Beginning My Journey To Play Golf Year Round

[walkities]

Hello everyone, been lurking on this site for quite some time but am now just starting to get planning on my way to build something that will allow me to play golf year round. I love golf but being a new father and living in Canada it doesn't leave a lot of time to drive to the course these days and felt building a sim may be a great way to introduce my new twins to the game in the future. Like a lot, I feel there is so much information on here and would love to lean on experts who have done this before with a garage build.

I've decided on the garage as it's the only space big enough. In order to make this how I want Ill need to remove the center garage lift and replace it with a wall hanging opener, that should provide more than enough room and clearance for both righties and lefties (most my friends are lefties but we have a few righties in our group). Id love to keep it under 15K or even less but really am intrigued to do it right the first time with the Uneekor. I was originally looking at Sky Trak but with the number of lefties and righties in my group I love the idea of ceiling mount (as well as the feature set of it)

Here's where I am at and am looking for any suggestions on some of the other details or perhaps let me know what Im missing or perhaps some advice on if it's possible to save some money with other options.

Screen
Having a garage functional for keeping our vehicles in the winter is a necessity as living in Northern Alberta gets quite cold (was -50C in Feb lol). Having a retractable screen is nice and I saw these at Par2Pro. Is this the best bet for this or is there anything cheaper that would allow me to get the same functionality at a cheaper price point? I don't mind using some elbow grease to raise and lower a screen but definitely, the motorized option is nice.

Launch Monitor
I love love love the Uneekor feel and being able to see the details of impact, club speed etc. Of course, being ceiling mounted is the key draw here as I originally looked at Sky Trak but with lefties and righties in our group, I want something less cumbersome. The Mevo+ was another option but wasn't sure how it would be inside of a garage reading some of the cons to it with radar interference. Right now I would love the Uneekor if I can fit it into my budget.

Mats
Is the Fibrebuilt mat the best option here? I liked the center mat as it would make it easier for both lefties and righties. I tried to find some other options but this likely needs to be something that I can put down and pickup when it's not in use. I seen some people as well recommend that I can use artificial turf from Home Depot for the drop zone off the mat (I think).

PC
I've built many PC's in the past so figured this could save me money, I plan on going with the Golf Club 2019 as my software so figure the recommended specs should be more than enough with the build-out.

Projector
I currently have a home theatre setup in my basement with an Optomoa 1080p projector, I've looked at upgrading this for awhile with a 4k one but with receivers still a little behind in HDMI 2.1 I've waited. Do you think this projector would be sufficient, does 4K make that big of a difference in the experience here? Can't seem to find a reasonably priced 4K projector for a golf sim.

Software
Going with the Golf Club 2019 unless something else comes up, think this is $1000 to work with Uneekor...

Am I missing anything else in this build-out? Ill likely need some protective netting for the garage railing, have seen some black curtains being used but am open to suggestions here as well. I see the Par2Pro comes with an option for this but seems a fairly pricey addition.

SO FAR

$1000 - Chamberlain Wall Mounted Garage Door Install (Purchase, get power outlet and possibly installed not the greatest handyman)
$8500 - Uneekor (would a Mevo+ in a garage work or is there anything else cheaper, I really just need to golf more consistently to get better but loved the feedback of the Uneekor)
$2500 - Par2Pro Motorized Retractable Screen (is there any manual retractable options to perhaps save some money, it has to be retractable for storage and garage parking)
$2000 - Fibrebuilt (I think based on exchange)
$500 - Gaming PC built myself (rought estimate, do have some parts laying around here and have an old server already
$1000 - Protector (are there any good sub-1000 4k Projectors???)
$1000 - The Golf Club Software


Obviously, the PC, software, projector, and wall-mounted garage door opener are a necessity. Just wondering if anyone can tell me what Im missing and of course provide some cheaper alternative. I would love the Uneekor but would go with something like the Mevo if it meant the ability to save some money but still have lefties and righties. To me though this is the one thing I would love to spend the money on as it would make the experience the best. The screen and mat are two big costs that Im trying to find some cheaper alternatives.

Definitely not needing perfection and rather have functionality in the sim hardware than appearance.

Thank you of course to anyone who can help or guide me on my journey, it's something I've dreamt about for quite some time, and am looking to chip (no pun attended) away at this over the course of the year (or two).

[richerod]

I have the Uneekor QED in my garage. Really like the Uneekor system and yes the visual feedback at impact never gets old. There are definately savings to be found if you are a DIYer.

