The Haggin Oaks Golf Complex Driving Range, which already has 100 hitting stalls with raised target greens and lights for evening use, is taking on a new look.
Workers are installing Toptracer Range – which “offers an interactive and social experience that is perfect for all levels,” according to its website, topgolfentertainmentgroup.com – in 52 of the facility’s hitting bays.
Toptracer Range provides golfers with data and information that track the height and trajectory of your ball flight, the distance that the ball travels, ball speed, and clubhead speed.
The instantaneous feedback can be seen directly on a screen at the hitting station.
“It’s going to open up a whole new world for every type of golfer,” said Justin Isaacks, the driving range manager at Haggin Oaks, a 36-hole complex that features the Alister MacKenzie Golf Course, Arcade Creek Course, Haggin Oaks Academy Holes, MacKenzie Putting Course, Player Performance Studio and Super Shop. “There’s something for everybody with the technology.”
Welcome to the “Haggin Oaks Driving Range powered by Toptracer.”
Haggin Oaks – voted one of 2019’s Top 50: Open to the Public Golf Ranges by Golf Range Magazine – is aiming for a June 1 starting date for Toptracer Range, said Joel Cardenas, Marketing & CRM Manager, Morton Golf, LLC.
According to its website, www.hagginoaks.com, “Recent additions to the Haggin Oaks Golf Complex Driving Range include Toptracer Range technology, allowing golfers to track every shot and receive instant feedback through the touch screen monitor and Toptracer App.”
With a background in the restaurant business, Isaacks is not only overseeing driving range operations and Toptracer, but also an area near the range that features a full-service bar, with customers being able to order food from The Hangout at Haggin Oaks, as well as beverage items for their hitting stalls.
The Hangout at Haggin Oaks is a food truck, located at the entrance of the Haggin Oaks Driving Range, that “features an entirely new and exciting menu of gourmet hamburgers and hot dogs, sandwiches, street tacos, appetizers, drinks and more,” according to www.hagginoaks.com.
The website added: “The Hangout is the perfect spot in the heart of Sacramento to sit back and relax with friends and golfing buddies, grab a few drinks and share some delectable dishes.”
The hours at the driving range have been extended to midnight.
“You see golfers from all walks of life,” said Isaacks, who started at Haggin Oaks on Feb. 22. “It’s really exciting, with a lot of energy there. The unique thing about our range, too, is that we also have the food truck and the extra seating areas. We’ve added a full-service bar, Thursday through Sunday, out there to improve our food and beverage program. You can order food and beverages. Coming from the food and beverage side of things, it’s really exciting, with more of a full-service experience out there.”
Isaacks, who is originally from Grass Valley, added: “It’s really an exciting time to be out there. I feel like it’s going to just change the whole face of the driving range area.”
The installation of Toptracer Range is continuing with construction of the project, said Isaacks.
Behind each player in the hitting stall are camera towers, rising over 15 feet in height.
“They pick up and track the balls that are being hit in the air through the camera, and the camera sends the data back to the screen. Each hitting bay has a screen at it, that the player will be able to select their different game modes on. And once they’re in their selected mode, when you hit a shot, the camera will give you instant feedback on the screen,” Isaacks explained.
Toptracer Range is a product designed for driving ranges.
Toptracer Range will also feature multiple targets that will be set up out on the range. There are different modes that are offered. According to its website, www.toptracer.com:
“For golfers, Toptracer Range is the ultimate practice tool, taking the guesswork out of range sessions by offering an engaging, data-driven experience that appeals to everyone.
“For driving range operators, Toptracer Range is transforming their whole business, attracting new guests, retaining current members, and boosting revenue streams across their entire facility.
“And for the game of golf, Toptracer Range is revolutionizing the industry by making technology once considered exclusive to the pros accessible — and enjoyable — to all.” Additionally, the Toptracer Range app “is where the magic happens,” according to www.toptracer.com. “When guests create a profile, they instantly become part of a global golf community. The app stores data from practice sessions so players can monitor changes and fine-tune their swing over time. For users at Toptracer Range Mobile-enabled facilities, the app is also where they can access skill-based games that will drive their range session.”
One of the modes, “My Practice,” can be used as a practice tool, as it tracks each club and stores statistics, said Isaacks.
“If you use the Toptracer app, and you create an account, every time you log in and go to the range, it will track every practice session,” said Isaacks. “It will save all that data for you.”
There is a “Warm-up Mode.” It gives the golfer information such as their ball flight, ball speed, and carry distance.
Toptracer also features game modes, such as closest-to-the-pin and long drive. There is a virtual golf mode, allowing golfers to play a specific course.
“You can play different types of games with Toptracer,” said Isaacks.
According to topgolfentertainmentgroup.com: “With real-time data, players can compete in a variety of games, improve their skills or simply be introduced to the game of golf.”
Isaacks has been able to talk with players on the range at Haggin Oaks about Toptracer and what it offers.
“With the pandemic and everything, we’ve seen such an uptick in business and people picking up the game, people coming back to the game,” said Isaacks. “With golf being one of the only things that remained open during the pandemic, people kind of gravitated towards that. We’ve seen a lot more people – new golfers.
“We see the Toptracer technology as being something that’s even going to excite them more. The established golfers are going to just love it because they’re going to be able to get all that feedback. It’s something that’s really exciting.
“Even for the instructors who have their spots on the range, it’s going to be another tool for them to be able to use.”
Justin Isaacks is the driving range manager at Haggin Oak.
Isaacks, 37, joined Morton Golf when he went to work at Bartley Cavanaugh Golf Course as a starter last year.
“I’m very, very honored to be a part of the team,” he said. “Everybody on the team has just been really great and they’re supporting me 100 percent. It’s a full team effort.”
Isaacks graduated from Nevada Union High School in Grass Valley in 2002. He attended Sonoma State in Rohnert Park and Sierra College in Rocklin.
He has worked in the food and beverage business, in restaurants, over the years.
* Marty James is a freelance writer who makes his home in Napa. He retired on June 4, 2019, after spending 40 years as a sports writer, sports editor, and executive sports editor for the Napa Valley Register, a daily newspaper in Napa County. He is a 1979 graduate of Sacramento State and a member of the California Golf Writers & Broadcasters Association. He was inducted into the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Hall of Fame in 2016.
