Golf Simulators in Pittsburgh Will Never Be the Same

There’s a new indoor golf sheriff in the greater Pittsburgh area and they go by the name of 9Yards Golf Lounge.

The newest indoor golf simulator in Pittsburgh might happen to be the move of the summer as 9Yards Golf Lounge opened just this past Memorial Day weekend. Whether you are looking to take a couple of strokes off of your game, pass time with friends and family, or are not even interested in golfing (yet), 9Yards Golf Lounge has all that you are looking for. 

Serving cocktails, appetizers, and entrees, the 9Yards Golf Lounge offers more than just going out to eat. Each bay is equipped with a GolfZon TwoVision simulator that immerses you into the links, giving you 240 unique courses to complete your bucket list without destroying your bank account. There is a wide variety of activities enjoyable for any skill level with four different gameplay options to grab your attention.

There are plenty of advantages to indoor golfing when compared to golfing outdoors. The summer brings heat and humidity, factors that would not affect an air-conditioned golf simulator. There is also a substantially less amount of walking at a golf simulator whereas golfing outdoors can amass over five miles of walking.

Have you ever wanted to golf at St. Andrews Old Course or Pebble Beach Golf Links? Have you ever wanted to prove to your friend that you are the better golfer through Whack-a-Mole? Have you ever wanted to play golf against a complete stranger online?

These questions can now be answered without a doubt, because all that and more are possible at 9Yards Golf Lounge.

What Sets 9Yards Apart from Other Golf Simulators in Pittsburgh are Their Game Modes

9Yards Golf Lounge has made sure to keep its customers entertained in any shape or form. This is possible through its four different game modes that can attract golfers of any age or any experience.

Practice Mode

Want to work on your short game? Drive? Approach? Pittsburgh’s new golf simulator can accommodate all as golf simulators have been identified as beneficial to a person’s advancement in golf. Putting is crucial to lower your score and there is no way better to improve on such than through a controlled environment that allows you to focus on consistency and technique. 9Yards’ simulated green provides this opportunity before you take your talents to the links.

No longer will that clump of dirt go further than your ball with its simulated driving range. 9Yards will track your trajectory and flight path at the moment of impact, giving you immediate insight as to what you are doing, right or wrong, in your swing.

The driving range at 9Yards will also enhance your approach to any shot. Test your clubs and figure out what your capabilities are with your driver or 5 iron or any club in your bag. Who needs a caddie when you already know what club to use? 

Or just hit the ball as hard and as far as you can because some of us just want to clobber the ball sometimes.

The Pittsburgh golf simulator experience at 9Yards makes you feel like you are at the links, but with air-conditioning. 

Alt text– a person hitting a golf ball far into the distance.

Gameplay Mode

There are six gameplay modes players can use at 9Yards:

• Stroke
• Scramble
• Stableford
• New Perio
• Skins
• Las Vegas

The bays (public rooms) hold up to 6 people, offering a wide range of games to play with your buddies. Traditional golfer? Play stroke and let the best golfer win on your dream course. Date night? Go 2v2 with scramble and find out what couple is the better team on the links. Feeling lucky? Wager bets on each hole with virtual points in the Las Vegas game mode. 

Golf simulators are always a time well spent when enjoying it with friends and family. Healthy competition is good for the soul and provides encouragement to push your game further. One of the biggest hassles of golfing in real life is the dreadful walking. Without a cart and in the hot summer sun, we are exhausted by the back end of the round, thus, creating tension within the group. With golf simulators, however, it takes only however long the next player needs to walk up to the tee. 

When players are still not tired after 18 holes of traditional stroke, continue on to a game of Skins and compete for a prize per hole. If your group is finished after your second round, celebrate with a bite to eat or drinks at the bar.

Arcade Mode

While most golf simulators out there will include driving ranges and multiple ways to play 18 holes, what puts 9Yards Golf Lounge over the top is its Arcade mode. These games are fun for all ages, whether you are hosting your kid’s play date or down for a more leisurely game, the Arcade mode is what people will be talking about.

The list of games go as follows: 

• Block Smash
• Window Smash
• Ice World
• Dart Golf
• Slope Golf
• Probowl Showdown
• Whack-a-Mole

When traditional golfing is not grabbing your attention, you can switch things up with arcade games at 9Yards. Get better at the game while competing at the arcade games you used to play in your childhood.

Alt text– a person plays an arcade game (not affiliated with 9Yards).

9Yards’ Arcade mode allows golfers to work on specific parts of their game in a unique way like never seen before. It is one thing to learn golf through routine practice on the range and on the green, but this is not always the preferred method of training in golf.

Not only is the Arcade mode simply an entertaining and fun activity, it can be instructional as well. Like how Mr. Miyagi teaches Daniel Larusso karate by waxing a car and painting a fence, the Arcade mode at 9Yards can develop tendencies that correlate directly to the golf course (even if you are just aiming at different moles on the screen).

