A membership-only, indoor golfing facility meant for avid golfers looking to improve is now open in a high-rise near Ballston.
The Golf Yards opened earlier this month in Three Ballston Plaza at 1100 N. Glebe Road, offering members 24/7 access to eight golf simulators, putting/short game areas and a high-performance gym. The seventh-floor space is already nearing its membership cap, co-founder David Stillman told ARLnow.
“We wanted to create a place that fuses all aspects of that journey into becoming a better golfer,” Stillman said. “It’s all about the member experience here, right? We want to give people exactly what they need, and, frankly, what they didn’t know they needed to be a good golfer.”
Membership is intended to assist golfers in “breaking through a performance plateau” by giving a space to practice even in bad weather, at any time of day. It costs $299 per month for individuals and $399 for families.
The Golf Yards is currently waiving its $1,000 individual and $1,500 family initiation fees, likely until it caps its membership and creates a waiting list, Stillman said.
“We’re getting to pretty close to capacity every day, but you’re still able to make a reservation [for a simulator] on the same day,” Stillman said. “That’s going to be the issue, is once it becomes a day or two to book, then we’re going to say, ‘hey, we’re going to cap it and create a wait list.’”
In addition to the simulators and putting and chipping area, the facility is home to a putting machine that creates inclines and shows golfers where to aim. It also has a coworking space and private offices for members who want to come practice during the workday.
“We were trying to give them a space where a couple days a week, they can come in here for three or four hours and get some work done, putt, get some work done, chip, get some work done, hit on the simulator,” Stillman said.
So far, Stillman says he “couldn’t have asked for a better two weeks,” with membership applications rolling in and golfers coming in from around 5 a.m. until late in the night. After finding success near Ballston, The Golf Yards is now targeting two more locations by the end of next year, one in Tysons and one in Alexandria.
The facility also offers coaching from Peak Golf Institute, providing golf lessons, performance training and evaluations. The institute has trained PGA Tour winner Michael Brennan and professional golfer Logan Reilly.
The Golf Yards is also planning on adding simulator golf leagues and golf clinics for a wide range of skill levels and ages.
“The hardest thing to do is to find people to play golf with,” Stillman said. “We wanted to create a community by which you were able to find more people, work together, get to know them and be able to get out there and play.”
