Half-acre gym is currently installing a TruGolf golf simulator on the second floor, which is expected to be open for use after Thanksgiving break.
The simulator includes a variety of different modes and games for participants to play.
“The simulator will allow people to play up to about 80 plus different courses, [and] different games inside of it. They can work on their driving, their chipping, [and] their putting,” Jay McKendall, the Assistant Director of Programs at Half-Acre Gym, said.
The simulator will be free for any student, faculty, or staff who has a Half-Acre gym membership.
The simulator will be available on a reservation-based system.
“We’re hoping to do reservations so that we can, kind of like tee times, get that golf fill but also make sure that if someone comes into the building and they want to use it, that they are not being blocked by someone else.”
The administration at Half-Acre gym hope that by adding a golf simulator they will be able to reach a wider audience.
“In Half-Acre we have this saying of, ‘we have something for everyone.’ We were looking at the programming that we can do, and we saw an opportunity to engage a different community and to introduce some more recreational opportunities for the university community,“ McKendall said.
The administration hopes that by providing recreational opportunities for students on campus, students will have opportunities to relieve stress.
“Hopefully from there, they find other ways to kind of engage in their holistic wellness approach of taking care of themselves, “ McKendall said.
“Sometimes just coming out and golfing and swinging the ball and playing with your friends or meeting new people or just getting out on your lunch break and swinging the golf ball creates some stress relief.”
The golf simulator, as well as other programs Half-Acre Gym is working to implement, are intended to support students, staff, and faculty who may not enjoy or be able to participate in traditional exercise.
“I think that’s really important that we’re creating recreation opportunities, but also opportunities for people to engage in something that reduces stress or gives them an outlet for recreation that’s not that lifting a weight, or or running on a treadmill or playing basketball,” McKendall said.
“Hopefully once we get the space up and running, people will come into the building and they’ll engage with it, and they’ll ask questions, and we can continue to provide the high quality recreational experience that we try to do with all of our programming.”
