Normally this blog is for analyzing highly publicized topics in the world of sports, but I'd figure I would shed some light on a really cool facility that I visited over the weekend. It's this place called Top Golf located in Wood Dale, IL and gets a 5/5 in my book. I'll go through some of the features of the place and what exactly it's all about so hopefully you will check it out as well. This post probably belongs on Yelp or something like that, but I'll give the readers of my blog the inside scoop.
For starters, it seems that people in the Chicago area and surrounding areas lucked out with this place. They currently only have nine locations in the world; three of them are in England, one in Alexandria, Virginia, four in Texas, and luckily Wood Dale, IL of all places (they have four locations coming soon). I'll start off with just a general description of the place. The main attraction is the driving range they have. The twist they have on the traditional driving range, however, are these large, circular targets that look like dartboards in the ground. Similar to dart boards, they are split into sections worth varying amounts of points depending on the game you are playing (regardless of the game, the closest area to the pin is worth the most points). The object is to aim for whatever target(s) the game calls for, racking up points as you go.
The Top Golf facility in Wood Dale has three different levels to shoot from with your area being called a bay. Each bay has a table, comfortable chairs, the electronic score monitor, and some artificial turf with a tee for you to hit from. I'm not exactly sure how many bays were on each level, but I'd say about 20-25. They are stacked on top of each other so the first and second levels are covered with the third floor being open and uncovered with more of a patio feel (great for smokers, terrible when it rains).
They also have bags sets on the first and second floors as well as a mini golf course, although I didn't play on that. There is a bar on the second and third floor, as well as a large food menu with plenty of great food. The service is also really great and they will bring the drinks and food to your bay so you don't have to leave. You can elect to bring your own clubs if you have them or you can rent them for free at the front desk. I rented mine and, for being generic Top Golf clubs, they actually hit pretty good. There was also a private reception room on the first floor and an Executive Suite on the second. We actually got placed in the Exec Suite for our first couple games until we had to move because someone had reserved it.
The Exec Suite had four bays, numerous couches, a few flat screens, foosball, its own bar, and was in its own separate room. The Suite can be rented out to host parties, receptions, and the like. Unlike regular driving ranges, Top Golf is built to operate in the winter as well. Obviously the third floor would probably not be used, but they have tarps/dividers to keep out the cold from the bays and heaters that run above each bay. It's a really good idea and at least gives golfers somewhere to go in the winter to keep that swing in tact.
Now, for the technology. The way this works is that you purchase a card at the front desk when you come in. They have different card options available but me and the three other people I was with all got the $35 lifetime card which gave you $45 in game credits. Once those $45 are up, then it essentially acts like a credit card where you purchase games and put them on your card (during peak hours each game is $7, but you can get bulk specials ex: $50 for $65 of in game credits). You just insert your card into the ball machines they have, select the number of games, then watch them fill up your basket. You get 20 balls per game, which will last you a while if you're playing with other people. Now, here's where it gets techie.
Each ball has a chip inside it that gets registered to you when it comes out of the ball machine. Each bay has a ball feeder that you have to put your ball through to have it "scanned." Once that happens, your name and the ball number shows up on the electronic monitor located at your bay. Since each ball is registered to a specific person, the order that you go in doesn't really matter. The person that hooked us up, Elizabeth, recommended each of us shooting five at a time, then rotating out until all 20 of our balls were hit. If your ball lands on one of the targets, then it will show you on the screen how far it went, where it hit, and how many points you gained or lost. Any ball that misses landing on the target is not counted. Also, the ball is scored based on where it stops. So, you might hit the ball short of the target, but if it rolls on then you will still get the points (very useful for Top Chip and Top Pressure).
This place is also great for people who don't golf a lot. Just from watching people's shots, I'd say about 60-70% of the people there were not seasoned golfers. There were balls being shot everywhere with plenty of swings and misses. The great part about this place is that there's no real pressure like you might feel on a real golf course. It is a very relaxed environment, plenty of conversation, and great music. There were even some people on the third floor that looked like they just came to hang out, drink some beers, and enjoy the sun. The atmosphere is great and very upbeat.
As I mentioned earlier, the staff is great but it is worth repeating. This was all of our first time being at this place and personally, I didn't know what to expect. They were very helpful from the first staff member I talked to in explaining the bays, where things were at, and how the cards worked. Everyone was very friendly and they all seemed genuine about making your personal experience the best possible one. When we were moved from the Exec Suite to the third floor, Elizabeth apologized even though we didn't really care, took all of our cards and gave us two free games ($14 value). We were given another free game at the end, mostly based on our stubbornness. It was pouring down rain, and everyone else went to the second floor, but we really wanted to finish our game. Soaking wet we went to check out at the front and were comped another game. Baller.
I also just mentioned briefly that it would be a cool place to host an event (Theta Chi Alumni get together?) and their event coordinator came 5 minutes later, gave me her card, and a booklet of information. I told her I was just interested in finding out pricing and what they offered, but the fact that she took the time to tell me about it was pretty cool.
I will warn you ahead of time that word has gotten around, so there was a 45 minute wait when we got there. We left at around 8 or 9 and the person working the front desk said they were pretty much booked for the rest of the night (they were open until 2am). So, make sure you get there early if you want to play. As of now, you can't reserve a bay ahead of time, although the staff said they were working on setting up a system where that might be possible. Even still, just chill for 45 minutes at the bar, have a couple drinks, then wait for the text telling you your bay is ready. Also, the drink prices were very reasonable so you'll have a chance to get nice and toasty before you try and smash those golf balls.
This was one of the coolest sport places I've been to. Very innovative and awesome environment. For $35 you get plenty of games to last you an afternoon, free club rentals, great service, and just a good old time. I definitely recommend going there if you've played 100 rounds of golf or no rounds of golf. I hope to go back sometime later this summer and you should come along. Here's the link to the Chicago Top Golf website where you'll find a full explanation of all the games they have, videos, and more pics.
Matty O
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