for me are all dead on.
 
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