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Golfers in the Augusta area officially have a new place to practice their swings and hit some balls as TopGolf’s newest location opened Friday.
The facility is a first-of-its kind prototype. The Augusta facility only has one story instead of multiple, but still has a lot of the same features and amenities from other locations, company officials said.
Nick Treadway, general manager of TopGolf Augusta, said it was important to have a presence at the home of the Masters Tournament. Treadway said they wanted to create a new concept just for the Augusta facility.
“We are trying to create an experience that is beyond golf. We are actually the first venue that is fully outfitted with our top tracer technology, other venues don’t have that necessarily. It allows us to stay innovative with our game creation,” he said. “We are trying to create something beyond that, so it’s a backyard, social setting, where people want to come and just have a good time.”
The venue features a backyard-style outdoor area behind the tee-line, fire pits, picnic-style dining tables, a party patio with big screens and a mini-golf course.
Jason Newsome had been to a couple of other TopGolf locations in Atlanta and Charlotte and was a bit disappointed when he heard the design of the Augusta location was going to be different. However, as he played with his daughter, he realized that the new design fits well.
“Now that I’ve been here and played a little while, it’s actually a really fantastic concept,” Newsome said. “I’ve loved what they’ve done with it and I don’t see any way it’s inferior to any other location around the world.”
The facility was originally scheduled to open in April for the Masters, but was delayed due to the pandemic. Treadway said they are taking every precaution to ensure patrons and employees are safe including separating each of the 36 bays, wellness and temperature checking every employee and sanitizing equipment on a constant basis.
Parties are limited to six people per bay and social distancing is not really a problem with each tee at least 10 feet apart. He said employees are required to wear masks at and follow a strict sanitization requirement.
Newsome said he believes TopGolf Augusta has the potential to be something great.
“There are enough golfers in the community to support it, but I also think there are enough non-golfers in the community that is going to make it even better,” he said.
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