30 is the new 300: Is this the future of driving ranges?
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GolfPod will use the world’s leading technology to build driving ranges with a twist, as Alex Perry found out…
“Think about any existing driving range and how it’s designed and laid out – they’re old, and boring, and lacking any kind of color other than green and brown.”
Mike Stone is introducing TG to a new concept that is currently under construction.
“We want people to walk in and it immediately resonate as modern, cool and accessible.”
The photos we’re looking at are of GolfPod – a driving range that utilizes the latest ball-tracking technology.
So far, so normal. But what’s the USP that makes it, as Stone describes, “a game-changer”?
Here’s the twist. Each 10-bay site, he explains, fits in a space that is just shy of 40 yards by 40 yards, while the range itself, meanwhile, is only 30 yards long and fully enclosed by netting.
Stone, who has been working as the company’s managing director for a little more than a year now, says the idea came from founders Steve Pockneall and Andy Weeks. Pockneall operates a number of golf venues, including driving ranges, while Weeks is the owner of Hi Nets, which specializes in golf netting. The pair put their relative expertise together and GolfPod was born.
“It’s our own customized structure,” Stone explains. “Each bay has food and beverage tables behind the hitting areas, then there’s an astroturf base that runs 30 yards along the outfield and the netting towers are 12 meters high at the front and 15 meters high at the end of the range, so you do get to see quite a lot of the ball flight.
“We’re working with a leading ball-tracking provider at the moment to deliver the technology. It’s never been done over that distance before, but from testing we’re pretty confident.
“When the balls hit the net, they’ll fall into a gully, which then filters them round and back into the ball pit ready for the next user.
“It’s all self-automated, too, with contactless card payments, so for an operator it’s incredibly low cost.”
It begs the question, though. What do say to those who will say they want to see their ball soaring off toward the horizon rather than hitting a net 30 yards in front of them?
“It’s funny,” Stone explains. If you stand on any range that has ball-tracking technology, people hit the ball and they will watch it for literally two to three seconds before they turn around to watch the rest of the shot on the screen.”
He’s right, we do do that.
“So 250 yards or so have suddenly become redundant.”
He adds: “Our structure looks great, and we think it’s really cool. We’re really excited about it.”
Four sites have already agreed to have a GolfPod fitted, including Rickmansworth Golf Club, near London. “We’re really excited about that one,” Stone says, “because there are five or six golf clubs in the area that don’t have a range, so it will attract golfers from all around.”
But it’s not just traditional golf clubs where you can expect to see GolfPods popping up. Basildon Sporting Village, a popular leisure facility in Essex, is also signed up.
“Golf is becoming more family oriented, and the technology makes it more inclusive,” Stone explains. “Basildon Sporting Village has 2.2 million visitors through the door. For example, there are 3,000 swimming lessons there every week. So think of the parents dropping kids off, then can go and hit some balls.
“It’s also open from 5.30am to 10pm, and it’s right in front of the reception area, so everyone will see it.
“We want to help grow the game and bring it to spaces it could never have been brought before.”
But, Stone says, it’s not just casual golfers they want to attract.
“There’s nothing worse than going to a driving range and the balls have cracks and the mats are all damaged, yet you’re still paying a high-end prices.
“So we’ll have premium balls and mats, and we’ve budgeted to have them replaced at each site once a year.
“We want our facilities to be suitable for any golfer of any ability.”
Want to know more? You’ll find it on the GolfPod website.