Competition Mode

Another unique feature of 9Yards Golf Lounge is their Network Play. Using the GolfZon TwoVision technology of their simulators, players can golf against people across the country using the same system. 9Yards also offers the opportunity to compete in tournaments, allowing players to see how they rack up with the rest of the world instead of the rest of their family and friends. 

The Competition mode brings reality into online gaming. We, as in the human population, obviously do not have the technology yet to play a round of 18 on the same golf course against someone across the country. What we can do is play video games online with someone simultaneously while using the same console. 

What Exactly is the GolfZon TwoVision?

Through reading this, you probably have noticed that I have mentioned this technology a couple of times. Beyond what could be gathered from context clues, you are still probably wondering: What in the world is a GolfZon TwoVision?

The golf simulator used by 9Yards is GolfZon TwoVision and is regarded as one of the most realistic virtual golfing systems in the world. It is GolfZon’s newest simulator and a 24 year process in the making. Its technology is unmatched and brings 30 acres of golf courses right into your private room at 9Yards. 

Here are just some of the jaw dropping aspects of the 9Yards Golf Lounge that make the game feel so real:

• Moving Swing Plate
• Multi-Surface Hitting Mats
• High Speed Cameras
• Touchscreen Monitor Kiosk
• Auto-Tee and Ball Retrieval System

Moving Swing Plate

Golf courses are never perfectly flat and have a plethora of mounds, slopes, and dips. Despite this, we never get the chance to experience these perfect imperfections on a golf simulator, taking the reality out of the equation. The GolfZon TwoVision strays away from the status quo and offers 24 positions that automatically adjust to adhere to the simulated course’s reality. 

Unlike in real life where you never quite know if your buddy kicked their ball a few feet forward when you were not looking, 9Yards takes the phrase, “play where the ball lies” seriously. The moving swing plate makes any golf simulation as realistic as possible because you will not always have a perfectly level course like other golf simulators offer. 

Multi-Surface Hitting Mats

To go along with the moving swing plate, the GolfZon TwoVision utilizes a multi-surface hitting mat. What this means is that the simulator will recognize what area of the course you are on and adjust to that setting. 

If you hit the golf ball onto the fairway, you will hit on turf resembling that same length of grass. If you hit the ball onto the green, there is a surface that will mimic such – setting you up for the perfect putt. If you hit it onto the rough, well, sorry there are no mulligans or ball replacement if that is what you hoped – the game offers a surface resembling the rough (or off the course for new golf players). 

High Speed Camera Sensors

At 400 frames per second, the GolfZon TwoVision picks up every aspect of your swing, flight path, and trajectory at the moment of impact. There is a camera on the ceiling and a camera tee-side that help capture these motions. The screen of the simulator will pick up the ball’s flight path and immediately show what your stroke would look like if you were outside. 

Touchscreen Monitor Kiosk

The high speed camera sensors simultaneously send the details of your swing to not just the screen but to the touch screen monitor kiosk that each bay obtains. This kiosk gives you a more in depth reading of your stroke than the screen itself.

This is where the feedback of your launch angle and spin rate can be found after your shot. The kiosk also offers advice from an AI caddie. While you will not, most likely at least, have a caddie at your next trip to the links, 9Yards will provide one for every game. Can’ not decide between a 6 iron and a 7 iron? Let the kiosk caddie decide for you and improve your game on behalf of their virtual expertise. 

Indoor golf simulators are not only a fun time, but also an up and coming source for honing your golf skills and techniques. Image courtesy of GolfZon.

Alt text– an example of a GolfZon simulator including the screen, kiosk, moving swing plate, and multi-surface mats (Image courtesy of GolfZon).

Auto-Tee and Ball Retrieval System

This is definitely one of the cooler features found at 9Yards Golf Lounge. One of the greater advantages of indoor golf simulators compared to outdoor golfing is the astronomical drop in walking distance, but what is the advantage of 9Yards compared to surrounding indoor golf simulators? 

The ball retrieval system sends your ball back to before you tee off, eliminating the need to chase after your ball across the room. The auto-tee mechanism “does the work for you” by literally doing the work for you. Before beginning, players can input their preferred tee height as well as the rate of play between transitions of strokes. 

Thanks to  the immersiveness of the GolfZon TwoVision at 9Yards Golf Lounge, it is as if we could play a round on the same course with someone states away. 

When will you try out the best golf simulator in Pittsburgh at 9Yards Golf Lounge?

Golfing at the 9Yards Golf Lounge feels just like golfing at your dream course with even more benefits. The immersiveness complements the friendly atmosphere as well as great food and great drinks. 9Yards could be the ideal destination for folks in the greater Pittsburgh area this summer.