By SDSU Sports Info

Imagine South Dakota State University hoops star Nate Wolters not having a gym to workout in over the offseason.

He might get a little rusty.

That’s how things were for the SDSU men’s and women’s golf teams, according to head coach Jared Baszler, due to unfavorable golf weather in Brookings most of the school year.

“We used to basically shut down for two months out of the year. Two hitting mats and a simple net gets boring,” Baszler said.

Thanks to a new $62,000 indoor facility on the south side of Frost Arena, not anymore.

“One of the first questions a recruit usually asks is how many months a year they can golf (in Brookings). From now on I’m gonna say 12 … anything you can do outside you can do in here,” Baszler said.

Baszler, who’s been coaching at SDSU since 2003, always had the idea of an indoor golf facility so his teams could still hone their skills while the courses were under a few feet of snow.

About two years ago, a few of the golfers’ parents approached him and got the ball rolling on fundraising for the project. He rounded up support from former Jackrabbit golfers, alumni, other parents of current golfers and just about anyone that ever had any connection to the SDSU golf program.

“Not only did we raise a lot of money, we raised enough money and we didn’t have to cut any corners with this facility,” Baszler said.

Needless to say he did a good job. A great job. The first phase of the Jacks’ new indoor golf facility was the 900 square-foot (48 x 20 feet) putting and chipping area.  After $35,000 and some good old-fashioned labor (a wall had to be knocked out), phase one was completed over winter break.  SynLawn, an aritificial grass company, installed the indoor putting green in less than two days.

Phase two happened much quicker than expected.

“We knew we wanted to do a simulator next and we left some space in our room for it,” Baszler said, “We had some donors who really stepped up and stepped up big. So instead of phase two taking two years, it only took a couple months.”

The simulator is like Wii Golf on steroids with a little higher price tag (around $32,000). Simply tee up the ball, pull out the club of choice and pick from a variety of courses or take to the driving range.

One of the biggest advantages of the simulator is the ‘launch monitor’, a portable black box which can be used indoors or out on the course and keeps data on every swing of every golfer for later analysis.  Like watching film for golfers, the launch monitor records data such as club head speed, carry distance, angle of attack, ball spin, etc.  The launch monitor and simulator setup were purchased from Foresight Sports – a leader in the launch monitor sector of the golf industry.

And one could argue the investment has already paid dividends: the men’s team set the lowest 54-hole score in school history at the Jackrabbit Invitational, the first meet since the fall season, after roughly two months with the putting and chipping area alone.

What’s the verdict?

“It has definitely helped. Looking at our stats from [the Jackrabbit Invitational], our players averaged less putts per round than we did last year and I have noticed their short game has improved overall.  I would say it’s paid off so far,” stated Baszler.

“[The simulator's] really cool. You’re going to be hard-pressed to find players who don’t want to come in here all day, every day. We’ll have to divvy up the times because this is gonna be a lot of fun,” junior Hudson Carpenter said.

From an outsider’s prospective, the facility no-doubt helps solidify SDSU as a Division I golf program, even if it’s required some thinking outside the box. Baszler said not many teams in the upper-Midwest, if any, have anything like this unique facility.

“”If you would’ve told me a year ago that we’d have this [facility], I would’ve told you you’re crazy,” Baszler said.

The coach no longer has to tell his golfers to go in and hit. They’re usually there already, some even sleeping overnight at the facility.

“The best take-away for me has been the reaction on the kids’ faces when they saw the simulator, when they saw the putting green in January — it’s putting chills down my spine right now. It’s pretty neat. They don’t feel like they’re so rusty, they don’t feel like they’re having to play catch-up with the rest of the country,” Baszler said.

SDSU Indoor Golf practice facility Before

SDSU Indoor Golf practice facility After

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SYNLawn Golf recently donated a professionally designed and installed putting green for the Boys and Girls Club of Las Vegas. Please watch and join us in supporting the Boys & Girls Club in your local area.

Check out this time-lapse video of the new indoor golf practice facility at South Dakota State University being installed by SYNLawn Golf. Go Jacks!

“Extra’s” Mario Lopez and Maria Menounos continued their February Face-Off race — this time being a golf challenge as the two hosts squared off on a Dave Pelz GreenMaker by SYNLawn Golf. The pair had a little “Extra” help from PGA golf pros Jesper Parnevik and James Hahn. Check out the video below to see how they did!

CLICK HERE for more info about the Dave Pelz GreenMaker
by SYNLawn Golf

THANK YOU to “Extra” TV, the cast and crew and everyone behind the scenes who helped make this happen!

BACK NINE GREENS PARTNERS WITH SYNLAWN TO ANSWER THE DEMAND FOR BACKYARD PUTTING GREEN SYSTEMS

(PALM DESERT, California) – Dominic Nappi found a niche’ in the burgeoning trend toward installing synthetic backyard putting greens and synthetic residential landscape turf and founded Back Nine Greens, one of the country’s largest installers of synthetic putting green systems and synthetic landscape turf.

Since 1997, the Palm Desert company has established itself as the premier installation company for these types of projects.

Now, the company is announcing a new partnership with the world’s largest manufacturer of synthetic turf for putting greens and residential applications. SYNLawn is a Dalton, Georgia-based company, which is closely aligned with AstroTurf, the inventor of the synthetic turf industry.

