Cheap garage simulator

[Elmeroil]

Hi, brand new to the forum from London Ontario Canada. Looking for advice on an affordable way to have a bit of a simulator in the garage. Will just have a space heater so I won't be leaving equipment in there. I have turf and a good net, won't be doing a projection screen but wanting to hook a launch monitor up to my laptop and just use that.

Not looking for crazy good accuracy just wanting to keep swinging in the winter but make it a bit more like a real game. I have room for a full swing with driver, have been hitting balls the past few days with this current setup and it's working really well. Any advice is appreciated! Picture attached

[Dax]

Skytrak might be a good option for your setup. Really will depend on your budget as you could go up to a GC2 as well.

[Elmeroil]

I've been reading a lot about optishot, I can get it at Golftown for $499. I know there are many here that are opposed to it but any of you that have it would you say it's better than nothing or not worth it at all? Thanks

[Jnc10]

most people dump optishot pretty quickly as it is considered a toy. If that is what your expectation is then you could be fine

[3on3putt]

Don't waste your time with optishot. If you do, don't pay that kind of money for it. You can find gently used ones (because very few people keep them long term) for way less. I paid like $120 for an Optishot 2 last year that was in like-new condition. Search ebay and elsewhere online if you really want to go that route.

But again, my advice is to not even go that route at all. If you don't want to spend the money for a Skytrak or Mevo+ (Skytrak is probably better for your setup) then at least get R-motion. Or if you just want data and don't care about playing courses you can get a nice portable launch monitor for a few hundred bucks.

[Elmeroil]

Ok I appreciate the input, food for thought

[wbond]

I've had optishot and r motion, if you can get an r motion instead, it will be a better experience. R motion is no longer supported though so you need to consider that. Is opti better than nothing, i would say not really, it can be very frustrating, inconsistent and you can really start questioning what you are seeing. Some have used it though and do like it, but it seems to be a pretty low number for those that are satisfied. If you can swing a skytrak or mevo+, it would be significantly better, but comes at a much higher price and only goes up from there for other devices.

[pchyen]

I agree with the above. Optishot won’t help you practice indoors.

Btw I saw your post on TGN but figured it would be better to respond here.

I am at the last stage of my fairly cheap garage build(other than the launch monitor), just putting everything together.

If your budget allows for $3000 CAD after taxes and if you have the length in the garage and willing to wait 10-12 weeks then go with Mevo+ Or Skytrack(back order as well), or used GC2 if you have ~$5000 after taxes with 1-2 week wait. You can get a Pre-Owned GC2 from Canadian Foresight Rep Aaron Hardy for a fair price (or PM me I can give you one of Aaron’s sales guy I dealt with).

i went with GC2 for 2 reasons: I didn’t want to wait 12 weeks for Mevo+. I have about 19ft total and just above min length of 16ft for Mevo+ but I hated the idea to put metallic dot on the ball and to have to place ball in a certain way.

[spaz]

Pretty much agree with everything posted, I have an optishot and while I do have fun with it, it’s always been a stepping stone to a real launch monitor, I have a skytrak in order, I will say the optishot has helped me get everything ready for the skytrak, computer projector layout of the space, etc. I do play a few rounds of golf on it every week but it is prettt much a game, u can’t trust anything it tells you about your swing, I’ve shanked balls into the side wall and it shows a nice hit over 200 yards middle of fairway. I’d say if u can pick one up for a couple hundred bucks and understand it’s just a toy then sure. But you will quickly find yourself wanting more. I don’t regret getting mine as I use it enough that I know the bigger investment I’m making in the skytrak will be worth it.

[Elmeroil]

Thanks for all of the replies, my budget was very small for this year so I went with optishot. I spent the time and tweaked everything for accuracy and am surprised how accurate it actually is. I know my numbers well and I realize you can't count on it but so far it's been loads of fun. I went from quarter swinging in the basement to full swinging in the garage so it's a huge step up for me! The past few nights we played all night, had a 4 handicap buddy over and he loved it

I have some good turf so I also spend some time just working on my swing without hitting off of the pad. Being able to full swing all winter is what I was looking for so anything else is a bonus. I'm going to move the net back further now that I know it's ok and I still need to figure out a better system to hold the bottom of the net down. I don't think washer fluid will cut it 😂

[jpotas]

Thanks for all of the replies, my budget was very small for this year so I went with optishot. I spent the time and tweaked everything for accuracy and am surprised how accurate it actually is. I know my numbers well and I realize you can't count on it but so far it's been loads of fun. I went from quarter swinging in the basement to full swinging in the garage so it's a huge step up for me! The past few nights we played all night, had a 4 handicap buddy over and he loved it

I have some good turf so I also spend some time just working on my swing without hitting off of the pad. Being able to full swing all winter is what I was looking for so anything else is a bonus. I'm going to move the net back further now that I know it's ok and I still need to figure out a better system to hold the bottom of the net down. I don't think washer fluid will cut it 😂

I had an Optishot2 for a couple years and then upgraded to a Skytrak.

I found that just the ability to keep swinging in the winter months really helped my game. You will become more consistent the more you swing. Plus it does a descent job of telling you what your club is doing so you are not just hitting blindly.

[spaz]

I would highly recommend getting replacement turf for it, much better experience.

http://golfnutz.ca/optishot-turf/

[Elmeroil]

I had an Optishot2 for a couple years and then upgraded to a Skytrak.

I found that just the ability to keep swinging in the winter months really helped my game. You will become more consistent the more you swing. Plus it does a descent job of telling you what your club is doing so you are not just hitting blindly.

That's why I decided on the optishot, well that and not wanting to part with thousands. I'm 44 have been golfing for 10 years, have a reconstructed knee and am not a heavy hitter. I generally keep the ball in play and I can feel if I mishit it. My driver only goes 210-240 on the real course as I track it with a decent GPS. I have the putting set to auto putt as I practice putting separately. So far I'm really impressed with it. Will I upgrade someday, possibly. No regrets so far though, now excuse me while I go play a round at Bethpage Black 😁

[Elmeroil]

I would highly recommend getting replacement turf for it, much better experience.

http://golfnutz.ca/optishot-turf/

Thanks for the link, I was reading about that yesterday. Going to order that asap!

Edit: Just ordered it!

[Elmeroil]

Another thing I really appreciate so far about optishot is the Simplicity of the software. It's extremely easy to use and understand.