Carson Tanner looked to create a low-pressure, hangout spot for friends to gather and play golf when he opened Greenies Golf Club in San Juan Capistrano.
The new golf club located off of Avenida Aeropuerto features two 17-foot high-definition golf simulators for those interested in playing a quick round or improving their form with analytical data and video replay of each swing.
Tanner noted that he’s always wanted to start his own business and figured “this would be a really fun way to do one.”
“They always tell you to do something you love and I love hanging out with my friends and playing golf,” Tanner said.
The existing indoor golf facilities in South Orange County mostly revolve around training and retail, Tanner said.
Tanner hoped to fill the void by creating a spot for club members to “hang out and do what they want to do with their golf game; whether they want to play 18, you can play 18 holes in an hour, or you can get all the advanced analytics and you can really dial in your game, or you can just hang out.”
The space also features lounge seating and TVs, helping to make the club the hangout space that Tanner envisioned.
One member noted that he came in to play a round while watching a game, enjoying the space to himself.
The benefit to playing indoor golf, Tanner said, is the speed in which you can play a round.
“No. 1 is time constraints because not a lot of people have five hours, maybe six hours to kill playing a round,” Tanner said. “You can play a full round in an hour here. Or you can play two rounds with a couple of friends in a few hours.”
“Also, in here, if you just want to go to the driving range, we have premium balls,” Tanner continued. “Some of the driving ranges in town use kind of crummy balls and you’re not going to get an accurate ball flight or accurate distances and you’re guessing a lot.”
With the club’s premium golf balls, Tanner notes that the simulation is “99% accurate with yardages, ball flight, spin.”
“You know you’re going to be using premium balls so you can really dial in your distances, the shape of your shots, and we have hundreds of data analytics tiles to choose from,” Tanner said. “We have instant video replay on your impacts and so I’ve got members who like to come in and play a round. I’ve got members who like to just look at the data and that’s all they care about.”
Tanner added that simulation golf is a “great supplement to anyone who loves golfing,” as the techniques and form that you can hone in the club transfer over to the course.
The golf simulator is great for beginner or intermediate players, Tanner said, but can really help an advanced golfer hone their skills .
“If you’re a beginner or intermediate, the video replay is going to help you a ton because sometimes you don’t know what went wrong with your swing, your contact,” Tanner said. “When you see exactly where you hit it, that’s a great learning tool.”
“When you start becoming a lower handicap golfer, then you want more details about the angle you’re coming in at your spin rate, your descent angle, your height, your ball speed, your club speed,” Tanner continued. “So for advanced players, analytics are going to matter more.”
The simulator also takes away a lot of the pressure beginners might feel out on the green, Tanner said.
“There is some pressure when you’re learning how to play golf,” Tanner said. “You go to the range a few times and you feel like you’re kind of figured out, you’re ready to go play and now you lose a ball. That’s three bucks. And you got a group behind you, waiting on you, and so you feel pressure financially, with time.”
“In here, you won’t lose your ball and no one’s behind you waiting for you to hurry up either,” Tanner continued.
Golfers can play a round on thousands of courses with the simulator, Tanner said.
“You can play just about anywhere,” Tanner said. “If you have played there or if you want to play there, you can probably play here. And there’s also a driving range, there’s all sorts of practice games where it challenges you to use every club in your bag to improve your game.”
Tanner celebrated the grand opening of Greenies Golf Club on Nov. 19 with a launch party featuring music, food and drinks and rounds of “closest to the pin” contests.
“The reception has been awesome,” Tanner said. “The golf community is excited about it and super supportive.”
For those interested in giving the club a try, Greenies offers free demo sessions. Membership plans start at $100 a month.
“It’s a great vibe in here,” Tanner said. “It’s fun to hang out. The hardware is top-of-the-line, the software is top-of-the-line, so it’s fun. It’s a great learning tool and I think it’s a cool new business that I can offer to the community.”
The club is open to both members and the general public. Members receive credentials so that they can enjoy 24/7 access to the club. The general public can play at Greenies from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
Tanner added that he hopes players can supplement their love of the game at Greenies.
“I hope that I can build a cool community here full of members and good people who have that in common, they love golf, they love community,” Tanner said. “It’s a space where you’re going to interact with other members.”
“We’ve already made a lot of good connections, I’ve seen my members make good connections” Tanner continued. “I plan on fostering an environment where there’s a lot of collaboration. We’re going to do tournaments, we’re going to do leagues and just have a cool club to hang out.”
Greenies is located at 26181 Avenida Aeropuerto, San Juan Capistrano.