How High Does your Ceiling Need to be for a Golf Simulator?
Your ceiling should be 9 to 10 feet tall to fit a golf simulator. It’s agreed by golfers as well as golf simulator manufacturers that you should try your best to get a room that has a 10 feet tall ceiling for your golf simulator.
| Ceiling Height | Recommended | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 8ft | No | 8 ft ceiling is too small to use a golf simulator. |
| 8 ½ ft | Minimum Size | 8 ½ ft ceiling is the minimum height to use a golf simulator. |
| 9ft | Yes | 9 ft ceiling is the recommended height to use a golf simulator. |
| 10ft | Yes | 10 ft ceiling is the best height to use a golf simulator. |
Most golfers usually use their basements to house their golf simulators because it’s relatively easy to increase the ceiling height of a basement compared to other rooms of a house.
There are cases where golfers have installed golf simulators in rooms or basements with 8 ½ feet high ceilings. While it is possible, golf simulators in places with 8 ½ feet high tall ceilings are considered restrictive and are only suitable to be used by golfers who are on the shorter side.
Using a golf simulator under a 8 ½ feet high ceiling is not recommended. The limited space will negatively affect your swinging, and there isn’t enough room to use long clubs like your driver.
It’s recommended that you test out the area where you want to install a golf simulator by swinging your driver to see if it clears the ceiling. You should take slow swings at first, then faster swings until you reach your full swinging speed.
The ceiling must be high enough for you to be able to make a full golf swing without hitting the ceiling to ensure you can practice properly.
What is the minimum ceiling height for a golf simulator?
The minimum recommended ceiling height for a golf simulator is 8 ½ feet. This height recommendation was given by Optishot.
As I said earlier, it is possible to have a golf simulator with a ceiling that low but it would hinder practice for most golfers as you’d need to change your swing when practicing using the golf simulator and use abbreviated shots.
Generally, the taller you are, the higher your ceiling needs to be. For example, someone who’s 5 foot 8 inches tall would have no problem practicing with a driver in a golf simulator with a 9 foot tall ceiling.
A person who is 6 foot 3 inches tall however might have difficulty making use of their full swing in that setup.
It should be noted, the height of the ceiling is important because you need to take into account the height of your swings and not just the height of your golf simulator screen.
It’s also important to note that when you’re measuring ceiling height, you need to take into account whether the golf simulator you’re choosing may have a platform that needs to be installed which will obviously need more ceiling height.
Is an 8 ft tall ceiling High Enough?
No, an 8 feet tall ceiling is definitely not high enough. An 8 ½ feet tall ceiling is the bare minimum it takes to install a golf simulator and it’s considered to be very restrictive unless you’re quite short.
If you’re tall or have a wide swing or want to practice using longer clubs then you absolutely should not build a golf simulator in a place that only has 8 feet tall ceilings.
Is a 9 ft Tall Ceiling High Enough?
Yes, a 9ft tall ceiling is high enough to use a golf simulator. However, If you’re very tall and have a wide swing, you might find yourself having some difficulty practicing because you’re hitting the ceiling. You may not be able to practice using longer clubs such as drivers.
Most people who have golf simulators at home will have ceiling heights of 9 feet or slightly higher. If you’re not too tall, you won’t have any problems with a 9 feet tall ceiling.
Is a 10 ft Tall Ceiling High Enough?
Yes, 10 feet tall ceilings are high enough for golf simulators. In fact, having 10 feet tall ceilings is a recommended ceiling height which you should strive for when looking to install a golf simulator.
If you have 10 feet tall ceilings, you can be extremely tall, have a very wide swing and practice with drivers as well as other longer clubs without a problem.
How much space is needed for a golf simulator?
The space needed to install a golf simulator varies from model to model and from manufacturer to manufacturer. Also, even if the golf simulator does fit, you must take into account that you need to be able to swing properly to practice using a golf simulator.
If your swing is restricted by the amount of space you have in your golf simulator, there’s not much point having a golf simulator in the first place.
When choosing a golf simulator, you must consider the depth, width and ceiling height of the space you want to install your golf simulator in. Having a golf simulator in mind before assessing your space usually makes things easier.
The most used dimensions for a space that’s going to have a golf simulator installed is:
- 10 feet deep
- 10 feet wide
- 9 to 10 feet high (10 feet tall ceilings being what you should strive for)
When you’re figuring out how much space you need for your golf simulator, there are some things that golfers tend to not consider such as floor space.
You need to plan your floor space accordingly because most golf simulators come with golf mats (fake grass with built in sensors) that can take up 3 to 5 feet of space.
When deciding how much space you need for a golf simulator another important thing you need to take into account is whether you’re left or right handed. This is because left-handed golfers will need more space to swing compared to right-handed golfers.
The following is a basic guideline for the amount of space you need for a golf simulator for left-handed and right-handed golfers:
- Left-handed (Width = 12 to 14 feet)
- Right-handed (Width = 9 to 10 feet)
What is the best room size for a golf simulator?
The amount of space you need and the size of the room you choose largely depends on the simulator you choose. However, it’s a good rule of thumb to make sure the room is bigger than the minimum manufacturer requirements of the golf simulator you’ll be using.
