Indoor Disc Golf Course??

[Dcinmd]

Personally I enjoy Winter disc golf. The course are empty, the poison ivy is down, limited amount of ticks and other bugs. The rough practically disappears.

 

[DavidSauls]

At least they're talking about Portland, where there are rainy days to send people indoors.

Other than that, all that comes to mind is the old adage, A fool and his money were lucky to get together in the first place.

 

[dmoore1998]

In the winter, I'd absolutely pay $20 to spend as much time as I wanted there. I'd spend all day there a few times at least, pretty much regardless of how terrible the setup might be...because even if it 100 foot holes with a few obstacles that's worth $20 for a day of tossing putters, getting some food, etc.

I think a good number of people in my area would do this. The problem is they wouldn't come often, because the only draw is "I gotta get out of the house". The draw isn't actually the course because you're not putting a good 9 hole course in 2 acres, much less 18 holes. During a mild winter where I can play outside easily, I might not show up at all.

I'd frankly be much happier with a driving-range type facility. I'd rather be able to throw drivers that don't hit nets so I can work on my form over the winter than just flop putters around a building. That can be fun, I played an indoor temp course last year at a college athletics building. 9 holes, putters, through the gym, locker rooms, etc. It was a fun little thing to do...sounds comparable in terms of relative size/space/feel.

Beyond that, I cannot even fathom how such a place could ever be profitable doing disc golf only.

 

[TurnedOver]

$15. But only when it's very cold, very hot, or raining outside.

Net lined fairways could be fun!

 

[BuiltTooLong]

If you could mount a bunch of cameras on each hole that recorded the entire round, you could charge the $35, perhaps a bit more, or sell the footage separately. I feel like it needs something else that really sets you apart from other options to get enough people out to get a return on your investment. As mentioned by others, its going to be difficult to have a course design in that amount of space that will be worth paying more than $10-20.

 

[aphilso1]

Your competitor for the disc golfer segment of the market is traditional disc golf courses, and those courses "sell" their product for free. Any attempt you make to monetize your idea faces an uphill battle for this reason alone. To me that means you need to bring in a lot of casual/non-disc golfer customers to have any hope of staying in business, and $35 will deter casual foot traffic from coming in. A non-discing family of four isn't going to pay $140 to try out indoor frisbees when they can go to a movie or putt-putt instead for much cheaper. You need to find a way to compete for the entertainment dollars of the average person, rather than solely for disc golfers. Disc golfers aren't going to spend enough to keep you afloat.

I like @BuiltTooLong's suggestion above to do video recording of the round. That is a potential way to charge a premium price to actual disc golfers, as I could see some frolfers paying good money to be able to analyze their form after a round. That also seems like a potential way to create repeat customers, as disc golfers that are trying to get serious about improving form would conceivably want their round recorded once every few months in order to track progress.

When looked at as a whole, I think there are too many other factors working against you for this to be a successful business venture. Those factors (most disc golfers prefer to be outside, high operating cost, not a large enough space to install a quality course, etc) have been expressed pretty well by others already. I don't think this sort of business can survive more than a year, but perhaps if you stratify the pricing ($10 standard entry fee, extra $25 for professional video recording of round) and are able to get a liquor license to sell overpriced beer during the round then you've maximized your odds. I'd also recommend talking with someone in your area who operates a similar business (indoor trampoline park seems to be the most similar business model) so that you walk into the situation with eyes fully open. There are countless "idea guys" in this country that lost their savings because they didn't understand running a business.

 

[Thomashasfun]

This idea reminds me of this video on Simon Lizotte's YT channel:



Notice though that they have other games in there and not just a disc golf course, they have a putting league as Simon calls it. If you could market it as a giant warehouse for adults to play games and make money in food/beer sales keeping the entry low you might be able to do well. If you have only a disc golf course and it's not the best in the area (best course in Portland?! good luck with that!) you're doomed.

 

[ThrowaEnvy]

Everything was covered pretty well... just another word of caution about the cheapness of the community...

We had a course installed on the ball golf course here, decent scenery, nice and wide open layout. It was used for a few tournaments. Unfortunately at the $10 level to play no one used it (hardly) and after two years it got pulled. It was the only other publicly accessible course here.

If there was a chance of it working indoors, things like a driving range, speed clock and form analysis video might be a draw. Things that you can't get otherwise. A little ParTwoZ course might work, my friend has one on his 1.5 acre property (9 holes and a ton of crossfire points). It would be difficult to make enough shot variance for it to fit, difficult for more than 1 group to play at a time, and be fun more than once to play.

