The History of Golf Simulators

Thanks to golf simulators, enthusiastic golfers from the 1970s and beyond have experienced the opportunity to practice and perfect their game inside and safe from bad weather. However, since it's invention by a number of game developers, software engineers and golfers, the golf simulator adjusted through decades of development and evolution to become the superior system it is today!

Since the days of Jack Nichlaus, rudimentary golf simulator systems have progressed into technical marvels of the new millennia. They were hardly recognized as helpful tools for golf training and were regarded as novelties. But the technology has upgraded exponentially. Consider how much the telephone has progressed into what they are today -- same thing applies.

Once upon a time, golfers stared into grainy images of a course projected upon a screen. After getting into their stance, golfers would smack the ball into the screen, and like a high school physics class, the device measured the time it took for the ball to go through two points. With some calculations, the device would surmise how far golfers hit the ball and deposited them at their next location.

Years later, golf simulations had a different appearance - a more pixilated Nintendo version of the game. Fairways were green strips peppered with yellow and blue geometric forms that represented what were supposedly sand traps and water hazards. Dictating where the ball went didn't much advance either.

Yet today, golfers do not look into shabby recreations of golf courses. Instead, golf simulators transport you into an immersive 3D setting, complete with software that allows players to select the weather and the time of day. Also, simulators measure way more than just the golf ball's trip between two spots. Some simulators are even outfitted with cutting-edge camera technology that takes 2,000 photos per second allowing them to calculate the precise ballistics of the golf ball.
After years of collecting data from swings and golf balls traveling through the air, there is no shot today's simulators haven't seen. They measure the velocity, trajectory and direction of the ball with such exactness, it's as if it's transpiring in real life.

Golf simulators are no longer limited to offering one course to their users. From the United States to Europe, players have the opportunity to play nearly anywhere. Every course offered has been meticulously recreated to be precisely like the actual one, so that any digital tilt of the green is precisely like the real one. The system's software also controls the ball's collision to real-life specifications . Now hitting a tree won't yield the same results as hitting a rock. (Digital people have not been added to spare you the trouble of yelling, "Fore!")

Looking back, with all the advancements of this century's golf simulators, old systems may have been hurting golfers' techniques rather than developing them. In the 80s, a good-looking drive may trun out to be a poor shot by the specifications of today's golf simulators. Also, old simulators failed to factor in weather. Any proficient golfer knows wind can have an effect on the golf ball's flight through the air.

Now, golfers can better practice during the wintertime indoors. Golf simulation has become more life like, and for the better. A horrendous swing will result in a terrible shot, allowing players to better pin-point their problems. Golfers aren't simply having batting practice against a screen. New and improved golf simulation deserves a try. Check it out for yourself.