[COgolfengineer]

Welcome to the golf sim world!

I agree about the QED; it's a great value for ball and club data, video playback of impact, and ability to add swing cameras.

What's the size of your garage space? Since you want the sim to be retractable, that will generally add more cost. Some people have done DIY manual and motorized retractable screens, so you could do something like that. I have a Stealth retractable on order from Par2Pro. It is expensive, but I think the value is pretty good because the more work it takes to rip down and set back up, the least you'll use your sim, imo. Having said that, I think getting the retractable sidewall protection to go with the Stealth screen is totally worth it. Pull the cars out, click the remote to have the screen and sides come down, roll out the turf, bring out the hitting mat and you're playing.

A couple other things to consider; ceiling protection and also heating/cooling for your garage (probably just need heating?).

A lot of projector options out there. The brightness of the projector could be more important than the resolution, depends on the lighting and windows in your garage. You can look around on projectorcentral.com. Something to consider, if you would like to add swing cams, a DLP projector can cause flicker on the swing video whereas LCD projectors don't. Some people are ok with the DLP flicker, some aren't.

Hope this helps a bit.

[walkities]

I have the Uneekor QED in my garage. Really like the Uneekor system and yes the visual feedback at impact never gets old. There are definately savings to be found if you are a DIYer.

To a degree haha, would depend on the job I suppose!

[walkities]

Welcome to the golf sim world!

I agree about the QED; it's a great value for ball and club data, video playback of impact, and ability to add swing cameras.

What's the size of your garage space? Since you want the sim to be retractable, that will generally add more cost. Some people have done DIY manual and motorized retractable screens, so you could do something like that. I have a Stealth retractable on order from Par2Pro. It is expensive, but I think the value is pretty good because the more work it takes to rip down and set back up, the least you'll use your sim, imo. Having said that, I think getting the retractable sidewall protection to go with the Stealth screen is totally worth it. Pull the cars out, click the remote to have the screen and sides come down, roll out the turf, bring out the hitting mat and you're playing.

A couple other things to consider; ceiling protection and also heating/cooling for your garage (probably just need heating?).

A lot of projector options out there. The brightness of the projector could be more important than the resolution, depends on the lighting and windows in your garage. You can look around on projectorcentral.com. Something to consider, if you would like to add swing cams, a DLP projector can cause flicker on the swing video whereas LCD projectors don't. Some people are ok with the DLP flicker, some aren't.

Hope this helps a bit.

Appreciate it!

Garage should have room (attached a dirty pic), ceiling is 10.5 feet tall I just need to remove the center lift which Im working on as we speak. Door width I could fit in a 16 foot screen but would work with a 10 if need be. 16 would be nice. Ill have to look at the manual DIY, I do agree that the motorized screen and protection would make this much easier to use and less time consuming but budgeting is top priority. If I can fit it Ill go this route but will have to look into options.

Do you have any suggestions for ceiling protection? Was considering just buying a bunch of foam panels off of Amazon for this as it would protect and potentially help sound proofing , just wasnt sure how expensive it would be, not sure what others are using.

I have a gas line sitting in the corner of the garage for a heater, it does get cold but our garage is insulated and even on the coldest days doesn't drop below 2-3C...again not sure if I need the equipment to be warmed. Have portable heaters as well but have been quoted for a gas install as well just in case.

Garage is pretty light during the day but up here in winter its dark and I do have blinds on the windows. Again can easily black this out if need be so Ill have to take into considering that for the projector when looking.

Do you have any recommendations on matting? I know a lot of people like Fibrebuilt but it is quite pricey

I appreciate the feedback, given me a lot to think about but definitely looks like the Uneekor is my best bet.

[richerod]

Wall mounted garage door opener and heating is a must IMHO. Definitely figure out a way to protect ceiling....perhaps netting. Are you keeping the tube lights on the ceiling?

[h0und10]

fiberbuilt is the best mat out there. to cut down on cost though you can get just the hitting strip and get a cheaper stance mat or putting mat for the rest of the space. you do not have to stand on the fiberbuilt after all.

[walkities]

Wall mounted garage door opener and heating is a must IMHO. Definitely figure out a way to protect ceiling....perhaps netting. Are you keeping the tube lights on the ceiling?

Unfortunately, that's all wired into the garage for our lightning and likely will need to keep them there but will probably have to find a way to block them out. I may put netting up there might be easier as opposed to foaming it all.

