Indoor chip and putt concept - feedback needed

[Champ10101]

I’d love some honest feedback. I’m looking into building an indoor chip and putt golf course. The idea is to buildout an indoor 18 hole course. Each hole will be anywhere from 20-50 yards long (all par 3s). Here is the big question...to make it more interesting you would hit a foam golf ball into the green and then putt out with a real golf ball. The foam golf ball would react like a real golf ball which would allow you to draw and fade it into the green. Would you be interested in that style of game?

 

[DataDude]

What kind of space will you have? That seems like it would require a gigantic building. Gigantic buildings are a ton of overhead or they are in lower retail traffic areas like industrial parks. Both would create substantial risk to your investment here.

 

[Champ10101]

What kind of space will you have? That seems like it would require a gigantic building. Gigantic buildings are a ton of overhead or they are in lower retail traffic areas like industrial parks. Both would create substantial risk to your investment here.

I totally agree...I still need to work out the math behind the business model, but first I wanted to see if there was any interest in the concept.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Turtlerancher]

Just the size of the building needed would be prohibitive unless you have a large aircraft hangar your not using.

 

[ArmyGolf]

I assume we're talking artificial turf in an abandoned stadium or something?

I can't even imagine the cost to build an interesting pitch and putt course indoors with turf. The cost per round would need to be high, which may dissuade people from playing.
That said, if there was one here I'd take my kids at least once.

 

[DataDude]

I totally agree...I still need to work out the math behind the business model, but first I wanted to see if there was any interest in the concept.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Interest and price are intertwined. At $20 a round I would be interested and give it a go. At $50+ a round I am not interested at all. The switching balls out is a little quirky. I would be worried about someone hitting a real ball inside a building with people milling around everywhere. Golfers don't love par 3 courses and this is a watered down version of that but it would also require more skill than a non golfer would have so it's going to be too difficult for them. Your market is small and very demanding IMO. You will need a big population nearby to support this and that goes back to my original post. The real estate to do such a thing near a major population center is going to be expensive. It would be helpful to be somewhere that outdoor golf is not possible due to weather for large chunks of the year.

 

[MrDC]

If it were possible, and/or profitable, it would have been done a long time ago, but it ain't. Too seasonal, too much overhead, too little interest.

 

[RealPretendPsychic]

I’m not sure I’d be interested if there’s a foam ball involved. Don’t know how this would be a big enough draw.

 

[Jank]

I’m not sure I’d be interested if there’s a foam ball involved. Don’t know how this would be a big enough draw.

Agreed with this... there's just something about chipping on turf and combining that with a foam ball would completely dissuade me from going. I'd rather just go to a golf course with a nice short game area and make my own game.

 

[Champ10101]

Just the size of the building needed would be prohibitive unless you have a large aircraft hangar your not using.

I hear you, it would definitely be a large space. The question is if I could do it, would the interest be there? Im not sure.

 

[Champ10101]

I assume we're talking artificial turf in an abandoned stadium or something?

I can't even imagine the cost to build an interesting pitch and putt course indoors with turf. The cost per round would need to be high, which may dissuade people from playing.
That said, if there was one here I'd take my kids at least once.

Thanks for the feedback!

 

[Champ10101]

I’m not sure I’d be interested if there’s a foam ball involved. Don’t know how this would be a big enough draw.

I appreciate the feedback. It’s definitely a different approach with using foam balls and I agree that it might eliminate a large percentage of regular golfers.

 

[Champ10101]

Interest and price are intertwined. At $20 a round I would be interested and give it a go. At $50+ a round I am not interested at all. The switching balls out is a little quirky. I would be worried about someone hitting a real ball inside a building with people milling around everywhere. Golfers don't love par 3 courses and this is a watered down version of that but it would also require more skill than a non golfer would have so it's going to be too difficult for them. Your market is small and very demanding IMO. You will need a big population nearby to support this and that goes back to my original post. The real estate to do such a thing near a major population center is going to be expensive. It would be helpful to be somewhere that outdoor golf is not possible due to weather for large chunks of the year.

Awesome feedback! Here’s a little more background on why I’m interested in this idea. I had a herniated disc in my low back about 10 years ago. I was able to hit a drive 275-290 pretty regularly, now i can only hit a drive 200-225. Going to a regular golf course just frustrates me, but I love the short game and still pretty good around the greens. I want to create a space that can still challenge you, but also create a fun experience for all ages and physical abilities and can be played all year long day or night. Your feedback is super helpful.

 

[JZ777]

In the warm weather and summer it would not draw enough interest from serious golfers. Driving ranges barely make money and that’s usually very low overhead. Put your money in an index fund and make yourself 7% a year.

 

[Phil75070]

I'd only be interested as an alternative to limited short game practice areas at ranges or golf courses. However, since I would be looking to the facility as a way of improving my chipping/pitching, using foam balls or even real balls but chipping/pitching to artificial surfaces would be of no interest from me. There might be people interested in something like that as a more advanced form of miniature golf strictly for entertainment purposes, but, again, not me.