Creating an indoor golf setup at home can be a daunting task. Whether that is joining our Garage Sim Crew and having a simple and cost effective way to hit balls and gather data or following through on the dream of walking into an air conditioned golf oasis that envelopes you into the world of simulator golf. The task of choosing items can be overwhelming. In recent years we have seen a number of enclosure kits hit the market and each promising easy setup and a finished product that looks outstanding and functions as good as it looks.
If you haven’t seen our quick video showing the early setup of the THP Tech Studio, you can see it below.
What is an Enclosure? The answer is less complex than you think. Exactly what you see in the video above, good enclosures feature an impact screen, a secondary high definition viewing screen, frame pads that are on the top and sides to offer some protection as well as a better look for a hitting bay, and of course a frame that brings everything together.
When setting up the latest THP Tech Studio where we do our equipment testing, the Medalist was chosen for a number of reasons, but two stuck out to us that were game changing. First, if you saw our previous office setup that was featured in most of our content, it was very permanent. When we moved office spaces, taking that down meant repairing ceilings and floors. The Medalist enclosure is much easier than you can imagine to setup and take down. While we wouldn’t call it a temporary setup someone could throw up for some shots in the garage in minutes and then take down later that day and drive the car in, it’s not far off. The second being the screen, which we will dive deeper into shortly. In an office setting or home where people do not want to hear the constant banging of golf balls, we have yet to find an enclosure or screen that eats up the sound waves better than the Medalist.
All of the enclosures from Ace Indoor Golf feature what they call the most durable impact screen on the market. The Ace HiQ two piece screen system fills the entire area in high definition viewing, with the front screen doing much of the grunt work for lack of a better term. The front screen is a three-ply design that has taken everything we have thrown at it, thousands and thousands of shots and still looks basically new. It has the least amount of bounce back we have seen in the space and absorbs nearly all of the sound waves leaving a fairly quiet room for a golf simulator, outside of club to ball impact.
The large, bright viewing area attaches to the rear mesh (2nd piece of HiQ) using velcro. This offers two things long term. Ever walk into a simulator or hitting bay and see the screen dimple that looks like it is smiling back at you? Or worse, ever walk in and found one that had some damage or even a hole in it? By utilizing velcro as a fastener, it makes both tightening and placement easy, as well as taking it a step further and even replacing one part of the Ace HiQ.
After thousands of golf shots, we can’t envision a time when replacement is necessary, but the peace of mind knowing it can be done in simple fashion is comforting in a way with such an investment.
The Medalist enclosure frame is made of aluminum tubing and is less than 2″ in diameter. It goes up in simple fashion and once assembled, including having the screen in place, it is light weight enough to move. Twice we have wanted to make some small adjustments with our front mat for a more seamless look aesthetically and it was no challenge to lift and/or push into place.
While we hope the side and top pads are not ever used and are there more for appearance, we know that isn’t the case. The pads will eat up any ball hit their way with minimal bounce back, and to test this we purposely (of course) hit a few balls there. The result was a light drop out of the air that rested on our front mat. The 5′ depth appears to be the perfect amount for most launch monitor setups that will have you 8-12 ft back from the screen.
Let’s Talk Dimensions. The Medalist Hitting Bay has actual dimensions of 12′ wide x 8.5′ tall and 5′ deep. This accommodates our 10′ screen to tee dimensions perfectly and having a projector just inside of 13′. With the shape and setup of our THP Tech Studio being a perfect rectangle, this worked well. Not everybody has that luxury however, and that is where the Ace team can assist. Custom fittings can be done. The best part is, the consultation to see if something like this will fit is completely free and has no pressure.
If you are joining our #GarageSimCrew and looking for a full featured kit enclosure that features best in class technology, the Medalist enclosure might be what you are looking for. At the time of this writing, it came with a price tag of $4,699.00, and from ordering to delivery takes about 2 weeks.
For more information on this or any of the other products that Ace Indoor Golf sells, check out their website at www.aceindoorgolf.com.
