Questions re a New Build in a Small Room

[tron]

I'm planning to build a sim in a small room: 9' H x 8'2" W x 12'5" L. The plan is to use an impact screen on a Net Return frame. Given that I'm 5'9", I'm wondering if 12'5" is long enough to accommodate my swing and still leave enough distance between me and the screen. Or to phrase the question differently, what's the minimum recommended distance between the golfer and the screen? Thanks in advance for any helpful feedback.

[aja]

I would say that your limiting factor is the room's width, not necessarily length. I am sure that some here will say that they hit from closer than 10 feet, which is kind of the agreed to standard distance from the impact screen.

With the width limitations however your ball is going to be pretty close to the (facing) wall and you will be very offset from the room's centerline. That in itself is not a problem but I'm pretty sure it's going to feel claustrophobic.

Remember, the golf swing is flatter than we imagine so you will need a considerable amount of room behind you to avoid hitting the wall with your backswing and follow-through. That's going to put you quite close to the wall in front of you when you go to strike the ball.

[tron]

Thank you. That's a really good point.

[wbond]

And your net is going to be about 1' off the back wall, which is probably going to put your ball position about 5.5' from the net. I think you're going to be limited to which clubs you could swing in there.

[FirGir]

My space in the tandem portion of the garage is 9’3” wide at the hitting area. In order to keep from bouncing my driver off the wall behind me on the follow through (I’m six feet tall) I have 34” between my ball position and the wall I’m facing at setup (Skytrak). So I’m guessing you’ll have 20-22” from your ball to the wall you’re facing. If you haven’t already, get your least favorite clubs out (because you’re gonna hit the wall) and start swinging them around in there.

Regarding image size, you may already know this but even if you maximize that width of 8’2” which is unlikely, the height of your image in 4:3 aspect ratio will be 6’2” and every inch you lose in width from hanging your screen will obviously decrease your image height. I hung up a $3 painter’s drop cloth to visualize this.

If you’re planning to hang a short throw projector be sure and do all the calcs on that too once you’re confident about the length from impact to the screen. My projector is hung right above me and it’s a bit intimidating at first and there are no Arnold Palmer like follow throughs allowed.

12’5” in length sounds like enough (your actual question lol) but I don’t know anything about the Net Return and how much that will chop off in length.

Also, if you ever plan on having tall friends or lefties (assuming you’re in the 90^th percentile) over to play, all the math changes.

Have fun!!

[tron]

Thanks for the thorough explanation, FirGir. For reference, I am attaching a photo of the Net Return screen setup that I was talking about.

[Trickle007]

Here are the specs of that screen it says the depth is 3feet 6inches. I have the net return home series with projector screen hanging from the net frame and my sits 3 feet 6 inches off the wall. My room is 13 feet 6 inches and with driver I clear only by an inch or 2 on full driver swings. I think for the setup you want to buy you don't have enough room. You better off building your own screen with 1 inch electric conduit and impact screen. With a diy screen you will only have to set it off wall 12 inches. Leaving you enough room to swing your driver.

[tron]

Based on everyone’s feedback and further research, I’ve decided to do the sim room built-out in the spare one-car garage instead. It is 13.5’ x 19’ with a vaulted ceiling that goes from 8’ at the walls to 12’ at the center. I’ll post an update when I make some progress later this summer. Thanks again.

[FirGir]

That extra width will be nice. I'm very happy I put my sim in the garage. I can spill a beer in there, turn the Glen Campbell channel up a little higher, not worry about the occasional ricochet, and can also have a rally cigar.

[gnomike]

That sounds like a good plan, especially given that the garage measurements you gave are pretty great for a sim. Your original post caught my eye because I will be building in a fairly small room too... 9'H x 11'W x 13.5'... the big difference being that the width can accommodate my swing...just! I've done a mock-up of my space, and although doable with driver it is going to take a while to get used to the claustrophobic feeling. Like you, my backup is the garage. It would mean a lot of dismantling & rebuild work, but it makes me less worried to try the smaller room first, knowing that I have a plan B. Good luck in your garage build!