How Much Has Your Sim Helped Your Game?

[Joe M]

I went from a 12 to a 15. When I first built my sim I was like a junkie. I played so much on it that they thought I fractured my spine. It was not a fracture just overuse. I use a divot action strip so no problem with elbow. At 64 you cannot hit 100 balls per day ina short amount of time. The problem with sims is that you have no down time between swings.

[chip_shot]

Id be lucky if I didnt double par every hole. Dont worry I sucked fast... Now im in the mid 90s on average and ive only used the LM intermediately im still not done building the sim

[aussiebenny]

Before: I have a 3m wide 3m high golf net cage in my garage for past 2 years. I hit balls with it maybe once every fortnight or so, and play 18 holes on the real course once every couples of months.

Now: 2 weeks ago, I purchased a Mevo+ and installed a projector simulation setup in the same cage. Since then, I've been hitting about 100-200 balls a day in range mode. Last couple of days, I really felt an improvement in consistency / rhythm in my swing. I feel like this is going to massively change my game simply due to making want to hit more balls every single day. Also, just knowing the "current" average distances for each iron, the lateral dispersion tendencies etc is going to really help in making better decisions at the course. Now it's making me want to play on the course more often as well. So I booked a round next week!

[iloveplywood]

Purchased a GC2 a couple of months ago and ultimately it has really helped my iron game quite a bit. I've always hit my irons way too high and the GC2 confirmed that I did indeed have ridiculous launch angles on irons (25 with a 7 iron). It took a lot of work but I've finally improved my impact position which has greatly improved my launch angle (17 with 7 iron now) and my consistency of contact. I can now actually hit a five iron out of iffy lies because I'm no longer picking them as much. The ball flight I'm seeing on my irons is truly amazing compared to the past. I would never have been able to do this without the constant feedback on my launch angle with the GC2 (and hitting thousands of balls). It still wasn't easy and there is a process of bringing a simulator swing to the golf course that is frustrating at times (much like taking a range swing to the course).

My driver has been more problematic. I just can't swing my driver normally in my garage. I have a PRGR launch monitor that I use with the GC2 which has been very helpful as I can take that to the course and compare. For whatever reason I swing about five miles per hour faster outside without even trying to swing fast. I also make much worse contact inside -- I hit shots inside that I don't think I've hit in the last 20 years on the range or the course. My next mission is to try and resolve this as it pretty much prevents me from enjoying playing holes on the simulator and relegates me to the range.

Overall, I think simulators are a great way to improve your swing BUT it won't happen just by hitting a bunch of balls on it or trying to squeeze every last bit of yardage out of your clubs (it's very easy to just chase number which is not good for my game at least). Also make sure you have enough room to swing freely or at least be prepared to work on fighting the inside swing phenomenon

[RAH5]

Very helpful but getting a coach has been, as could be expected, way more impactful. The combination of coach and sim to continue to work on the lesson plan is great. HCP down significantly overall.

[rdeyer]

I've had my simulator for around 6 months now. Early in the summer I actually managed to get worse IRL. So much practice and ability to see club data was a blessing and curse. Rather than swinging naturally and freely I was always looking at the data and trying to correct things. I wanted to reduce my out to in path, I wanted to square the club face better, I wanted to chase some extra mph on the swing. All of that is great to do, but if you do too much at once I found you can lose your natural swing and get in your own head.

Fast forward a couple more months and I've made it out the other side. All of those changes I've tried to make based on data have become engrained in my swing and feel natural now. I'm striking the ball significantly further (30+ yards on my driver and 3w, 15+ yards on my longer irons) and more accurately.

Long story short I think it's extremely helpful to have a simulator and it can improve your ball striking, but don't be discouraged if it's not an immediate thing since you're likely going to want to tinker with your swing once you see the data. I also agree with a previous comment about it not improving much on chipping and putting. That's very much a feel thing and requires an outdoor setting to get right, at least for me. I can 2 putt most everything on a sim and get chips close, but in real life I have quite a bit of work to do to make that a reality.

[cgdavis_2]

Like many, I golfed a lot in my 20s and was decent (10-12 hdcp) but not great. Then life happens and in my early-mid 30s was lucky to get out 1-2 times a year. 2 years ago I played in a scramble and realized my entire game tee to green was shot.

Last year I started playing a bit more and hitting the range more. 2 rounds in the 80s and many “liberal” mid-90s. Last winter, I found a bar in town that had golfzon simulators and I was hooked. Played once a week over winter and felt good. Took a golf trip in February to Arizona and was amazed. Played my first six +1 and last six +4 and we won’t talk about the middle six. I found I was not mentally prepared for the focus of 18 holes or physically prepared for 36.

