Projector Buying Guide For Your Golf Simulator
See Our Related Articles:
Spornia Golf Simulator 7-Step Buying Guide & Set-Up Examples
Garmin Approach R10: Portable Launch Monitor Set-up Tips
An important decision when you're setting up your home golf simulator is whether to buy a projector, and if so, which one?
Many of our customers start off using their Garmin Approach R10 (or other launch monitor and simulator) connected to their phone, laptop, tablet or TV monitor. This is an easy and affordable option, but the disadvantage is that you need to look across to your device after you've hit your shot, to see the results.
Having a projector can take your simulator set-up to the next level.
Combined with one of our white target sheets, you can project directly onto the impact screen and see the course you’re playing, your ball flight and all the key stats right in front of you. It's the next best thing to being on the course.
*Note: There are two ways to decide which projector to buy: Do all of your own research (see below!); or just ring or visit a projector store, describe your situation, and ask for their recommendations.
If you are asking for recommendations, it's worth quickly reading the section on Aspect Ratios below first...).
Key considerations when buying a projector
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Budget.
Projectors don't come cheap, and you're looking at anywhere from £450 to £3,000 or more. Generally you get what you pay for - the more you pay, the better quality imaging and performance you get.
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Location & Light.
One of the great things about a Spornia-based Golf Simulator is that it's portable, so you don't need a dedicated space - you can set up in around five minutes, play a round, and then pack it away.
But choosing the right location to set up is important, because:
- You need enough space to swing freely
- Excessive light can wash out the projected image, so a darker space will create a more realistic virtual golf experience.
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Mounting - Floor or Ceiling? Short-Throw or Long-Throw?
A ceiling mounted short-throw projector is generally the preferred option (mounted 1m to 1.2m back from the screen), because it gets the projector out of the way and eliminates shadows.
However it’s not aways possible to install a ceiling mount, so the alternative is to place your projector on the floor, or a low table or stand. This is the simplest and cheapest option, but using a long-throw projector will introduce shadowing so most experts recommend a short-throw projector.
However you will need the projector offset from the centre of the screen, so make sure your model includes offset and keystone adjustment options. You may also want to consider buying a projector enclosure, to protect it from the odd shank :)
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Projector-To-Screen Distance?
You can easily measure the correct distance from your projector to your screen using this very cool Projector Throw Distance Calculator from the team at Projector Central. You can either search by projector type, or input the throw distance and screen size.
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Aspect Ratio.
Aspect ratio describes the shape of the projected image, or the ratio of width to height. It's very important to consider the relationship between your projector's aspect ratio, your screen's aspect ratio, and that of your simulator software.
In the olden days, most projectors had a 4:3 ratio but the majority of projectors now project in a widescreen ratio of 16:9 or 16:10.
However, some golf simulator software only displays at 4:3 ratio (a squarer image), and if you're using a Spornia net and white target sheet, your screen will be square, or 1:1.
While there are no projectors with an aspect ratio of 1:1, in most cases you can adjust to this aspect ratio via your projector or source (laptop, phone etc) settings.
Alternatively, you can use a projector with a ratio such as 4:3 or 16:9 and have part of the image project off the sides, or accept the presence of 'masking bars' (black bars at the top and bottom of your screen).
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Resolution.Projector resolutions include Standard, High, Full HD, Ultra HD and 4K. The majority of golf simulator projectors are Full HD resolution - also known as 1080p (1920 x 1080) - and these options are more affordable and provide great image quality.
More recently golf simulator projectors are Ultra HD or 4K projectors, which provide 4 times the pixels of a 1080p projector, but they are much more expensive and may not provide significantly more bang for your buck.
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Brightness (Lumens).
How bright your projector needs to depends on a number of factors, including;
- the amount of light in your room
- the distance from your projector to the screen
- the quality of image required.
As a general rule you need a projector with at least 3,000 ANSI lumens, otherwise you will need to be playing in the dark!
We hope that helps - as always, email or call if you have any questions.
If you'd like to dive even deeper into golf simulator projector research, see below for some useful articles and videos:
ProjectorPoint (UK) - Golf Simulator Projectors
Golfstead (USA) - 8 Best Golf Projector Simulators - 2023 Reviews & Buying Guide:
My Golf Simulator - Best Golf Simulator Projector 2023 - 8 Step Buying Guide & Set-up Examples (*Warning: VERY Detailed!):
Customer Reviews
Got a call straight after raising my first review and the order was flushed through and sent the next day. Thanks. I’ll let you know how I get on.
Received an email to say that my order was despatched and then an email asking how satisfied I was with it. Still not arrived, so not very. Called twice and left messages for an update, but no response. Please get in touch so that I can update the review.
Product is pricey but excellent quality so far, time will tell on durability. Order process was a little painful, but communication was decent enough if a little slow at times and had to chase. (original item out of stock, upgraded to SPG-8). Slightly over 2 weeks from ordering to arrival.