[walkities]

fiberbuilt is the best mat out there. to cut down on cost though you can get just the hitting strip and get a cheaper stance mat or putting mat for the rest of the space. you do not have to stand on the fiberbuilt after all.

Thanks! Makes perfect sense to go that route.

[COgolfengineer]

walkities I hear ya about the motorized retractable and budget. You can check out this post that someone just shared for a retractable setup. Might give you some inspiration.

https://golfsimulatorforum.com/forum/golf-simulator-forum/simulator-builds/328594-custom-garage-folding-build

I regards to the ceiling protection, you can do netting as richerod mentioned. Or you can get some foam acoustic panels, those are about $30 usd for 12sqft. A less attractive look, is to get a large canvas drop cloth and attach to the ceiling such that it hangs down in multiple spots. That would be the cheapest route but the netting or acoustic tiles is better. I did the canvas drop cloth as a temporary thing until I get the Stealth retractable from Par2Pro.

Since you already have a gas line in the garage, then getting a gas heater in there makes a lot of sense. Any portable heating wouldn't be as effective and will probably cost more to run than the gas heater.

I have a Fiberbuilt mat and I really like it. As h0und10 mentioned, you can get just the hitting strip and the stance mat can be something cheaper. You'll probably have to install the hitting strip and stance mat on a piece of wood that you can move out of the way when not needed, similar to the above post I put here. And then you can get a cheap roll of carpet or artificial turf from a home improvement store and roll that between the hitting area and screen just to prevent the balls bouncing on the concrete.

[walkities]

walkities I hear ya about the motorized retractable and budget. You can check out this post that someone just shared for a retractable setup. Might give you some inspiration.

https://golfsimulatorforum.com/forum/golf-simulator-forum/simulator-builds/328594-custom-garage-folding-build

I regards to the ceiling protection, you can do netting as richerod mentioned. Or you can get some foam acoustic panels, those are about $30 usd for 12sqft. A less attractive look, is to get a large canvas drop cloth and attach to the ceiling such that it hangs down in multiple spots. That would be the cheapest route but the netting or acoustic tiles is better. I did the canvas drop cloth as a temporary thing until I get the Stealth retractable from Par2Pro.

Since you already have a gas line in the garage, then getting a gas heater in there makes a lot of sense. Any portable heating wouldn't be as effective and will probably cost more to run than the gas heater.

I have a Fiberbuilt mat and I really like it. As h0und10 mentioned, you can get just the hitting strip and the stance mat can be something cheaper. You'll probably have to install the hitting strip and stance mat on a piece of wood that you can move out of the way when not needed, similar to the above post I put here. And then you can get a cheap roll of carpet or artificial turf from a home improvement store and roll that between the hitting area and screen just to prevent the balls bouncing on the concrete.

Greatly appreciated! Gives me some ideas to think about for sure! I have used the foam padding in my home office before so may go that route, really like the idea of the Par2Pro but need to pick away things here and there lol. Maybe start charging friends to offset the costs lol.

I'm not sure if I'm just blind but I cannot figure out if the Fibrebuilt strip is just that, all I can find on their website is this (https://fiberbuiltgolf.com/collectio...ing-studio-mat)

Will keep building on this thread, have got some quotes for the garage door changeover so will start there and slowly pick away at this! Thank you for the reply, giving me the confidence that this can happen within reason lol

[COgolfengineer]

walkities Glad to help. Here's a link to the Fiberbuilt hitting strip.

https://fiberbuiltgolf.com/collections/grass-panels/products/3-panel-set-fairway-grass-on-course-green-nylon-with-4-tee-holes-12-x-35

And then for the stance mat, you can get something cheap on Amazon or something.

[walkities]

walkities Glad to help. Here's a link to the Fiberbuilt hitting strip.

https://fiberbuiltgolf.com/collections/grass-panels/products/3-panel-set-fairway-grass-on-course-green-nylon-with-4-tee-holes-12-x-35

And then for the stance mat, you can get something cheap on Amazon or something.

Beautiful! Thank you!

[Rocuronium]

Beautiful! Thank you!

did you ever finish your build? I’m about to start my garage build that has be able to be taken down/set up often as well.

[GullLakeMi]

I did a garage build in southern Michigan. A gas heater was one of the best decisions I made. Garage conditions are certainly different than outdoor, but I quickly realized <50F wasn’t fun. After heater, I don’t play below 65F.