I got my skytrak set up in May and have hit around 500 balls so far. I played this last weekend (first time this year in real golf) and shot an 89. My iron play was awesome but I had 6 3-4 putts. If is can shore that up I am back around where I was 10 years ago. My father in law even commented on how well I was hitting the ball.

Long story, but here are my general thoughts on sim

1. Putting and chipping improvement need to be done at an outdoor facility

2. There are no bad lies or wind in a sim. If you are cognizant about that on the course it will help.

3. I have spent a lot of my practice on 50-125 yards on the GIP and it showed in the course.

4. My distances are dialed in for my clubs. I was able to confidently pick a club and was pin high a shocking amount of time.

5. In the long run I firmly believe I will break into the 70s with solid drives/irons and a mix of real life putting/chipping practice. Time will tell but it just goes to show how confident one can feel when the work in the sim translates to the course.

[Wizard of Coz]

Range work in sim especially when i had skytrak range and the smallest green set up for wedge work led to my biggest gains outdoors. The golf sim course playing is fun but hasn't equated to reduced hdcp like the range work.

[Hacker1]

Depends how you use sim and what you use it for. Just playing courses and range practice is unlikely to yield big results. In my opinion lessons, lots of short game practice and real course play is the key to lowering handicap. It's possible if you have bad habits, swing faults you can just practice this more in a sim!

[Shatneyman]

I've had my simulator for about 2 years now, use to shoot 15-18 over all the time,.. now I'm around 6-8 over. I've increased my swing speed and a lot more accurate. My simulator has giving me the opportunity to try things I would not try on a real course.

[GullLakeMi]

Fair comment. I took a few lessons last year when I was a 12. Similar situation that I could stripe it on range when I got in a rhythm, but couldn't sustain it for 18 holes. Pro went with me on the course and observed (1) need to work on alignment and (2) my words and body language were not confident. Been working on both. I'll try to get another session soon and check for new feedback.

[fortner28]

I think the sim has more potential to help higher handicappers. I was a 15 and now I am an 11. For me just being able to hit a ball more frequently and continuing to groove a swing makes me better. The only downside to sim golf is that there is no variation to your hitting surface. You always have a nice flat lie on a sim.

[JNewman1909]

Have you considered getting a coach to analyze your swing, there might be some elements that you aren't picking up that a trained eye can find, and you can then work on

[h0und10]

Would it be fair to say that SIM golf would/should show the greatest improvement for higher handicap golfers? Those of you with single-digit indexes are already striking the ball very well for the most part, especially those of you sub 5. I would imagine, and hope for my sake, that someone with a 15 plus handicap should see a nice improvement just from the improved ball striking, shot feedback, and ability to practice more?

I think that would be the case for most sports, games or activities. It is easy to take the first few steps with a little practice

[GullLakeMi]

I have a 10 handicap. I'm very analytical and play with too many swing thoughts. The simulator and GC2 really feed my need for data. I built my sim over this past winter. Played for 3 months inside about 5 days a week. I've logged about 20 rounds outside already. Handicap is the same.

Data after each shot is really helpful. I also film my swing from time to time. I discovered I have a distance gap in my wedges between 8, 7 & 6 irons. I got the local pro to bend my 7 iron to even it out. I would have never figured that out without a launch monitor.

I agree generally with others. Driver improved dramatically in distance as I straightened the flight, launch angle and spin rate. Same for 3W off tee or fairway. I still occasionally launch the ball with a pull or push that gets me into trouble. I struggle with my iron swing. I feel like I'm getting smarter. I can get in a nice groove on the sim where I can easily play 18 holes well. IRL, I can often start a round with a good iron swing but it tapers off during the round. I'm changing my sim play to purposely interrupt the flow. Also working on IRL pre-shot routine to better rehearse what I'm working on. I'm struggling with uneven lies IRL.

Short game - no change. Agree hard to work on chips, although I chip like a pro on the sim. Much harder IRL with different lie conditions. I could do more to figure out interim distances on wedges, but haven't.

Putting - Never been great. Sim has taught me to be more analytical about seeing a distance (I quickly pace it off IRL) and translating it to a backswing length, but struggle IRL to adapt to changing course conditions, slope, grain, etc.

The fact my handicap is the same is pretty frustrating. Somewhat embarrassed to say how many hours and rounds I've played trying to get better. Almost the definition of insanity (feels like I'm changing a lot, but the results stay the same). I get compliments my swing looks better.

With all that said, I love the sim. Practicing and playing (TGC 2019) is almost more fun than IRL. TGC 2019 course selection and ability to design makes me giddy. Especially of course during winter and inclement weather outdoors. Best toy I ever bought.