My legs are tired from all of this snow we’ve been getting. Don’t get me wrong; I’m loving all of these powder days, especially when they fall on the weekends.
But everyone needs a break, so I took mine at the Kapalua Plantation golf course in Maui. I only had to drive a mile out of town to get there.
It’s one of 50 or so courses on the Aspen Golf Club’s full swing simulator.
Even though it’s in its second year of operation, I’ve had only one other session with it; I played a round at Pebble Beach in California with a ladies group last month.
I honestly do not know why I haven’t made it there sooner. Not only do you get a little respite from gloomy winter days with warm, colorful views and sounds of birds chirping and ocean waves, the simulator gives you immediate feedback on your swing.
New ceiling lighting with cameras track your swing path and club face angle through impact. It measures everything you can image: club head speed, launch angle, backspin speed, side spin, ball speed and club face measurement (the most helpful for me).
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It’s like your own private golf pro right there on the screen for you. In fact, the club’s pro, Jack Small, uses the simulator with clients and the Aspen High School girls team also takes advantage of it weekly.
The amount of features this thing has is mind boggling. You can play in the rain, you can make it windy, you can play any kind of side game like Skins or Wolf, and take on friends in match play or scramble format, among a few features.
Steve Aitken, the director of Aspen Golf Club, said this year is the first year they’ve had leagues and consistent business. And with happy hour food and drinks served by Red Mountain Grill in the clubhouse, the golf simulator is now a go-to destination for me.
As much as I love skiing, I also need to prepare for golf season, which is right around the corner. Early season pass sales end March 31 and are the same prices as last year due to impacts we’ll experience this spring.
The golf course is soon to undergo renovation work on sand bunkers, hole 7 from the tee to the landing area and several tees on the golf course. Construction is set to begin in early spring and anticipated to be completed in June.
“The sand bunker renovation is needed due to the inconsistency of sand quality in the course’s current bunkers,” Aitken said in a statement. “In addition, architectural style of the bunkers and locations will be adjusted in ways that are consistent with advancements in the golf industry.”
In the meantime, I look forward to the charmed lifestyle of springtime in the Rocky Mountains when you can take a few runs and then go play golf the same day.
Bring on the spring!