Take precise measurements of the room you plan on using and make sure that there’s at least some leeway compared to the minimum requirements of your golf simulator.
The size of the room you choose isn’t just affected by the size of the golf simulator. It also depends on your height, your swing, what clubs you’re going to use and the accessories that come with your golf simulator.
To test the room size for your own height and width, you should do the following:
- Perform practice swings with your longest golf clubs inside the room you want to setup your golf simulator. Use your driver as it’s most likely going to be the longest club you own.
- Make sure you really extend your arms as far as you would out on a real golf course. Don’t hold back because this testing would be pointless otherwise.
- Make sure that there’s at least a bit of leeway because things may get more cramped with the golf mats that come with the simulator and the wall protection you’re going be setting up on the walls of the room.
For most people, the best room size for a golf simulator is 10ft (H), 15ft (W), 15ft (D).
- 10 feet high (to let you swing worry free).
- 15 feet wide (so that both right and left-handed golfers can use the golf simulator without a problem).
- 15 feet deep (1 foot from wall to screen, 7 feet from screen to tee, 7 feet behind the golfer).
You should also consider whether your room is going to only be used as a golf simulator or if you want to use the room for multiple purposes such a home theater, children’s playroom or home office.
Also, consider if there will be multiple using the golf simulator at the same time or if it’s just going to be you using it.
If you’re having friends or family over to practice with you (or just watch you), make sure you have extra space so you don’t hit them with your club when you take a swing!
How Far Away Should a Screen be from a Golf Simulator?
The distance of the screen from the golf simulator is important because it affects your immersion when you practice. The more immersed you are when practicing, the better you’ll play. In my own experience, you will want 8 to 10 feet of distance from impact to the screen.
However, most manufacturers recommend 10 feet (or more) of distance between impact to the screen.
Having at least 10ft distance from the screen provides better immersion as being too close to the screen leads to you “seeing pixels” on the screen. This is also to prevent golf balls from bouncing back at you if you swing the golf balls too hard.
There’s another reason you need to carefully consider the distance of the screen from the golf simulator. If they’re too close together, you might hit the screen while you’re practicing. You don’t want to damage or worse, break your golf simulator screen, do you?
Typical Golf Simulator Dimensions
The typical, industry standard dimensions of a golf simulator are 13 to 16 feet wide, 20 feet deep and 9.8 feet high. These dimensions allow for pretty much any golfer to practice freely and without restriction.
Even if you’re very tall or left-handed, you can practice golf using your full swings and using any of your clubs unrestricted.
While those are the typical dimensions of a golf simulator, the dimensions do vary from simulator to simulator and from manufacturer to manufacturer. Here are some examples:
HD GOLF SIMULATOR MODEL 16:10 CURVED WIDE SCREEN
Executive Model:
- 9’ Height x 14′ Width x 20’ Length
- 7m Height x 1.2m Width x 6m Length
Standard Model:
- 10’ Height x 15′ Width, 6″ x 20’ Length
- 3m Height x 4.5m Width x 6m Length
Championship Model:
- 11’ Height x 17′ Width x 21’ Length
- 4m Height x 5.2 Width x 6.4m Length
HD GOLF SIMULATOR MODEL 4:3 FLAT SCREEN
Executive Model
- 9’ Height x 12′ Width x 18’ Length
- 7m Height x 3.6m Width x 5.4m Length
Standard Model
- 10’ Height x 13′ Width x 19’ Length
- 3m Height x 3.9m Width x 5.8m Length
Championship Model
- 11’ Height x 14.6″ Width x 21’ Length
- 4m Height x 4.5m Width x 6.4m Length
What’s the Maximum Size for a Golf Simulator Screen?
Generally, golfers try to get the absolute biggest screens they can fit indoors for their golf simulators to get the highest level of immersion possible when practicing.
While most would think that a bigger golf simulator screen means better immersion, that’s not always the case. Sometimes a screen that’s too big is worse than a screen that’s too small.
It’s actually possible to lose immersion if your screen is too large. It works like this; if you stand too close to a screen that’s too large, you can’t see the entire screen without turning your head and that hurts your immersion when practicing. Also, if a screen is too big it’ll lead to the “counting pixels” problem mentioned earlier.
It’s usually agreed that having a 13 foot screen while standing 8 to 9 feet away is great for pretty much any golfer. A 15 foot screen is also considered to be pretty much perfect for a golf simulator. What’s as important as the golf simulator screen size but not given as much thought of is screen ratio.
A 16:9 screen ratio is generally considered to be the best screen ratio for golf simulators. Most golfers will default into using widescreen for their golf simulators without considering the size of their screens.
Widescreen on certain golf simulator screens can be bad, because you may see white bars on the top and bottom of the screen. These white bars will definitely ruin your golfing experience while also throwing off your practice session.
In cases like this where using 16:9 screen ratio causes white bars to appear on the top and bottom of your screen, it’s better to use a custom screen ratio and resolution on your golf simulator screen. The procedure to customize your golf simulator screen ratio and resolution varies from golf simulator to golf simulator.