My Build 3.0 - Maybe the final one???

[gene438]

Well, I have been at this for a couple of years now and I thought I would try to put everything in one place. I've had a lot of questions, some discussions, some failures and some success...so here is my current setup. I'll start with the pics and then try to give as much detail as it can.








OK, now some stats:

1)Room is 22 x 25
2)Screen is 17 x 10
3)Protee System
4)Screen direct from mfg. (Ordered with all guys on this forum), tied with bungee cords and tarp clips. I have emt frame bolted to ceiling/floor. Behind the screen are thick moving blankets and a canvas tarp. I get zero bounce. You will notice that there is 1.5 feet trough between screen and putting surface. All balls hit screen and collect in this area.
5)Optima 1080 projector
6) Synlawn turf
7)Putting green is 15 x 22. Turf comes in 15ft width some made the most sense so as to not have any seams.
8)The subfloor system is 3/4 in plywood on top of 2 x 4's laying on their side. Then 1/4 carpet padding then the 1/2 synlawn turf. This comes out to about 2 3/4 which matches up with protee mat
I purposely overdid the 2x4's plus I stuffed with insulation to kill any noise when walking. Results were great...solid floor, no noise, feels great.
9)Electronics (computer, projector, sound system, protee mat, lights, etc) are all controlled by Google Home. Simply go in and say "Hey Google, start the golf simulator" and everything comes on.
10) Added wood flooring in viewing area and I have one row of 3 theater style seats with recliners on order.
11)Frame around the screen is simply heavy black curtains.
12)5 holes on putting green and I think my longest put is about 20 feet.
13)My protee mat is about 9.5 feet from screen. This is the same as the projector...so, my projector is basically over my head right next to the light for the protee. Works great, no issues.
14)Yes, the original protee mat has been replaced with one made by The Simulator Guys. Great mat, tighter turf which gives better feedback than the fiberbuilt and luckily matches my putting green.

That's the basics.....also wanted to share that I think this has been a great investment. My family uses the room for various functions:

1)Me - Golf
2)Kids - HTC Vive or Virtual Reality Room
3)Wife - Loves watching her exercise videos on the big screen and having all that open space on the putting green to workout.
4)Family - Movie theater
5)Added karaoke system - Don't ask.

The above is my attempt to help you justify the costs....just do it, you'll be glad you did,

OK, I tried to cover as much as I could think of.....any questions, just let me know.

Gene

[gene438]

Never thought about it...but you are right....it would be easy to do and you could go straight to your course......hmmmmm

Looks like you've added another "ToDo" to my list.....

[dunginhawk]

gene, did you need to buy the 40$ version to get the macro recorder to work right? im having some issues once i get past the skytrak tgc interface (essentially it wont launch the game)

[gene438]

I did buy the software...not sure how much....I am not familiar with Skytrak software, so, sorry no help in that area. I do remember that for some reason you have to make sure to run as administrator and when you do compile the script into an exe file, make sure you check the box to run the exe file as administrator

[dunginhawk]

I bought another program i liked better, but same idea... problem is when i launch TGC and select the VIdeo resolution of 1920/1080 it windows it tiny, like the software does while recording it (so that you can stop it recording without leaving the app, which is smart). making me mad haha

[wjochetz]

gene438 I recently received the Protee replacement turf top from The Simulator Guys but haven't had a chance to test it out yet. Right now I have a 5x5 mat from Spectrum Golf with 1x4 and plywood base but considering doing a more permanent set up like yours with the entire floor built up to the same height and covered with putting turf. I've seen a lot of people say that if you do this that you need to install an additional Fiberbuilt panel in front of the Protee sensor so that you don't catch the edge of the putting turf on your follow through. Do you think using the turf top from The Simulator Guys eliminates the need for this? How is the putting turf holding up in the stance area? Appreciate your feedback!

[Buckminster]

I am getting pretty far along in the construction of my Pro-Tee system. I have a ceiling that is about 11' high, but an impact screen that is only 9' high. I will be hitting from about 9'6" away from the screen.

Do you have any thoughts on the vertical placement of my impact screen?

