BERNARDSTON — Dan Carmody looked down the handle of his golf club, focusing on the white ball balancing atop his wooden tee. In one smooth swing, Carmody sent the ball flying, not across manicured green turf, but over a virtual golf course.
The Crumpin-Fox Club, an 18-hole, 200-acre golf course on Parmenter Road in Bernardston, recently opened The Fox Den, a private indoor golfing space featuring a TrackMan golf simulator.
According to John Jackson, director of golf at the Crumpin-Fox Club, the new addition is part of the club’s Grow the Game campaign, which began in August.
The goal of the campaign, Jackson said, is to attract more golfers — particularly local residents — to the course. While the outdoor course was open, this was done by offering Franklin County residents discounted rates. Jackson hopes to show Crumpin-Fox newcomers that the course offers a comfortable environment for golfers of all skill levels.
To continue the campaign into the winter months, Jackson and club owner Tim Van Epps decided to purchase a $65,000 TrackMan simulator.
“We wanted to give one more avenue for people to feel comfortable picking up a club and playing,” Jackson said. Plus, he added, with the simulator, residents “don’t have to travel outside the county to do a fun winter activity.”
Carmody, outside operations manager at Crumpin-Fox, said many players say the atmosphere of The Fox Den is “like playing golf in their living room.”
Golf simulators, Jackson said, are becoming more popular across the United States, and particularly in China and South Korea. However, he believes Crumpin-Fox is the only club in the Pioneer Valley with a TrackMan simulator. Western Mass Family Golf Center of Hadley features an aboutGolf PGA tour simulator.
Over the course of three days, Crumpin-Fox staff and a TrackMan technician set up the simulator within the club’s restaurant, Zeke’s Bar and Grill. The simulator allows the user to play at different courses and batting ranges, and offers personal statistics following each swing. Up to six golfers can play at once, though Jackson said the space can accommodate an additional six observers.
The Fox Den had a soft opening in December, Jackson said, and will likely stay open through April 1. When weather allows the outdoor course to reopen for the season, the simulator will be taken down to make room for Zeke’s Bar and Grill once again.
Jackson said the simulator has already begun to accomplish the campaign goal, attracting people who haven’t golfed before.
“There’s been quite a few true beginners,” he said. As a golf professional, Jackson emphasized how rewarding and fulfilling it’s been for him to watch beginners’ faces light up when they hit their first golf ball.
“It’s a lot of fun to be able to provide people with that kind of happiness or excitement,” he said.
The club coupled The Fox Den’s soft opening with Women’s Golf Wednesdays, which feature a complimentary clinic followed by nine holes of golf using the simulator. To add more winter options, Jackson hopes to offer snowshoeing on the property’s trail system starting in early February.
Non-club members can reserve The Fox Den for $70 an hour, $130 for two hours, and $60 an hour for three or more hours, regardless of the number of golfers in the party. For reservations, contact Jackson by email at jjackson@golfthefox.com or by phone at 413-834-2843.