 

[BillFleming]

It's near impossible to say how much a person would be willing to pay for an experience if they don't know what the experience will be. Your description is vague. In one post, you seem to compare it to Top Golf. With Top Golf, you hit from the same location and you don't get your balls back. This concept really wouldn't work with disc golf....a player would either be throwing their own discs, which would then get mixed up with others and they would have to wait to get their discs back. Or they would be throwing discs proved, which wouldn't really be useful....disc golfers want to play/practice with their own discs.

Is it going to be a nine-hole C2 putting course? That would be pretty boring.

A concept that might really work for indoors disc golf would be to have booths/lanes where you have a tee pad and throw into a basket and net a fair distance away (100 feet?). The lane would have a radar gun to show how fast you are throwing. You could also have on site instructors to give lessons.

 

[Tripper]

I remember seeing a video with Simon and one other player, can't remember if it was Paul or Eagle, and they were playing indoors. I believe the course was in Europe somewhere. Might be worth checking out for the OP.

It was Paul

 

[skizzle34]

Last winter we rented out an indoor soccer field in the middle of the winter for some field work and open throw time. We charged $20 for 2-3 hours of throwing. There was a decent showing but barely covered the $300 field rental.

 

[Nathan04W]

This isn't something for me. Like others have said I enjoy the outdoor aspect the most. My local course although not in the norm already has a driving range as well. Having a bar doesn't add anything in my eyes either because if I play with buddies we usually have a light cooler with beverages we take turns carrying. Good luck with the idea if you go forward but I do believe this would be a tough business venture. Cheers.

 

[The Shide]

Last winter we rented out an indoor soccer field in the middle of the winter for some field work and open throw time. We charged $20 for 2-3 hours of throwing. There was a decent showing but barely covered the $300 field rental.

Next time, let me know. I'd be willing to drive 'cross the state for some indoor chucking in the middle of winter. :clap:

 

[jupiterboy]

Last winter we rented out an indoor soccer field in the middle of the winter for some field work and open throw time. We charged $20 for 2-3 hours of throwing. There was a decent showing but barely covered the $300 field rental.

This is the most practical model for most people I feel.

 

[Central Scrutinizer]

For years I've daydreamed about Christmas trees on wheels in an indoor situation. "Okay everybody, HOLE TEN!!" There's commotion as people scurry to move the trees in place...

 

[uncle pennybags]

For years I've daydreamed about Christmas trees on wheels in an indoor situation. "Okay everybody, HOLE TEN!!" There's commotion as people scurry to move the trees in place...

Automation these days makes the people less necessary.

 

[aclay]

I think the best chance of an indoor disc golf course surviving (financially) is if it is paired with an outdoor course. One price gets you access to the entire property. Picture a nice 18-hole course outside and a smaller (perhaps 9 holes) inside to allow you to escape the heat/cold/rain/snow and provide food and beverage along with discs and bathrooms. Some of the other amenities (discs for sale, driving range, video, lessons, etc.) would add to the value and the experience. Obviously, this will require WAY more than 2 acres.

 

[mboss302]

I'd frankly be much happier with a driving-range type facility. I'd rather be able to throw drivers that don't hit nets so I can work on my form over the winter than just flop putters around a building.

If you could mount a bunch of cameras on each hole that recorded the entire round, you could charge the $35, perhaps a bit more, or sell the footage separately. I feel like it needs something else that really sets you apart from other options to get enough people out to get a return on your investment. As mentioned by others, its going to be difficult to have a course design in that amount of space that will be worth paying more than $10-20.

I think that a hybrid of these would be prefect. I would love a driving range with cameras so that I can work on my form in the winter. I would happily pay 20 bucks once or twice a month to go there for a few hours.

 

[Pizza God]

Perks and Re-creation is building an indoor course with a bar in downtown Little Rock AR. Not sure what they will be charging, but I do plan on checking it out when it opens.

As far as greens fees. To be very honest, $35 per person would be one of the highest greens fee's in the country for disc golf. As you have already read, disc golfers tend to be cheap and I don't think there are enough of us that are willing to pay for quality out there yet.

Most decent courses charge at least $10 either per round or for the day. The most expensive course I know about that is 18 holes is Eagles Crossing. But then they spent nearly $1M building that place and many say it is one of the top courses if not the best course in the country.

Bucksnorts is expensive too, 4 players minimum at $20 a pop, or $80 gets you in for the day. They only allow 2 groups in per day and from my understanding have a waiting list.

Some of John Houcks courses charge $20 for the day. When I played Selah Ranch, I paid the $20 and another $40 for the cart....... (well worth it too)

 

[DeanMoriarty]

I always pictured a city like Tokyo having a giant indoor multi-story disc golf course. I would 100% play a round in a huge indoor disc golf facility if it was reasonably priced.

I grew up skateboarding and always enjoyed skating at the indoor parks every once in awhile even if that meant paying $10-15 for 4 hours of skate time so honestly this doesn't seem that farfetched of an idea.