By Darren Lum

Getting to golf this winter is as easy as pressing a few keys said golf pro Andy MacMillan, owner of the Haliburton Golf Centre.

Working out of the Pinestone Resort and Conference Centre in Haliburton, the centre is offering a virtual experience using the latest technology where golfers can play a round of 18 or nine at 95 well-known courses from around the world, which include Florida’s Copper Head Golf Course or Alberta’s Banff Springs Golf Course.

Many of the premiere golf courses demand premiere prices, but being unable to travel too far MacMillan said golfers can experience the next closest thing through his simulator.

“Some of these golf courses cost $200 and $500 to play. So, you come in here you play for $45 bucks you just saved yourself a whole bunch of money,” he said.

MacMillan said it will typically take a person an hour to play a round of 18. However, with two golfers, it will take two hours and four people will take four hours. Using the simulator for a golf game is $45 per hour and is $25 per hour or $15 per hour for the driving range format.

Golfers bring their own clubs or can rent clubs on site and play, taking swings with the relevant clubs for holes, like in real life, from a designated spot in front of a 14’ x 9’ screen, which receives a projection of a computer generated image, providing contours and hazards.

This autumn MacMillan, who is in the process of rebranding his Haliburton Driving Range business, made a sizable investment towards this indoor golfing setup with the purchase of equipment (SkyTrak launch monitor and the E6 software) to enable golfers to play and develop their skills during the winter.

MacMillan didn’t specify the full investment he made, but he points to three pieces of equipment related to the simulator setup costing thousands of dollars. This isn’t a setup the average golfer can afford to bring home.
Using the high-tech simulator, which is located in what was the Highlanders Bar at the Pinestone, allows for a wealth of data to be recorded from each shot.

This includes documenting spin rate, launch angle, shot distance and shot history. This isn’t just to allow golfers to brag, but can help with skill development, as it can be applied during lessons to provide comprehensive feedback for MacMillan while teaching or for fittings, which can be sent to a golfer after the lesson.

“I can fit clubs. Your clubs you currently have? I can make tweaks with them for what you need. I can also teach basically from seeing those numbers. I can see exactly what you’re doing in your golf swing … but I can also have the numbers to back it up. So, I can use all that data and fine tune your golf game,” he said.

As an independent operator, MacMillan said it took him close to two weeks to install and erect all the equipment for his set up, which also includes transforming the Kinmount room into an indoor practice area, complete with areas to putt and drive and chip, where players can warm up for the simulator or receive instruction. Lessons can be held in either the practice area or with the simulator.

In golf, repetition is key and indoor practice will help to speed up a players’ development because the setting provides less distractions for golfers to focus on their swing.

The idea for all of these plans to take golfing indoors was because of COVID-19, he said.

“I was the ice maker at the Minden Curling Club. They shut down,” he said.
He said the process to get this going

Getting to golf this winter is as easy as pressing a few keys said golf pro Andy MacMillan, owner of the Haliburton Golf Centre.

Working out of the Pinestone Resort and Conference Centre in Haliburton, the centre is offering a virtual experience using the latest technology where golfers can play a round of 18 or nine at 95 well-known courses from around the world, which include Florida’s Copper Head Golf Course or Alberta’s Banff Springs Golf Course.

Many of the premiere golf courses demand premiere prices, but being unable to travel too far MacMillan said golfers can experience the next closest thing through his simulator.

“Some of these golf courses cost $200 and $500 to play. So, you come in here you play for $45 bucks you just saved yourself a whole bunch of money,” he said.

MacMillan said it will typically take a person an hour to play a round of 18. However, with two golfers, it will take two hours and four people will take four hours. Using the simulator for a golf game is $45 per hour and is $25 per hour or $15 per hour for the driving range format.

Golfers bring their own clubs or can rent clubs on site and play, taking swings with the relevant clubs for holes, like in real life, from a designated spot in front of a 14’ x 9’ screen, which receives a projection of a computer generated image, providing contours and hazards.

This autumn MacMillan, who is in the process of rebranding his Haliburton Driving Range business, made a sizable investment towards this indoor golfing setup with the purchase of equipment (SkyTrak launch monitor and the E6 software) to enable golfers to play and develop their skills during the winter.

MacMillan didn’t specify the full investment he made, but he points to three pieces of equipment related to the simulator setup costing thousands of dollars. This isn’t a setup the average golfer can afford to bring home.
Using the high-tech simulator, which is located in what was the Highlanders Bar at the Pinestone, allows for a wealth of data to be recorded from each shot.

This includes documenting spin rate, launch angle, shot distance and shot history. This isn’t just to allow golfers to brag, but can help with skill development, as it can be applied during lessons to provide comprehensive feedback for MacMillan while teaching or for fittings, which can be sent to a golfer after the lesson.

