Toptracer Range at Palmetto Dunes has been a big hit BY BRAD KING
PHOTOS BY ROB TIPTON
The new Toptracer Range at Palmetto Dunes Oceanfront Resort has teed off to resounding cheers. This spring, remaining on the cusp of golf technology, Palmetto Dunes partnered with Toptracer Range to complete an exciting upgrade of the resort’s Robert Trent Jones practice range and learning center. Now, Palmetto Dunes guests are experiencing interactive golf entertainment powered by the same technology that viewers enjoy during televised PGA Tour events to track the shots of the game’s best players. The enhanced facility features 15 covered, outdoor bays with high-speed cameras, TV monitors, technology and games. Casual seating, drinks and food service are available during specific times of day.
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Warm up before you tee it up, practice your swing, play a virtual round at some of the world’s top courses, or challenge your golf buddies to a game. On this particular beautiful island day, a group of eight enthusiastic young ladies are enjoying the VIP bay to celebrate a unique and memorable bachelorette party. At Palmetto Dunes’ Robert Trent Jones practice facility, the main focus remains meeting the needs of golfers on the tee sheet to warm up before their round. Toptracer can be activated when golfers opt in and pay the additional fee for the bay rental and use of the technology to track their practice, play virtual courses or play games with others. “There was no covered driving range on Hilton Head Island,” says
Brad Marra, Chief Operating Officer for Palmetto Dunes Oceanfront Resort. “We thought this new Toptracer Range would be the perfect fit for Palmetto Dunes, with the demographic of golfers and the number of golf courses that we have here. We always try to look forward. We’re very innovative in everything that we do here. We had the island’s first air-conditioned golf carts and the Segway carts, a golf app; we have GPS on our golf carts. This is just another thing we wanted to bring to the table to separate ourselves from our competition here on Hilton Head Island.” With Toptracer Range, guests can compete against friends, play virtual courses and receive instant shot feedback on interactive game