Part of me wants to place it as high as possible that would still avoid my ceiling lights from blocking by projector image. That gives me more vertical room for wedges and also a higher screen for watching movies. That would about split the difference and have around 1' both above and below my screen. I would build some type of ramp at the bottom to keep balls from going behind the screen.

Another part of me wants to place the screen against the floor and leave the full 2' above the screen. I would use some type of ceiling-based baffle to block balls. I think this might provide the best visual transition from my putting surface to the course. But it will introduce a small amount of shadowing due to my projector location. It also reduces the vertical room for wedges, but having them hit the baffle will not be too bad I guess.

I would welcome any thoughts from anybody.

[gene438]

My first thought is that since you are hitting 9'6" from screen, the ceiling will probably come in play on the wedges. That being said, I would lean toward having the screen as high as possible.

However, from an aesthetic standpoint, I believe it is much easier to cover the gap at the top than at the bottom. I would prefer to have my screen drop to floor...actually hang mine lose to the floos so that the balls roll down the screen and gather in my collection area. The top is easier to cover either with baffles, curtains, plastic mats,etc.

I guess if I had to choose, I would hang it flush to ground and cover the top gap somehow...for finishing, I like framing the sides and top with black curtains, etc....you would be surprised how well it adds to movie watching as well.

Good luck

[Solstice72]

I am getting pretty far along in the construction of my Pro-Tee system. I have a ceiling that is about 11' high, but an impact screen that is only 9' high. I will be hitting from about 9'6" away from the screen.

Do you have any thoughts on the vertical placement of my impact screen?

Part of me wants to place it as high as possible that would still avoid my ceiling lights from blocking by projector image. That gives me more vertical room for wedges and also a higher screen for watching movies. That would about split the difference and have around 1' both above and below my screen. I would build some type of ramp at the bottom to keep balls from going behind the screen.

Another part of me wants to place the screen against the floor and leave the full 2' above the screen. I would use some type of ceiling-based baffle to block balls. I think this might provide the best visual transition from my putting surface to the course. But it will introduce a small amount of shadowing due to my projector location. It also reduces the vertical room for wedges, but having them hit the baffle will not be too bad I guess.

I would welcome any thoughts from anybody.

Buckminster how's that set up going. How big is your screen and how bright is the image? Where's the projector sit and what's the lumens at of the device. I have 11ft ceiling too, and due to wedges flying as you noted likely above your screen and brightness concerns , the screen size and projector placement is in puzzling for me.

[Buckminster]

My build is pretty much done. I will figure out to post some pictures. My screen is 12' x 9' and my room is pretty close to 20' x 20'. I hit from about 9'6" from my screen and the projector is behind the hitting location on the ceiling. I use a 4:3 aspect ratio when playing golf so that the entire screen is used. The projector is about 16'6" from the screen for golf. When I switch to a wide screen presentation (16:9) for movies, I move the projector (on drawer slides) to about 14'6" so that the wide image stays on the screen. In 16:9 mode, the image does not go all the way down to the floor.

I have an Epson Home Cinema 1060 Full HD 1080p projector with 3,100 lumens. I can get my room almost completely dark if I want to. During golf (with the halogen lights on), it is very good. With the halogens off for movies, it is tremendous. The Epson 1060 has some digital zoom, so a combination of moving the projector and the digital zoom is great for getting the exact image size that I want.

This website offers a great projector calculator tool:

https://www.projectorcentral.com/Epson-Home_Cinema_1060-projection-calculator-pro.htm

The calculator tool was very useful to me because there are so many variables involved. Lots of people use a short throw projector that is mounted pretty much above the hitting mat, but I was afraid of stray balls hitting it. The rear mounted works great, but there are only a limited number of available projectors with the throw distance that I needed to get a 12 foot wide screen at a distance between my hitting mat. The projector tool is somewhat conservative when estimating sufficient brightness. For my situation, the tool said the projector brightness was marginal. But since my room is pretty dark, it works fine.

[TXANM]

Nice build! What is the mounting height of your projector and how low do you think you could mount it without it becoming an issue? I have a bean in front of my screen so I am trying to figure out a piece of my design. Thanks!

