Indoor Practice Facilities
Restrictions on indoor practice facilities are becoming a thing of the past. Hitting across gymnasiums or converted tennis courts into nets at 75 feet limits your ability to see the ball flight or shot shape of a golf ball. Luckily, inflated domed stadias are becoming more common. In the Ottawa area, two new facilities operated by Thunderbird Management Services Inc. (TMSI) are great examples of this phenomenon. TMSI operates the Superdome at Ben Franklin Park, the Thunderbird Sports Centre and the Superdome Sports Centre in Gloucester. TMSI has run domes and golf facilities in Ottawa for years. Their experience shows. The Superdomes are well lit, well ventilated, extremely comfortable, state-of-the-art facilities. Though golf is not the main sport -- soccer, ultimate frisbee, football, rugby and lacrosse predominate -- ranges under the domes are very well hosted, indeed. Inside the Dome  The domes are huge, lined to fit a full soccer field down their length (310 x 182 feet) or three practice soccer fields (93 x 182 feet each) across their width. At Ben Franklin Park, the dome is open to golfers from 8:00am to 4:00pm, Monday to Friday. After opening December 3, 2007 the Ben Franklin dome will be open until April 15, 2008. It's an excellent indoor practice facility for all sports.
The surface is a high-tech "Omnigrass" synthetic turf system that simulates a very bladed grass texture. Mats with dividers create about 25 hitting stations. Two types of golf mats are provided, one for short irons and wedge play, the other with the familiar tee to hit the driver and long clubs. Thankfully the mats protect the synthetic turf that does provide a nice ambience for the winter golfer. Ball Flight Nets separate two of the soccer fields off for golfers to strike approximately 80 yards down the length of the dome. I was hitting 7-iron and could see the complete ball flight from mat to net, no problem. On either side were two guys hitting their drivers unimpeded by the dome ceiling. The lighting is indirect, offering a glare free range with clear sight lines to track the ball. This also permits use of cameras to capture swing analysis by instructors or on your own if you are so inclined. Two pros, well-known to golfers in the Ottawa area, are available for individual or group lessons. John Ollson, Director of the Ottawa Sports Group, has offered golf camps in conjunction with the City of Ottawa, and also works at the 'On the Green' driving range in Baarhaven and at the Thunderbird Sports Centre. John is also a professional club fitter and club maker. Warren Grant was named Canadian PGA Teacher of the Year, 2001 and is much-acclaimed as a golf instructor from his tenure at Thunderbird Sports Centre and at Manderley on the Green Golf Course. Warren operates 'Warren's Total Golf' to provide instruction, video analysis and coaching year round to golfers throughout the Ottawa Valley. At Superdome instruction is available from 8:00am to 3:00pm. You can pay as you play -- non-member cost is $11.00 for 30 minutes of hitting. You can get a 5-hour range pass for $90.00 plus GST. For more information on memberships and lessons, contact their website (tmsiottawa.com) or phone 613-829-3663. As a winter driving range, the Superdome at Ben Franklin Park is one of Ottawa's best indoor practice facilities. |
