How Does a Golf Simulator Work? Every Part, From the Ball to the Screen

A golf simulator works by measuring your shot as you hit it and drawing the rest of its flight on a screen in front of you. You hit a real ball, a launch monitor reads it, software works out where it would have gone, and a projector shows it landing. Here's what each part does, how putting and a full round work, and what a home setup costs in the UK. Quick summary A golf simulator is 4 pieces of kit (a launch monitor, an impact screen in an enclosure, a projector and a hitting mat) plus software and a computer, tablet or phone to run it. You hit a real ball with your own clubs, and the launch monitor reads it on its way into the impact screen, which stops the ball and drops it to the floor. Camera launch monitors sit beside the ball and work in a room 4.5m deep, radar units sit behind you and want 5m, and a ceiling unit such as Trackman iO sets no distance at all in front of or behind the ball. The launch monitor measures the start of the shot and the software models the rest: on the Garmin R10, ball speed and launch are measured while carry, total distance and apex height are modelled. A full driver swing needs about 2.8m of ceiling height and a room 3m wide, so measure the height before you buy anything. At GolfBays prices, a Garmin R10 with a net and a mat is £905, the cheapest complete simulator package is £1,649, and a SkyTrak ST+ SimBox package with an £899 projector comes to £3,389.

What is a golf simulator? A golf simulator is a launch monitor, software and a screen working together, so you can hit real shots indoors and see where they would have gone. The launch monitor does the measuring. Everything else turns those measurements into something you can play. A launch monitor on its own gives you numbers on a phone or tablet. Add something to hit into, a projector, and software with courses on it, and you've got a simulator. It's the difference between a speedometer and a driving game. Most home setups sit somewhere on this ladder:

A launch monitor and a net. Your numbers on a phone or tablet, for practice.

A launch monitor, an enclosure and an impact screen. The same numbers, plus the shot on a life-size screen once you add a projector.

A full bay. Enclosure, screen, projector, a PC and course software, built into a garage, spare room or garden room. How does a golf simulator work, step by step? Every shot runs through the same 5 steps, from the ball on the mat to the picture on the…