“I can fit clubs. Your clubs you currently have? I can make tweaks with them for what you need. I can also teach basically from seeing those numbers. I can see exactly what you’re doing in your golf swing … but I can also have the numbers to back it up. So, I can use all that data and fine tune your golf game,” he said.

As an independent operator, MacMillan said it took him close to two weeks to install and erect all the equipment for his set up, which also includes transforming the Kinmount room into an indoor practice area, complete with areas to putt and drive and chip, where players can warm up for the simulator or receive instruction. Lessons can be held in either the practice area or with the simulator.

In golf, repetition is key and indoor practice will help to speed up a players’ development because the setting provides less distractions for golfers to focus on their swing.

The idea for all of these plans to take golfing indoors was because of COVID-19, he said.

“I was the ice maker at the Minden Curling Club. They shut down,” he said.
He said the process to get this going was started in July. The order for the equipment was made in September.

“My goal is I want people to do things over the winter. It’s not fun to sit around, right? So I want people to be active, come out and play some golf, safely. We’re going to make sure that everyone is safe,” he said.

As a father of a three-month-old baby, MacMillan said, he has a vested interest in safety for himself and his patrons. COVID-19 protocols are in place such as mask wearing and sanitizing of high touch areas. Also, he said he’ll keep groups limited to four golfers at at time.

Since he started posting to his social media platforms, he said, there were 8,000 likes on one post.

MacMillan said this arrangement is possible from a partnership with the Pinestone.

“It’s great for the hotel too, right? I love Pinestone. I want Pinestone to be here … I love the golf course. People here are awesome,” he said.

The resort’s general manager John Teljeur said the Pinestone had considered offering a similar service, but didn’t see it as financially viable. Last year, he said, when Andy approached the Pinestone it was an easy decision to partner.

“Well, how do we make this happen? To me, it was a no brainer. We have the space in the winter time and it doesn’t take a lot of room and it’s a nice complement to the resort,” he said.

He said with a lot of the resort’s golf club members staying here this winter there is going to be a demand for the centre’s services. He adds this won’t be a draw for guests only, but also for the local community.

Teljeur said in the past the resort operated like a hotel with basic amenities, but this offering like others recently, such as Nordic skiing and snowshoeing, is consistent with a new approach to draw more people.

“These are the kinds of things that any time we can do, whether it’s entertainment or adding leisure features to the resort that adds to the overall attractiveness of the resort, you have to look at that. As a resort, we have to make ourselves more valuable to people coming in because they do have choices. They can go to a lots of different places,” he said.
He likened it to how having the swimming pool is a draw even for people who may not use it.

A day before the official opening on Thursday, Dec. 17 last week, golfer Rob Chapman was preparing to get a few swings in to help with MacMillan’s setup by playing the Copperhead Golf Course at the Innisbruck Golf Resort in Florida.

“I used to be an avid skier and snowmobiler and that’s all gone now so our way of life has changed … This is huge to be able to get away for a couple of hours,” he said.

Chapman said this will be his first year of retirement here in Haliburton and is looking forward to the virtual opportunity to visit courses he has visited in person. Typically, he would go south to Florida for six months during the winter. However, with COVID-19 he’s staying at his home in Haliburton.

MacMillan acknowledges there is a bit of a learning curve to golfing with the simulator. From the feedback he received from his testers, he likens it to anything new such as the first time you might play a video game. It often just takes half a round to make all the adjustments.

Membership packages will be available, starting at $200 for two months, which include a 10 per cent discount for simulator time and lessons. There will be a 20 per cent discount on simulator and lesson rates for members, who opt for the full season membership from December to April. Golfers 13 and under are eligible for $50 discount on memberships. Golf clubs rentals are available.

Book your tee time or lesson time from Tuesday to Sunday on the centre’s website (haliburtondrivingrange.com) or call (705) 457-2199. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday and Sunday and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. the rest of the week.

As far as the future goes, he plans to do more than just provide virtual golf experiences.

He hopes to host parties where people can use the large screen that displays the projection to watch sporting events such as the World Junior Hockey Championships or wedding parties could use it for presentations.

He also said there is the potential for year-round use related to people staying at the hotel, who want to get a round of golf in at night after they have worked during the daylight hours.

MacMillan said he’s also offering a league play option when players can compete for prizes with top scores and have a week to complete their round of nine to tally their score.

With Pinestone’s Stone 21 beside the space where the simulator is, food from a menu designed by chef Dave Adams is available and is worth trying, MacMillan said.

“When you’re in here, you can have a drink. You can order food from Stone 21. So basically it’s like [golfing outside except] you’re indoors and you’re warm and you get to keeping swinging over the winter,” he said.