Surprised my wife with the SPG8 XL (upgraded from the SPG7) for her birthday. Its only for her pitch and putt practice but she is new to golf and its ideal. Its quite large and takes up space but still fits well in our small terrace house garden. It sets up in a matter of minutes from the spring out of the bag to the placing of the rods to keep it rigid. It towers over my 1.70m height and gives extreme confidence that you cant hit a ball outside its defensive walls. I used a 9 iron and easily kept it below the upper overhang. Its a soft muffled sound when the ball hits the cloth backing. The swoosh of your club swing and it striking the ball are louder than hitting the back cloth. I didnt try a driver but Ive seen the youtube videos of it so Im confident its ok. I had a little trouble getting used to bringing it down but Im getting better at it each time. Pity that I cant keep it up because of Irelands wet climate and because of its size in our small garden. I was very happy with the overall experience of purchasing it through the internet. Would have preferred the SPG7 due to our garden size but Im happy enough, besides I wanted it for my wifes birthday and the SPG7 had sold out. The net arrived within 5 days of ordering and Charlie from Spornia looked after me all the way. I highly recommend the Spornia net, its well made, easy to put up and put away (with practice hehe) and Spornia are great to deal with. Do yourself a favour and get yourself one of these nets. Im glad that I did!
The Spornia SPG-7 Golf Practice Net is great. It's easy to put up and take down and appears to be very robust. The ball return feature is a nice touch too. I'd also recommend the golf teaching hitting mat. It's a lot of money but is well made, extremely durable and worth every penny.
I’ve had my net for two weeks and it has made practicing so much easier. I don’t have to go to the range as much, so I’m saving money there. The net is very easy to setup and pack away and the build quality is excellent. I would recommend getting a proper range hitting mat (where you are at the same height as the hitting area) since I started with a small triple grass mat which caused me to shank a shot into my neighbours garden!
My set up is slightly on a slope and the net collapses to the side all the time. The net itself is great and would be good if you have flat ground. I am going to have to sell mine
Fantastic net, makes practicing at home so easy!
A must have for anyone wanting to improve their golf!
Does exactly what i want from a golf net, the top chipping net has saved my a** more times than i can count!
Over the moon with this product. The net takes minutes to set up and is really good quality.
If you’re considering a net for home then look no further than!!
Thanks so much for the great review Simon. Great you hear you're happy and appriciating how easy it is to put up and down.
Happy Golfing!
The Spornia Team
If your think of ordering. Just do it. The quality of the net is amazing. The SPG-7 is large enough to give you confidence that you will not miss the net. I’ve hit hundreds of drives into the net since purchasing and it deals with the 130mph ball speed with ease, and it’s surprisingly quiet. The teaching mat is just as good as any top pro coach I’ve ever been to.
It does come with 1 rubber tee. I would have liked to see a few different sizes. However a couple of £s of Amazon and I now have 7 different tee heights.
If your looking to improve you game at home, the Spornia SPG-7 is a must. Total game changer.
I bought this as a birthday gift for my husband who has been playing golf for years. He wanted to be able to practice his swing in between visits to the golf course and he said it is just what he needed.
Great mat to help you work on all parts of your game, Tee shorts with driver or iron, work on all clubs in the fairway and rough. Very durable, easy to put away
Spornia Bundle #3 SPG-8 Golf Practice Net + Tri Turf Mat
It feels good an impact, but time will tell how long it stays great, but at this price you can just keep buying new ones, thanks for a great product.
Very good quality and the SPG 8 XL size is impressive, Virtually impossible to miss a net of this size and it very strong
I bought this along with the practise mat and white target sheet for my basic garage home sim…All I can say is that the service is second to none from Charlie and the quality of the net etc is fantastic value for money….I can only highly recommend all of the equipment and the customer service is fantastic.
Bought this for my 9 year old daughter to use with her GC3. The quality of this net is superb and so easy to setup! So pleased we went with the Spornia SPG-8 versus many other nets on the market. This is built to last and is perfect for what we need
Absolutely fabulous well pleased service I received was first class from Charlie would recommend this net to anybody. I use it every day hopefully we approve my golf.
Purchased the spg-7 and Mat. The Mat is superb. Good build quality and easy to roll up and store when not in use. Will take a beating and is just like you’d find at the range. The net is also great. Super easy to put up and take down again and doesn’t take up much room in the shed. Only complaint would be that it leans quite a bit to one side, which is a bit annoying. You can fix it by doing some bending but it’s usually a temporary fix. All in all though, great products and they arrived really quickly. Thanks very much!
Fast delivery, good packaging excellent easy to follow instructions and vides making the net so easy to erect and dismantle
It arrived super quick. Putting it together for the first time takes a few minutes and will get quicker with practice. It does everything you need it to, and you can hit any club into it with confidence.
