$2600 garage simulator build (and updates on using it for my game)

[dornstar]

[quote name='woody089' timestamp='1442578524' post='12330162']
... living in south Florida, I can attest to the "wettest" summer on record feeling. If not out right raining, the humidity has made it nearly unbearable (clubs slipping even with cords). If at all possible, - would suggest a "portable air conditioner" for your garage, so that you can actually enjoy being in there. great job!!!! Jim
[/quote]
Oh, I already took care of that and I've insulated the garage door as well. It actually gets a little cold in here now.

[dornstar]

[quote name='L3fty' timestamp='1442580292' post='12330258']
I always wanted to do this as well. Just bought a house and have some space to set something up like this...might follow your footsteps from the beginning to end.
I loved the fact that you had a budget and stuck with it, improvising, adapting and overcoming. But the absolute best part was reading how your daughter's love for the game grew. I have a girl who will turn 1 tomorrow and hope she likes golf so we can play together.
Thanks for posting this!

Only thing I didn't like about this is..... GO BLUE! HAIL!
[/quote]
Yeah, it's really cool that she's found a love for the game. She worked her butt off helping me build it which was awesome as well. She's a gymnast who has basically been in the gym 4-5 days per week her entire life, so she is use to training hard, being coached and doing things in a precise manner, so she's extremely easy to work with. Looking back at my game at a youngster, it just seems to come easier for her. I'm just shocked at how fast she has got good.


And... uh... gross. LOL.

[dornstar]

Holy crap that thing is incredible! Regarding the mat that you bought, how do tees work in it? When I move in a few years, hopefully I'll have a space (either garage or basement area) that can accommodate something like this, and by then maybe the prices of the monitors etc. will come down a little bit. Good job all around though!

It holds the tee perfectly. Just pop it down like you would on the course. I use 2 3/4 tees, so I just cut about 3/4" off.

 

[Emiliouf]

I was actually thinking of doing the same except I have to rent a warehouse and might be getting a GC2 just because I want to actually play courses, but haven't looked into that option for others.

[jimwgt26]

Love it, great job.

[Emiliouf]

Oh well there goes that theory. Skytrack and WGT are now working together with a simulator version of WGT. It's in the first iteration so who knows if it's good, but a good start.

[dornstar]

[quote name='Emiliouf' timestamp='1442584309' post='12330510']
I was actually thinking of doing the same except I have to rent a warehouse and might be getting a GC2 just because I want to actually play courses, but haven't looked into that option for others.
[/quote]
That's coming to SkyTrak. They are getting ready to release Android and PC support as well as course play with E6 and WGT. It's at the end of the beta testing. I'm actually excited about the PC support as running the SkyTrak kills my phone in a hurry. It even drained when charging until I went to a 2.1 adapter.

And from what I'm hearing about WGT, it'll be based on a monthly fee of like $20 which is nice since golf sim software like E6 can cost almost as much as the SkyTrak did.

[media=]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49UEFju2kEQ[/media]

[Stensons3Wood]

That's is awesome. Would love to do something like that myself

[golfoh]

Great setup, thanks for posting.

I've been contemplating something like because with two young kids at home, too much work, and no good range near by - I need some way to practice easily whenever I can find some free time. This would be a great way.

And Go BUCKS!

[Emiliouf]

Here is a thread with the Skytrak rep helping and answering questions about it's integration with WGT.

http://golfsimulatorforum.com/forum/skytrak/39962-skytrak-and-wgt/page9

[dornstar]

Oh wow, didn't realize that I could run WGT already. Setting it up right now.

[dornstar]

Hell yes.... I'm playing WGT on it. The course aren't available yet and it's a little laggy since it's in beta right now, but they have a challenge mode on Kiawah Island which gives you 9 shots from like 30 to 200 yards into greens. This is going to be freaking awesome. The graphics are impressive.

Just got done playing Kiawah Island and St Andrews and now I'm playing Chambers Bay.

