From Fairways to Virtual Reality: The Future of Golf The Future of Making Things - Sports & Technology Series By: G. Page Singletary and Austin Dick
“I’d argue that you would be hard pressed to find someone who has tried both virtual and real golf and prefers the simulation to actually walking the course and breathing the fresh air for a few hours on a Sunday afternoon.”
Page: I love to watch and play many different sports and my work at Autodesk on the Future of Making Things is making me super excited about its evolution. I recently shared my thoughts on the future by going back in time - My Self-Reflection on The Future of Making Things. It is a baseball-themed story about how a transistor radio, a homemade skateboard, a Johnny Bench rookie card and some peanuts shaped my life back in the small town of Wakefield, VA in the 1960s. As I reflected back on how my childhood might have been different in this new era of cloud and mobile computing, it has been fun to hear from colleagues and customers who shared similar experiences.
THE FUTURE OF MAKING THINGS – SPORTS & TECHNOLOGY SERIES (GOLF)
I want to now focus on another favorite sport, golf. Over the course of the past several months, I enjoyed getting to know Michael Mayerle who runs a Tucson based firm, JMS Geomatics, that provides mapping, CAD and Geographic Information Services (GIS) for the golf industry; as well as Mark Long, former PGA Tour caddy who has a business by the name of Tour Sherpa. Mark creates the yardage books and greens books used by PGA professionals and their caddies. These are 2D paper books that you see the players flipping through during tournaments. Michael’s clients include the PGA Tour, EA Sports, golf course architects and superintendents. His models are used to support the Tour’s ShotLink technology, which is part of the live scoring app that allows fans to track (shot-by-shot) tour players during competition. Michael’s work for EA Sports provides the course data and imagery used in the Tiger Woods Video Game, which has since been renamed Rory Mcllroy PGA Tour. You would also know his work with the television networks that cover golf if you have ever watched a ‘fly over’ of a golf hole. It is Michael’s CAD and terrain data that is often the backbone for those graphics, with the tour and the networks applying the colors and textures using software like Autodesk Maya or 3ds Max. After spending some time with these guys, I wondered if their reality capture methods could be improved. With the help of Autodesk’s Pete Kelsey, Strategic Projects Executive, Louis Marcoux, Technical Account Manager (3ds Max) and Lee Fraser Senior Applications Engineer (Maya) we have been exploring workflows and reality capture methodologies. The goal of this project in Pete’s words: “Use laser scanners, UAV/drone photography, and Autodesk software to produce 3D, digital, photorealistic, accurate models that could potentially change the game of golf – for the pros, the fans, the TV networks, and gaming companies.”
Pete in full sun protection with Michael (red hat) and Mark
As a self-proclaimed golf nut, this has been a fun project, truly a cross-industry opportunity, and it led me to Autodesk summer intern Austin Dick, who also has a passion for sports, technology, 2
THE FUTURE OF MAKING THINGS – SPORTS & TECHNOLOGY SERIES (GOLF)
and golf. Austin is working as a Multimedia Designer based in our Toronto office, which will soon be moving to the MaRS Discovery District – one of the world’s largest urban innovation hubs. Austin: I’m a student at the University of Waterloo studying Global Business and Digital Arts. Outside of school and my internship, I’m also the Co-Owner and Executive Designer of Clubhouse Golf, a software company that develops management solutions for golf courses across Ontario. Since I started my university studies, I’ve been learning all I can about technology and design to discover the many ways that each are radically transforming nearly every industry around the world. One of the reasons behind this pursuit of knowledge is to develop innovative business solutions and products that shape a new way of interacting with the world around us. I sought out an internship at Autodesk because that principle has been woven into every area of their operation. Growing up, I was involved in nearly every sport available to me, and most of them at a highly competitive level. This love for sport shaped my interests, character, and in many ways my career to this point. Page: Check the box on that one. Austin and I hit it off immediately. Tell me more about Clubhouse Golf? Austin: Clubhouse Golf is software that was born out of a need; the need for more scalable and organized management at golf courses. Many courses today are still running the majority of their operation with pen and paper. This method is simple and familiar, but organization is quickly thrown out the window as loose papers and checks pile up in binders throughout the pro shop. We set out to build a cloud-based management solution for golf courses. Because golf reaches such a wide range of generations, we needed to create a platform that was powerful and organized, while still being approachable to anyone regardless of their age. Over the past two years, Clubhouse Golf has grown from a simple event management platform to an all-in-one golf course management solution that combines event management, league play, scoring, and tee times in a unified experience catered to every golfer and course. We love golf, and moving forward we want to ensure the sport grows and progresses at a rate that can match the rapid change seen throughout the world. Page: So you read my Self-Reflection on The Future of Making Things, right? I shared my experiences from my childhood back in the 1960s. How would you describe your experiences with technology? Austin: I like to think that I grew up in a time when tech hadn’t completely consumed the lives of youth. At the age of 22, I can say things like, “Back when I had a Sony Walkman…” or “Remember when we had to adjust the ‘Bunny Ears’ on the TV to get a clear feed of the hockey game?” These are things that very few people born even a couple years later can relate to. 3
