Rural Missouri - February 2023 - 45

Top left: State Technical College of Missouri students hit off of some of the 12 new bays featuring Toptracer technology. Top Right: Ben
Boyle, left, and Sloan Gallivan check out the stats on one of Ben's drives. Above left: Student Jacob Kerr inputs his name on the interactive
touchscreen as Wyatt Prosch prepares to start a game. Above right: Andy Helmig takes a swing inside one of the 12 bays.
and use to the most avid golfer or just fun information for
a weekend duffer. Stats include how far the ball carried,
the speed at which the ball left the club, launch and landing
angles, shot height and how far the ball curved left
or right. Each bay has four televisions, with two devoted
to the gameplay, one an interactive touchscreen and one
tuned to DirecTV. Each bay is shaded for use in the summer
and includes an overhead heater for the winter.
If you're not just looking to work on your swing, there
are different games from which to choose according to
event and entertainment director Renee Braun.
" There are virtual courses so you can play Pebble Beach
or other popular courses from across the country, " she
says. " There's also individual games. A really popular one
with our students is the long drive game. Even if they're
not avid golfers, they just come out with their buddies to
have fun and see who can hit it the farthest. "
Other options include closest to the pin, a version of Go
Fish, approach challenge and a points game that rewards
players for their accuracy when shooting for a target.
The technology in the bays can accommodate up to six
golfers at a time. " Obviously, the more people you have,
the slower the game will go, " Renee says. " But we've had
bigger groups come out and if there's room, they can use
multiple bays and have a great time. "
Players are charged per bucket of balls with the smallest
bucket of 40 balls costing $10 and the largest bucket
of 130 balls costing $25. Students enrolled at State Tech
get a 50% discount.
The driving range is just a small part of what the college
is building for its students and community at the golf
course. A new 31,000-square-foot clubhouse is being constructed
to include an event space, 50-seat theater, golf
simulators, duckpin bowling, restaurant, pool and lazy
river. Brandon says the clubhouse is set to open in time
for when students return for the fall semester.
On top of the entertainment value for the students and
community, the course has proven an excellent teaching
tool for the commercial turf and grounds program according
to instructor Nick Rackers. " We're turning this into
a living lab like we did on the main campus and that's a
point of pride for us, " he says. " At campus it was mostly
staff and students who would see the work and be able to
appreciate it. But out here the golfers and
community members who stop by can
see the improvements that our students
have made and the great work
they can accomplish. "
Linn
For more on the State Tech Golf
Center call 573-897-5174 or visit
www.statetechmo.edu.
FEBRUARY 2023 | RURAL MISSOURI 45

http://www.statetechmo.edu

Rural Missouri - February 2023

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