The Future of Indoor Golf: Home Simulators & TGL with Ben Helmrath

golf SMARTER

Josh Karp

Golf, Sports, Society & Culture

4.3 • 577 Ratings

🗓️ 2 September 2025

⏱️ 45 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

GS#1015 September 2, 2025. This week we speak with Ben Helmrath, VP PGA Tour Superstores, and "caddie" for the TGL Champion Atlanta Drive about the exciting developments in golf, particularly focusing on the rise of golf simulators. Ben shares insights into the partnership with the PGA Tour, the growth of golf retail, and the evolution of golf experiences, especially during the pandemic. He recounts his firsthand experiences with TGL at SoFi Stadium and his strategic role during matches, highlighting the innovative approach to golf that TGL represents. The conversation wraps up with a look ahead to the future of TGL and the excitement surrounding its second season. Other topics with Ben include the evolution of indoor golf, offering practical advice for setting up a home golf simulator. The discussion also covers technological innovations in golf simulators, and the importance of creating family-friendly experiences. Helmrath highlights the affordability and accessibility of modern golf technology, making it easier for families to engage with the sport.This episode is brought to you by BreakfastBalls.Golf. Visit BreakfastBalls.Golf for the best quality and pricing on premium used golf balls. Find your favorite brand at half the price of new balls! Use GOLFSMARTER at checkout for 20% off your order!Check out "Invested in the Game", a new original podcast from Charles Schwab. This podcast is their way of sharing the incredible stories behind the game. Listen now at schwab.com/TheGame or wherever you get your podcasts.This episode is sponsored by Indeed. Please visit indeed.com/GOLFSMARTER and get a $75 SPONSORED JOB CREDIT. Terms and conditions apply.This episode is sponsored by HIMS. Start your free online visit today HIMS.com/golfsmarter and received personalized ED treatment options. This episode is brought to you by RULA. Find a therapist or psychiatric provider who specializes in you at rula.com/golfsmarter.This episode is also brought to you by Policygenius. Secure your family’s future with Policygenius. Head to policygenius.com to compare free life insurance quotes from top companies and see how much you could save.This episode is also brought to you by Policygenius. Secure your family’s future with Policygenius. Head to policygenius.com to compare free life insurance quotes from top companies and see how much you could save.For exclusive content and first access check out Corrected Mistakes on Substack: https://substack.com/@correctedmistake Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, I'm Jack Smiley Jr.
0:05.4	From San Juan Beach to California.
0:07.5	I play golf at San Juan Oaks.
0:10.9	Hi, this is Thomas Valles from Bradenton, Florida.
0:14.7	And I play at IMG golf course.
0:17.6	This is Golf Smarter episode number 101. Insiderider baseball, Fred, I may or may not have
0:24.2	asked Charlie when we played Tiger if I could give him the closer signal when he was sitting in
0:28.7	the box and see if he would come out and put against his dad and we beat him. But he didn't want to
0:33.3	put his dad to shame on ESPN. I mean you think about how amazing of a
0:38.2	format like even what the father son PNC is so many of these type of events that
0:42.9	TGL's format and the style of play could lend itself to the shot clock was fun
0:48.3	like if you're in the stadium everybody's chanting like in a basketball game
0:51.8	when there was 10 seconds left everybody's running around trying to get the crowd riled up.
0:56.0	It feels like the first tee at the Rider Cup for almost two hours.
0:59.2	I mean, you can be loud.
1:00.5	There was no signs held up that says, please be quiet when we're teeing off.
1:04.6	When we played New York, I swear they flew down Long Island into a fan section,
1:09.4	and they had no problem bringing the Bethpage
1:12.4	Black noise to us at TGL.
1:14.4	It riled our guys up.
1:15.7	It made it so much fun.
1:20.9	Expanding the future of indoor golf, home simulators, and TGL with Ben Helmraf.
	...

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