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When I was younger, my time spent riding up and down the quarter pipe in my driveway was interrupted by family movie time. Today, most kids have their TV time interrupted by a parent urging them out the door to enjoy the sunshine and fresh air. Now before you roll your eyes, please understand that I don’t bring up this point to be judgmental of current generations whose lives have become even more integrated with technology. I love my technology as much as the next millennial. Rather, I bring it up to serve as an example of how modern technology has changed the way people experience different activities like sports. Page: I think it will be fun to explore how technology is changing sports. And to fully grasp the meaning behind the title, The Future of Making Things – Sports & Technology, we need to explore two areas: (1) How technology is changing the sports we play either in person or digitally; and (2) How technology is changing the sports we enjoy watching as a fan, either at the arena or on a television, surface tablet, or mobile phone. Austin: The golf industry is a great example of how technology can propel an age old sport into the modern era. If you were to walk into any major golf retail store, you will likely find a few dark rooms with a projector and some artificial turf. I’m speaking of course of the virtual driving ranges in which you smack a golf ball at a screen and a series of sensors calculate the path of the ball and are able to produce a realistic visual simulation of the ball flight in front of you. This type of software has revolutionized the way the game is played for everyday golfers and tour players alike. With this technology, golfers can see detailed comparisons of different clubs, calculate the speed at which the ball travels and spins, break down the exact club movements that lead to a particular shot, and so much more. Additionally, these golf simulators have opened up new business opportunities for courses and entrepreneurs. Here in Canada where the winter can bury our golf courses in feet of snow, virtual golf makes it possible to enjoy the game throughout the off season. Full-blown facilities have been created for the sole purpose of running golf indoors year-round. These virtual courses run leagues, tournaments, and daily tee times like any other real golf course.
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THE FUTURE OF MAKING THINGS – SPORTS & TECHNOLOGY SERIES (GOLF)
Page: Will virtual reality and simulations replace the experience of actually playing the sport for real? Austin: No. I don’t think it will. I would argue that you’d be hard pressed to find someone who has tried both virtual and real golf and prefers the simulation to actually walking the course and breathing the fresh air for a few hours on a Sunday afternoon. Sport goes beyond the fundamental actions that technology can simulate. Golf is more than simply swinging a club in the same way that hockey is more than skating and shooting a puck around. There is the undeniable value of spending time with friends laughing, joking, and competing on an immaculately groomed fairway or a freshly flooded hockey rink. There will always be a place for technology in sport, but I won’t be trading my local golf course for a screen and projector any time soon. Page: I’m with you on that Austin. I lost in the fourth round of our club match play tournament a couple of Saturday’s ago, and I am still steaming about the six-foot putt that I missed on the 18th hole that would have extended the match. I love to compete in a life-time sport. But what about in our living rooms, when we are watching sports on television. How might watching golf change in the future, and let’s dream big here, since we know the guys that can make this stuff happen! Austin: The widespread adoption of virtual reality is going to drastically change the way we watch sports. I wouldn’t be surprised if in a few years we see caddies walking the down the fairway wearing a Microsoft HoloLens headset, analyzing the upcoming shot with numerous digital simulations being rendered in front of them. Something like this would also be a game-changer for sports broadcasting. Tuning into the “Caddy Vision” live stream would be an incredible perspective to watch a tournament from. This technology may be closer than we think, given the tours relationship with Microsoft, and the fact that there is always demand for innovation with the sports networks looking to attract viewers. (See more Caddy Vision ideas on page 8, after ‘About the collaborators’ section.) Page: I know the golf purist out there are cringing at the thought of a caddie wearing a HoloLens headset, especially since the tour does not even allow a simple range-finder at this point. But we all enjoy listening to the interaction between a caddy and player before a shot. And remember when the thought of a microphone in a football helmet would have been out of the question?