“By working together with SYNLawn, this allows us to provide superior workmanship, extraordinary service, and professional integrity,” said Nappi. “Our goal was to partner with the largest and best manufacturer of synthetic turf and that led us to SYNLawn. SYNLawn’s reputation for innovation in the synthetic turf industry and excellence in production and manufacturing will enhance our business greatly.”

Nappi and his team came into the business on the leading edge of the trend and have continued to grow and expand. From small, three-hole backyard greens, to more expansive surfaces intended for serious golfers, their market continues to grow.

“This partnership allows us to feature our products in the installations of one of the world’s foremost experts in creating a realistic, high-performance putting green,” said George Neagle, Vice President of Sales and Marketing with SYNLawn. “Customers will have the SYNLawn product quality and components installed with the best craftsmanship.”

The company has installed systems for some very well-known clients, including the NFL’s Terrell Davis, former MLB Commissioner Peter Ueberoth, golfing legend Ken Venturi, actor Mark Wahlberg, USC Athletic Director Pat Haden, and baseball Hall-of-Famer Johnny Bench.

SYNLawn has also enhanced its reputation and product line by partnering with short game guru Dave Pelz to help design and enhance product offerings alongside the Pelz Golf Institute.

The SYNLawn systems now offered by Back Nine Greens will provide the most authentic experience for every part of the game. The greens will feature nylon fibers that allow for smooth, true putts, as well as lifelike fringe and collar turf for developing the game around the green.

Each green is custom-designed and installed by Back Nine Greens, which is part of SYNLawn’s exclusive Greenmaster installation program.

Back Nine Greens will also carry SYNLawn products for residential and landscape installation, playgrounds, pet areas, and roof decks. Back Nine Greens will service Imperial, Orange, and Riverside Counties.

Back Nine Greens is located in Palm Desert and can be reached at (800) 583-6619

About SYNLawn:

SYNLawn is the industry innovator on synthetic grass. Their lush and livable synthetic grass systems have transformed the way synthetic grass is used, producing the most advanced and performance oriented putting surfaces and synthetic landscaping solutions in the market. SYNLawn uses exclusive technologies to produce unmatched solutions for synthetic landscape, golf, pet and playground systems. SYNLawn’s grass products are 100% recyclable and lead compliant. As the only vertically integrated manufacturer/installer in the business, SYNLawn delivers customers the highest quality artificial grass products at a competitive price with the most genuine industry warranty. With the company’s rapid expansion, SYNLawn has 35 locations now open in the United States and Canada. To learn more visit www.SYNLawn.com.

Use my blueprints to transform your backyard into a legitimate practice area

By Dave Pelz, Technical and Short Game Consultant, GOLF Magazine

Thanks for coming to Golf.com to see more of my son Eddie’s “backyards for golfers” designs. He built the short-game practice facility of my dreams in my backyard for a reason: to help me learn firsthand what is needed for you to improve your short game and putting. This is part of my overall view that if you can improve your short game skills in the comfort and convenience of your own yard during the week after work, then you’ll shoot lower scores and enjoy the game more when you play on the weekends.

Unfortunately, most of us have to work for a living. This leaves little time on work days to practice golf. Thanks to the quality of some new SYNLawn Golf turf products, which I am having the privilege of helping develop, we can all now pitch and putt on realistically behaving grasses and greens at home in our backyards. That’s my plan: practice at home … play better on the weekends. Living with such conditions in my dream home, with my dream gal, I’m going to work on my short game for as long as I can swing a club, or stroke a putter.

But that’s my own dream. My real goal is to inspire you to find a way to practice your wedges and putting on weekday evenings. I want you to get home from work, change into something comfortable, and step out into your backyard for a few minutes with a wedge or putter. No dressing up, no driving anywhere, no wasted time. Just relax, hit a few shots (for 3, 10, 30 minutes or more), and then go inside for supper. Spend constructive time with your family, have fun with the kids, and lower your handicap simultaneously. What could be better!

You know, improving golf skills is in a way like learning to speak French. Frequent short practice sessions (in the evenings) help a lot more than long sessions that are few and far-between. And since you spend most evenings at home, if you practice more easily and often, your skills can be dramatically improved over time.

Transforming your backyard into a legitimate practice area isn’t as difficult — or expensive — as you might think. To give you an idea of what is involved, please look at some basic designs that might fit into your yard. Of course each design will be customized to optimize your own home/yard layout. And by adding such an amenity, you’ll also add to your home’s value. I recommend using “nylon” based synthetic grasses, which are available in various green-speeds and for fringe, fairway and rough applications (nylon last longer with usually 8 to 10 year, and sometimes more, guarantees), as compared to polypropylene products.

“Easy access to golf” can be fit into almost any backyard and creates a low maintenance (no water or mowing) situation for long term care and maintenance costs. You probably won’t need anywhere near the amount of turf I used. In reality, you only need small (4′ x 4′) tee areas to hit from (the more the better), and small (15′ x 25′) green targets to hit to. I also recommend starting with something small and close to the house (the closer to the house, the more you’ll use it, I promise), because if you don’t have the time or energy to pitch or putt close to your house, you don’t need a larger and more expensive complex farther out in the yard.

View the full story online at this location.