Adding a Backyard Par 3 to a Mountain Garage Golf Sim
A budget garage simulator build in the foothills gets a real-grass outdoor companion this summer.
There's something special about a golf setup tucked into the mountains — and this foothills log cabin proves you don't need a country club budget to make it happen.
The build lives in a detached garage beside the cabin, the same space that doubles as a workshop, occasional car park, and home to an ATV used for plowing snow. Now it's also the headquarters for a $3,000 garage golf simulator that punches well above its price tag.
The garage itself is generous: roughly two and a half cars deep and three cars wide. That kind of footprint is exactly what makes a successful sim build easier — plenty of ceiling height and swing room to work with, plus space to keep using the area for everything else it already does.
Golf Simulator Impact Screen Enclosure
The Indoor Setup
The core of the project is a budget-conscious indoor simulator that came together for around $3,000 — a full walk-through of the gear, enclosure, and software choices is covered in a separate video. It's proof that a complete garage sim doesn't require five figures of equipment.
Because the garage already serves as a multi-purpose space, the simulator had to coexist with the workshop and storage. That's a common challenge for home builders, and one this setup handles by leaning into the room's existing depth and width rather than fighting it.
The Summer Project: A Short Par 3
The most exciting part is what's happening outside. The top of the driveway sits nice and flat — a natural spot for a small tee box. From there, it's about 60 yards down to a clearing that looks just big enough for a green.
The plan is to build a genuine short par 3 you can actually play down to:
- A turf green installed in the flat area roughly 60 yards out
- A small tee box at the top of the driveway
- A fun, repeatable wedge shot to dial in short-game distance control
It's the perfect complement to an indoor sim — somewhere to take your launch monitor numbers outside and test them against real grass, real wind, and a real target.
Why an Outdoor Green Pairs Well With a Sim
Indoor simulators are unbeatable for full-swing reps and year-round practice, especially through mountain winters. But they can't fully replicate the feel of judging a 60-yard pitch with elevation, slope, and a green you're actually aiming at.
Pairing a short outdoor hole with a garage sim gives you the best of both worlds — data inside, feel outside.
A turf chipping and putting green also extends the usable golf season on the property, giving you a low-maintenance target area that holds up to repeated use without the upkeep of natural turf.
Portable Launch Monitor