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THE FUTURE OF MAKING THINGS – SPORTS & TECHNOLOGY SERIES (GOLF)
Here is another HoloLens application that I think would be amazing in our living rooms: PGA Tour tests new golf demo on Microsoft HoloLens, with help from a Seattle startup. Imagine having the broadcast of the tournament on your wall mounted television, but on the coffee table in front of you is a map of the course, complete with elevations, trees, and Go to 3:30 in the video to see demo water hazards. Imagine being able to zoom in on a hole or group and even watch a specific players shot shape. Go to 3:30 on this YouTube video to see a demonstration at TPC Sawgrass. Anybody thinking about Bubba Watson’s famous bender from the pine trees at Augusta? Austin: I love those ESPN Sports Science pieces! And speaking of ‘Bubba golf’, did you see this from the lefty on flying golf carts! Page: Now we are really irritating the golfing purists. We better stop while we are still under par on this subject. Next time we rally on The Future of Making Things – Sports & Technology, I’m thinking we start with the yellow line on the football field. Austin: Sounds like a plan. I’m zooming off for my tee time. See you next time!
Next on The Future of Making Things – Sports & Technology: Who created the yellow line? How is it done? How will technology continue to change how football is played and watched?
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THE FUTURE OF MAKING THINGS – SPORTS & TECHNOLOGY SERIES (GOLF)
About the collaborators: G. Page Singletary: Proud to be a starting pitcher on an enterprise sales team at Autodesk. We help people make some very cool stuff! My goal is to always listen first, learn and then apply creative thinking and collaboration to business engagements. I enjoy business challenges of all sizes, and bringing the right mix of people and technology to find solutions. Austin Dick: A quick learner and a self-starter in pursuit of exceptional design. Student at the University of Waterloo studying Global Business and Digital Arts. Co-Owner and Executive Designer at Clubhouse Golf. Fixated on superb usability, innovation, and providing every user with the best possible experience.
Pete Kelsey: Media-friendly, uber-creative technologist with experience combining measurement, modeling, visualization, simulation & analysis technologies into creative solutions and then communicating to a broad audience. Recent projects include work with the Smithsonian; as well as the underwater survey of the USS Arizona and USS Utah at Pearl Harbor. Louis Marcoux: Technical Account Manager with expertise in 3D animation, visual effects, programming and scripting. Also, proficient in film, games, broadcast graphics, and visualization. Louis is responsible of delivering technical talks around 3D animation and visual effects for customers and at public events. He has played golf since he was 7 years old during the short summers of Canada. Lee Fraser: Lee uses his diverse background in the 3d entertainment world to help a broad range of customers with Autodesk products like Maya, Mudbox and MotionBuilder. Lee presents at trade shows and to user groups informing how to best use 3d, often in unexpected ways. Occasionally golf and 3d have crossed paths and not long ago that took Lee to a Greg Norman Course in Florida where he helped the designers with some workflows.
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More Caddy Vision ideas from Austin Visual Shot Path Preview One of the things that surprised me when I first started watching professional golf was the dynamic shot paths that the pros choose for their shots. 8-year-old me always thought the only way to approach a hole was to hit straight at it. Being able to see the path of the pros’ shots using shot tracing technology was mind blowing. It gives the viewer a real perspective as to the level of precision and creativity that these professional players play with. The practical use of something like this would be to aid the caddy in recommending shots. Data could be collected about the golfer's various shot capabilities, and then those averages could be represented and manipulated in real time against the environmental factors like wind and rain. Giving the caddy and golfer the ability to preview the shots before hand could be a huge deal. Pin Position and Green Information In video games like Rory McIlroy PGA Tour, one of the on-screen aids is a pop-up near the shot location that displays information like distance to the pin, distance to the water hazard, bunker, trees, and other elements like elevation. This would aid both the golfer and the viewer in understanding the golfer's position on the hole and relative to the green. This information panel would adjust in real time as the golfer and caddy experiment with different shots. 3D Hole Rendering The caddy will have the ability to display a 3D rendering of the current hole on the ground in front of him/her, complete with elevation changes, trees, hazards, wind, and more. The golfer's shot path would be displayed here providing them with an overhead view of the shot they are about to make. The caddy could zoom in on any part of the hole to examine the tiny details, aiding them in their decisions about what shot to make. Additional information could be brought into this rendering as well, such as shots from past rounds, competitor shots, and more. Wind Animations Creating a visual representation of wind is tricky, but can be incredibly valuable for the golfer and viewers. The HUD would contain a numerical reading of the wind speed, as well as a directional arrow. In addition to this, some sort of animation would be added to the environment (generated by the HoloLens) to provide additional feedback to the caddy, golfer, and viewers regarding the current wind conditions. Ball Lie Below/Above Feet This feature is more for the viewers to get a more detailed idea of the type of lie the golfer is dealing with.
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