Virtually Golf
An interview with Stephen Clark, Founder and Managing Director of Virtually Golf originally published in Golf Business Quarterly.
About: Virtually Golf is based in Lincoln and offers on-demand, indoor golf entertainment experiences for all.
Is technology opening up new ways for people to engage with golf?
The technology available now is incredible and it has been so well utilised at the elite level. Virtually Golf was brought to life through the question of whether that technology could be put to use in a different environment, away from the traditional golf settings.
We wanted to put it into an environment where families and children could come and have a go and in that way we could bring non-golfers into the sport.
How does Virtually Golf appeal to non-golfers in a way that the traditional game may not?
It’s branded and advertised in a certain way that our DNA is purely to capture non-golfers. When you walk in, you do not think that it’s golf. The only clue is in the name. You see vibrant colours, you see a comfortable setting - you do not think of a clubhouse.
That’s purely to give people a comfortable environment and not be overwhelmed by the fact that this is golf, because that can be quite uncomfortable sometimes for the non-golfer.
Do you work collaboratively with any facilities within traditional golf settings?
We team up with local courses and offer our facility as a centralised teaching space, where coaches can come into our venue and use it. But we don’t emphasise the fact that we have coaches or pros; we emphasise the fact that we have staff that love the game, and we’re here to help if you need.
We want people to come into a comfortable environment, to enjoy the experience and leave thinking, ‘I really enjoyed that - how do I get into the game of golf?’.
Are there barriers preventing people from just going straight into a traditional golf setting to start playing?
It can be overwhelming going to a course because golf is such a difficult sport and you are instantly among people who can play.
That can create a bit of fear, to be next to someone on the course or on the range and they’re hitting it 300 yards down the middle, dressed like a golfer, all the right clubs - people just starting out won’t have that. You might be stood there hitting balls left, right and centre and that is going to be an uncomfortable experience.
Have you seen any emerging trends in terms of how people are engaging with the game?
We have people who come to Virtually Golf and do TikTok videos and they can get huge viewer numbers on those clips. They might be doing things in the simulator, using it in a way perhaps we hadn’t envisaged, but you think ‘well it’s going to be posted online and it’s going to get views - that’s a good thing’.
This is often people who don’t play golf, but they see it as an opportunity to enhance their social media following on whatever platform it might be. Until relatively recently that was unheard of and it’s incredible to see.
Can you illustrate how Virtually Golf has provided a pathway for someone to get into golf?
We have an initiative called Screen to Green where people can learn the game in a simulator, and we’ve signed up with 12 schools on this. They come for free classes and they get to hold golf clubs, hit the ball - they wouldn’t have been doing this otherwise. From there we link up with golf clubs and there are opportunities for kids to go and pursue it further.
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