A wave of indoor golf facilities is quietly reshaping how North Carolinians engage with the game. Blending sports technology, real estate strategy and changing consumer habits, the sector is emerging as a fast-growing niche.
Utah-based The Back Nine Golf is among the latest entrants, opening its first N.C. location in Chapel Hill in January, with a second Triangle site planned for Raleigh. The 2,500-square-foot space in a Chapel Hill neighborhood shopping center features Full Swing simulators, semi-private bays and 24/7 access. The goal is to lower barriers to entry and maximize year-round usage.
Memberships typically range from $125 to $225 per month, depending on access hours and booking privileges, while hourly simulator rentals generally run $35 to $55 per hour.
The Back Nine is just one piece of a statewide trend. Indoor golf concepts are expanding into former retail space, mixed-use developments and urban districts where traditional golf access is constrained by land availability, cost, time or weather.
Durham’s State of Golf opened in June 2024 at the American Tobacco Campus. Intown Golf Club is preparing a 13,000-square-foot flagship at Raleigh’s North Hills Innovation District.
Charlotte’s indoor golf scene includes simulator-focused venues like Impact Golf Lounge, Tap In, X Golf, Golf Links Simulators and Tempo Golf Club in Huntersville offering hourly play, leagues and social gaming options that cater to serious golfers and casual players.
Locally owned simulator lounges have appeared in smaller towns such as Kernersville, Wake Forest, Hope Mills and Banner Elk.
The growth points to a meaningful shift in North Carolina’s golf economy, complementing the state’s nationally recognized destination golf market. State of Golf owner Brandon Baker sees the trend as part of a broader evolution in how people experience the game. North Carolina is one of the country’s great golf states, but Baker says the state of golf itself is changing, becoming more social, accessible and tech-driven.
DRINK AND DRIVE
Baker, who didn’t take up golf seriously until his college days, credits the game with opening professional and personal doors over the past two decades. Most recently, he completed a $12 million project with Hanse Golf Design to build TriGolf in northwest Raleigh, a nontraditional golf facility focused on youth development. State of Golf grew naturally from that effort. Golf course architect Gil Hanse’s projects include the restoration of Pinehurst No. 4, Streamsong Black in Florida and the Olympic golf course in Rio de Janeiro.
“We built a space where you can work on your game, enjoy a well-made Old Fashioned and actually want to hang out for a while,” Baker says. “Golf in any format should be accessible to anyone who wants to give it a shot.”
The Durham venue blends serious practice with social appeal. Full Swing simulators, which use the same technology as PGA Tour players for practice, allow players to choose from dozens of courses or focus on skill development. The multi-sport technology also offers baseball, soccer, football and other games that appeal to families and groups.
Simulator bays typically rent for about $50 to $70 per hour, often shared among groups, while monthly memberships generally range from $150 to $300.
PGA professional Brooke DeHart, who joined State of Golf last year as director of instruction, says the indoor environment removes much of golf’s intimidation factor.
“It’s so much less intimidating hitting into the screen without worrying about losing golf balls or holding up the group behind you,” she says. “It’ll never replace the real thing, but it’s a really nice way to keep your game in shape.”
Corporate demand is an unexpected driver. Baker says both small businesses to publicly traded firms are increasingly using indoor golf spaces for team-building events and client entertainment.
“It’s become an alternative to the conference room,” he says. The versatility shows up in daily traffic. Regular golf groups book practice sessions during the week, while weekends often bring birthday parties, family outings and date nights.
Durham resident Corey Proctor, a member at State of Golf, says atmosphere matters. “You go to a lot of simulator places, and they’re dingy or outdated,” he says. “Here, I can even get my fiancée to come hang out and have a drink because it’s so nice. That says a lot.”
QUICK RELEASE
Nationally, golf participation has remained resilient, but access to courses has tightened in fast-growing urban areas. Public tee times are harder to secure, private club initiation fees have climbed, and spending four or five hours at the course can deter younger professionals and families.
Indoor golf addresses those friction points, allowing players to book hourly sessions regardless of weather or daylight. According to the National Golf Foundation, off-course participation including simulator golf and driving-range entertainment venues has exceeded on-course play for the past three years.
Baker says the relationship between off-course and traditional golf is complementary. “We’re creating golfers, not stealing them.”
Developers say the concepts can pay off financially. Facilities typically require only a few thousand square feet and can fit into existing retail or mixed-use projects. That flexibility makes them attractive tenants in urban environments where land for traditional courses is scarce. At Durham’s American Tobacco Campus, State of Golf adds another entertainment option to the live-work-play district and gives residents a reason to return downtown after work.
The business still faces familiar hospitality challenges. With only a limited number of simulator bays, operators must carefully manage peak demand during evenings and weekends — similar to tee-time availability at busy courses. Education is another hurdle, as many consumers don’t fully understand what indoor golf offers.
Still, most operators see long-term opportunity. Land scarcity, time constraints and a younger generation seeking experience-driven leisure activities all point toward continued expansion. Baker expects more indoor golf facilities across North Carolina in the coming years, though he believes technology alone won’t guarantee success.
“The places that win,” he says, “will be the ones that deliver authentic experiences, not just screens and simulators.”
Unlike flashier entertainment trends, indoor golf’s rise has been largely under the radar. But its alignment with urban growth, changing lifestyles and advances in sports technology suggests it may become a lasting piece of the evolving golf landscape. ■
-Brad King is a Winston-Salem-based writer