Pounding buckets of balls on the driving range is the most direct and effective way to improve your golf game.
Practice in any sport is not often viewed as fun with golf certainly fitting into the mix. To be brutally honest, practicing on your golf game is downright monotonous. But what if your practice center offered a change from tradition, something that would make the work fun, or at the very least, more enjoyable?
The Pleasanton Golf Center, located on the Alameda County Fairgrounds, is building together the ideal center. Located at the back of their popular driving range, there has been some major changes with expectations running high among the staff.
“We are looking at the high-end golfer searching for the high-end experience,” said Greg Jetter, who along with brother Dana comprise Jetter Golf. “It will give us the ability to give them a practice area and not have to deal with the masses at the other end.”
The center is on schedule to open in May 2017 and is planned to be member-only, private facility.
I had a chance to see the center under construction and in many respects, it will be a country club vibe at a practice center.
“That is exactly what we are looking for,” said Jetter.
The chipping and putting areas will be wound around a series of trees, providing a scenic and often shady area to work on your game, which during the summer, is key. It is a large area and will offer the chance to work on your short game from a variety of distances and lies.
There is also a clubhouse and sitting area planned where members can lounge before or after practicing. There will be an instructional area and an indoor/outdoor hitting bay complete with state of the art video equipment and of course, a driving range. Finally, music will be played throughout the facility.
Though there has been no price set for the membership yet, figure it to fall somewhere between $100-150, which of course includes the cost of the practice balls.
The practice center is just one of two projects currently underway by Jetter Golf on the Fairgrounds property. The other involves development of a First Tee facility in the golf course area in the middle of the race track.
The area that makes up the driving range area inside the horse racing oval would be reconfigured into a three-hole, practice course. The redevelopment also includes a chipping and putting area for the First Tee as well. It’s much needed space for a well-deserved, well utilized organization.
“We had 15,000 kids come through in the last year,” said Jetter. “We are all about growing the First Tee of the Tri-Valley.”
Jetter Golf has always been about improving and growing the game of golf and these latest projects figure to do just that.
By Dennis Miller