LEAD STORY OCTOBER 2017 BIZGOLF
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tête-à-tête with Hari Natarajan Founder and CEO Tee Time Ventures
learn golf. Through TTV golf has now percolated down to corporate campuses, housing societies, hotels, etc. This also makes golf lessons more affordable and accessible
Why did you set up tee time ventures? TTV was set up with a view to make golf more accessible in India. If you look at countries where the climate does not allow golfing during certain times of the year, simulators are used to keep the golfers and their leagues going. Likewise, in parts of Asia, shortage of space has pushed people to using simulators. In India since access to golf courses islimited, the thought was to leverage technology to bring better access to golf
How different is a simulator than the real thing? It is actually quite close. What a treadmill is to a runner, a simulator is to a golfer. For someone used to playing on a course, it takes a little bit of getting used to playing in a closed environment
How can the concept of indoor golfing help the game grow in the country? Indoor golfing can bring golf to the masses. This de-couples the need for large real estate and dependency on weather and access to golf courses/driving ranges to
Where all have you set up golf simulators? We have worked with real estate developers like Embassy Group, RMZ Group, Salarpuria Sattva, Peninsula, Corporate campuses like Infosys, Cisco, Hotels like Leela Palace, Pubs etc to set up simulators in their properties. More details are available on our website (www.teetimeventures.com).
Why are companies such as Cisco, Infosys are setting up the simulator in their campuses? What kind of response have you got at these establishments? This is great stress buster and also a great employee engagement tool. It also a great opportunity for employees to pick up a new skill while having fun. The response has been great. We have seen a lot of newcomers get comfortable with golf having learnt on the simulators.
Do you think millennials are more inclined towards trying the game on a simulator than on the golf course? Yes. Since this is also a gamified version of the sport, the novelty factor adds to
it along with all the other advantages of golf being accessible. Also from a time stand-point, this saves commute time and also cuts down on the time taken to finish a round. Also, in locations like corporate campuses, clubhouses, hotels, pub etc.,golf is no longer an isolated activity. Golf is now integrated into a multi-activity space combined with other activities like pool/ billiards, gaming etc. The allows a group of people to participate in multiple activities at the same time while allowing a newcomer to try golf in a familiar environment.
Give us an estimate on the number of newcomers that have been introduced to the game via Golfers Edge? Over the last 3 years, we estimate over 5000 people have had an introduction to the game via Golfer’s Edge
What is your plan to market the product and also to introduce more people to the sport, moving forward? We plan on moving forward with our current strategy of working with sectors we already are engaged in and have also started a series of lessons at all our install locations. We are also looking at introducing India’s first Indoor Golf League soon. Should you have further questions or comments, please feel to contact me at hari@teetimeventures.com