Two divergent questions

[jpinkardvt]

1) In my basement I have the ability to build a permanent setup that would double as an entertainment center and social area in addition to the golf simulator. Unfortunately, I will be unable to swing a driver. Alternatively I can build a setup in the garage that would be used solely as a simulator, but would need a retractable screen and putting this large of a financial investment into something I am using in the garage is a harder sell for myself and wife haha. Is building a setup and running the simulator software in the basement worth the investment if you can not swing a driver?

2) If I go the garage route and need to go with a retractable screen what are my best budget friendly screen/projector options? The home course Pro retractable screen looks top notch, but $2300 is also a little steep for just the enclosure.

Thank you for your time.

[Jgold2790]

Your question depends on what you want to get out of your simulator. If you want to practice and improve and really work on your game, you need to be able to swing driver, otherwise you'll never feel like it's "real golf". If you just want to play around sometimes with friends then it's an easy decision to put it in the basement.

The other thing to consider here is that you don't need to spend a lot on a "temporary setup". I have the same situation as you in that I put it in the garage but also needed to be able to retract the screen. I built the enclosure myself with EMT pipe and bought a winch to have it fold up into the ceiling. I've attached some pics so that you can see what this looks like. I bought one of the premium screens from Carl's place from the clearance section, in total my enclosure (including the screen and winch) cost about $500.

[jpinkardvt]

That is an interesting concept I had not considered, I will take some pictures of my garage. My concern is the motor for the garage door is in the area your screen appears to store in.

[rdeyer]

You could always change the garage door opener to a side mount. I spent $400 for a new side mount unit in order to free up my overhead space and it was totally worth it.

[Jgold2790]

Yup, I had to change out my garage door opener for that same reason. I forgot about that and should have included it in my calculation. It’s also nice not to have it in the way of your swing.

[jpinkardvt]

What did you use as your side protection?

[Jgold2790]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GMRHNSM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[GlobalExpress]

I wouldn't bother with any setup where you can't swing a driver. Aside from the obvious practice value, playing a round w some friends is half the fun of a home setup.

I have lost 2 bays of my garage to a fun setup, and don't regret it for a second.

Good luck!

[aussiebenny]

I have a 10 feet wide and 4 feet deep cage in my garage, and it's not a retractable.But I can still park my car into it no problem as it's plenty wide and not deep enough to get in the way. So you could maybe do something similar without installing a retractable if space allows. I have a double garage but it's only 18.5 feet wide so it's too tight to fit two cars. So I only ever park 1 car in there if i ever need to. But mostly, my cars sit on the drive away so I don't need it to retract / pack away. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDywgtmV76w

Being able to do full swings of any club without worrying about hitting the ceiling or wall around you is key if you want to improve your swing. With most fairly tight indoor setups, subconscious fear kicks in and you will end up compacting your swing and follow through even if you try not to.