[Emiliouf]

[quote name='dornstar' timestamp='1442605879' post='12332150']
Hell yes.... I'm playing WGT on it. The course aren't available yet and it's a little laggy since it's in beta right now, but they have a challenge mode on Kiawah Island which gives you 9 shots from like 30 to 200 yards into greens. This is going to be freaking awesome. The graphics are impressive.
[/quote] Good to know. I might be tempted to just get this one. I am not for so much detail as long as I get pretty accurate direction and loft of the shots. Then again. I just found out about online tours with GC2 which have leaderboards and different tours, which just might tempt me to get a GC2.

[Emiliouf]

[quote name='Emiliouf' timestamp='1442606979' post='12332232']
[quote name='dornstar' timestamp='1442605879' post='12332150']
Hell yes.... I'm playing WGT on it. The course aren't available yet and it's a little laggy since it's in beta right now, but they have a challenge mode on Kiawah Island which gives you 9 shots from like 30 to 200 yards into greens. This is going to be freaking awesome. The graphics are impressive.
[/quote] Good to know. I might be tempted to just get this one. I am not for so much detail as long as I get pretty accurate direction and loft of the shots. Then again. I just found out about online tours with GC2 which have leaderboards and different tours, which just might tempt me to get a GC2.
[/quote]
Oh no. I have opened the flood gates. I can't stop thinking of getting something like this. Protee seems to be a pretty good option. Especially with the way you can play online, leagues and over 70,000 courses.

[Rocuronium]

Man this thread has got me thinking...

[R Hagan]

That set up is sick!

[Emiliouf]

I started with this setup today and am already in process of getting a warehouse nearby and setting one up. although I stumbled upon golfsimulatorforum.com and things got crazy. Just wanted to hop on again and give this link. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOSYog8gRqk
Now things are getting serious with options. Dornstar, you have to check out The golf club with Skytrak. THis is the shi* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOSYog8gRqk

[PJ72]

Excellent set up, thanks for sharing pics and video.

The SkyTrak looks to have a better interface/display than Trackman, really looks good.

$2000 isn't a lot of money for something of that quality. Although, they make you jump through a few technical hoops to get it displayed. Simplify that process and it'll really catch on.

[rhino305]

Dorn, what is that blue block beside your skytrak? Does it just prevent bounceback from your screen?

[dornstar]

[quote name='rhino305' timestamp='1442667671' post='12334818']
Dorn, what is that blue block beside your skytrak? Does it just prevent bounceback from your screen?
[/quote]
Yeah, it's just a yoga block that I had nearby that I put there to block any balls that may roll towards the SkyTrak. I had one roll back and tap the SkyTrak which changed the alignment a few degrees which makes you have to set it back up. I need to make some sort of a more permanent solution for it.

[dornstar]

[quote name='PJ72' timestamp='1442653669' post='12334498']
Excellent set up, thanks for sharing pics and video.

The SkyTrak looks to have a better interface/display than Trackman, really looks good.

$2000 isn't a lot of money for something of that quality. Although, they make you jump through a few technical hoops to get it displayed. Simplify that process and it'll really catch on.
[/quote]
Yeah, I think the "hoop jumping" is probably my least favorite aspect.

Right now, the SkyTrak application needs some attention. Primarily, the main issue is that it doesn't save any settings like how many shots you want displayed, how you want to see the shot drawn, whether or not you want a center line and things of that nature. It's a pain in the butt to have to do that every time. The time to show the shot is also an issue. It definitely shows faster on my iPhone 6+ than it does my wife's iPad. I think that issue will clear up when they get PC integration.

After hitting about 500 shots last night on the WGT simulation app, it's definitely in a beta phase and can be buggy at times. When you open the app, it has to find your SkyTrak which seems to take anywhere from 2-5 minutes and then it can take a while to connect. Then randomly while you're playing, it'll have to find the SkyTrak again, but fortunately, it doesn't take as long.... 10-15 secs or so. It also seems like any movement like rolling a ball into place trips the software into thinking a shot was placed, but nothing registers and it allows you to play the shot for real. Not a big deal, but it just slows the process.