[gene438]

My projector is mounted from ceiling which is about 114 inches. The projector is basically right above my hitting mat (about 8 inches behind) which is basically right above my head....so it never comes into play as far as swinging.

[Solstice72]

Thanks for the input guys. Money is down and Sim is going to be installed shortly. It'll be thru Par2Pro, refurb GC2, 15x 9. 4'' screen (16:9), throw probably at 15 ft and with 6500 lumens. About 22 feet wide of turf. Going ALL IN.

Any of you guys, Buckminster maybe, are you using a separate movie screen for movies?

[Detroit Bill]

Gene, I am working on a projector setup and I am a bit confused. First if you could provide the exact model of the projector it would help me. But you are using a short throw projector. When I look at that if I am 10 feet from the screen the projector is calling for around 6 feet from the screen to get the right screen size. it would be in front of me. I am looking at projectors without zoom perhaps that is the problem?

[Solstice72]

Projectors can have different lenses that can be purchased to allow for a throw distance change. If that's not available you may need a different projector.

Sorry anyways I meant to ask Gene, he's mentioned in the past what his projector is and how many lumens and where exactly that is placed that doesn't get hit by the ball, but let me ask again

[zooliu]

Hey gene, great setup! I've been wanting to add a putting floor just like this - recessed putting cups and getting my fiberbuilt mat flush w/the green. Question on the wooden platform, did you put in underlayment cushioning between the garage floor and the 2x4's or it just wasn't needed? Also what did you use for insulation? The kids and I use the room for golf, movies and exercise and so when we run around on the platform we dont want it to sound like drums either. Thanks so much for the details on how you did this! -Steve

[gene438]

Thanks....first, I way overbuilt mine with the 2 x 4’s but I wanted mine solid .... I did not put anything underneath... I layed the boards wide side down which gave me the right height. I stuffed around the boards with regular insulation. Then I nailed down the 3/4 plywood and sealed the seams and other rough spots with caulk...I did not want any lines or bumps coming through....The turf I bought had a 1/8 foam padding which turned out to be perfect.... if yours does not, you might consider carpet padding ......

[zooliu]

Perfect! Question on hole placement - I noticed you'd placed 2 holes in the corners and one directly in line w/the launch monitor line. Do you use the middle one much with the sim? Also anything you'd do differently on overall hole placement now that you've spent time with setup?

[rhinogolf]

Great build! How far apart did you space the 2 x 4s laid wide?

[gene438]

Acutally, I put in 5 holes....the 3 you mentioned and there are 2 more at the opposite corners of the room. I think my longest putt can be like 28 feet. Yes, I do use the middle cup as my aiming cup when playing in sim. For me, I know that if I hit to my middle cup that is 10 ft. so that is my baseline for all putting. I would not change my placement. The only issue you will have is that if your overall height is 2 3/4 to 3 inches then you will have to cut your cups. I searched forever and could not find any cups that were not 4 inches or more deep. So be prepared to cut them which is really no big deal. The only other critical point is cutting your turf to put cups in.....no easy way, just use xacto knife and a lot of patience.

[coda8it]

Great build and thanks for the detail. I am working on my build (affectionally called build 1.0) because I can tell this is a tinkering process that will likely take some time before everything is right. However, I am stuck on lighting and looking for some help. My projector setup doesn't like much light or it washes out pretty quick. I think I need a brighter projector. However, I also need a better light for the hitting area. I bought a battery powered motion light that works good. Good lighting and puts a nice circle down about 5' in diameter on the hitting area. My ceilings are 8'7" tall. Yes I can swing driver at 5'10" but it is tight. The light even has a hand held remote. However it takes two D batteries and eventually want to finish out the room. It looks like you have can lighting but the beam seems concentrated on the hitting area mostly except for the projector shadow. I talked to Par2Pro and local lighting shops but to no avail. The closest I got was a $300 flag pole light but that didn't make sense. I am not sure how a flag pole light would look in a finished space. It seems your light puts out around a 5 foot circle from 10 feet or so. Can you tell me what lights you are using so I can look into this more. Keep up the great work and hit em straight!

[gene438]

I used standard can lights...you want to make sure when you buy the bulbs, that you are buying "spot" and not the "flood" bulbs.