There is SOOOOOO much promise with the SkyTrak as well as the WGT simulation, but both are still in their infancy stages. I think by the end of the year when they move to the 2.0 app, a lot of the issues will have been fixed.

[dornstar]

Check out this pitch shot I hit last night at Chambers Bay. Freaking amazing....

[media=]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcH__cQ7lAY[/media]

[dornstar]

Here's a quick video of the WGT Challenge Modes that I made for my friends in Ohio last night. My commentary is a little retarded and it wasn't really made for the masses, so don't mind it. LOL.

[media=]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cq7W7GpfMo[/media]

[golfoh]

You're making this really hard to not open a new tab and just buy one!

I'm absolutely going to get one at some point, just gotta figure out when. I currently just hit balls into a rukknet in the basement for practice (usually just irons - I'm short so I have no issues with hitting anything).

I'm really thinking of just going ahead and adding one of these and an ipad to at least provide shot feedback for now. We're likely to move next year, so I'll make sure our next place has a better area that I can make a full blown setup like you have.

Awesome stuff!

[3sip]

I'm pretty interested in seeing where this tech is at in a year and at what cost point. I am building a house and part of the basement is going to be a golf studio. I am very impressed with what I see.

[ROH1]

My Skytrak got me through the winter last year (CT). Love it. Haven't used the WGT yet, but I will be back indoors soon enough.

[dornstar]

I've had some PM request asking for a list of items, so I figure I would post it here for future reference.



Monster Tee mat... mine is a 48x60 which is definitely big enough -[url="http://www.allturfmats.com/MonsterTee-Golf-Mats-s/36.htm"] http://www.allturfmats.com/MonsterTee-Golf-Mats-s/36.htm[/url]

projector.... if you have a little more money to splurge, this is where I would invest it. My projector (ViewSonic PJD5155) is fine, but I would prefer one with horizontal adjustments for if you can't have it perfectly centered to your screen. You're not going to find a decent one much cheaper and the image is definitely more than sufficient. Ideally you would want a "short throw" projector that can be closer to the screen to eliminate your body casting any shadows, but the price jumps up big time for those. - [url="http://www.amazon.com/ViewSonic-PJD5155-Projector-Lumens-Black/dp/B00SZ4G4YE"]http://www.amazon.co...k/dp/B00SZ4G4YE[/url]

Skytrak... right now there's a $300 off deal for demo units which have the full warranty - [url="http://www.skytrakgolf.com/content/welcome-skytrak"]http://www.skytrakgo...welcome-skytrak[/url]

Apple TV or HDMI cable to send video from iPad or iPhone to the projector. I prefer the Apple TV as it allows you to watch a bunch of channels like ESPN on the big screen and it's just a touch more expensive than a HDMI cable. - [url="http://www.amazon.com/Apple-TV-MD199LL-Current-Version/dp/B007I5JT4S/ref=sr_1_1?s=tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1442802689&sr=1-1&keywords=apple+tv"]http://www.amazon.co...ywords=apple tv[/url]

Impact screen... I used a white Ikea quilt for now until I got more funds together to buy my screen. Eventually, I'll get the PR20 impact screen from West Coast Netting. My screen is close to 10x10 foot, so it'll be around $200. - [url="http://www.westcoastnetting.com/pr-20-w.html"]http://www.westcoast...om/pr-20-w.html[/url]

Then just PVC and other misc items for whatever size frame you want to build.

[wbond]

If you are going to upgrade in the future, skip the pr20 and go with the par2pro HQ material for your screen. Your quilt although not smooth may actually be giving you a better image than pr20 would. I have the pr20 and while the image is good, it has a significant amount of bleed through on the light.

Then the big upgrade will be going to TGC on skytrak.

[i*windows]

really great setup; if I could get a skytrak for $1000 I would drop the cash, but $2000 is just out of my budget

[Krt22]

Yeah I sort of wish I pulled the trigger when it was $1500 for the pre-order deal