From golf instructor to sales
David Cardew lives in Hamburg, is in his early thirties and has run German sales at TrackMan for six years. Before that he worked as a golf instructor and is a fully qualified PGA Professional. He did not choose the sport, the sport chose him. His mother still plays off a handicap of 4 in her sixties, his father was similarly passionate and coached him as a child. Through the squad structures, back then in the Hesse squad, he became Hesse champion at 16. He grew up in a full house, besides a biological brother, foster children regularly joined, on average there were five of them.
He describes the switch from pro to TrackMan rep matter-of-factly. As an instructor he was always the product himself; in sales he has a concrete device that his former colleagues buy. Those very instructors are now a large part of his customers, alongside golf clubs and many amateurs.
What is TrackMan?
TrackMan is a Danish family business based in Copenhagen, founded in 2003. The company measures sports balls, mainly in golf and baseball, but also football, American football and tennis. In golf, Cardew is the contact across Europe. The core device is a striking orange and about the size of a laptop. You place it roughly two and a half metres behind the ball, the player hits with their own club and ball, without stickers or sensors. The system measures the flight completely and delivers values such as launch angle, ball speed, spin and the smash factor.
This data goes directly to the player to improve technique. The device is sold to instructors for lessons, to amateurs for home use and to golf clubs as a member service. The current model is the TrackMan 4. Even though the housing has looked the same for years, the software has advanced so much in that time that a device today does far more than one from four years ago.
How the technology works
One elegant property of the system explains much of what is possible beyond it. TrackMan does not need to track the ball over the full distance. The first few metres after impact contain enough physical information to extrapolate the entire flight precisely. That is why you can hit into a screen or a net in a small room too: the system measures the initial phase, the net catches the ball, and the software delivers the result as if the shot had landed on a fairway. Indoor simulators work on exactly this basis, letting you play famous courses such as Pebble Beach or St Andrews without leaving the room. And the fact that the housing stays the same for years while the software grows means that, for owners, hardware bought once gets noticeably better through updates.
From practice device to a driving-range business model
Alongside the single device, TrackMan offers a second product, the TrackMan Range. It is operated by the club itself and supplies every bay with data. Each player gets their shot values on a phone, iPad or a large screen. This lets you rethink the range entirely: classic technique training becomes a competition. Two bays compete in a nearest-to-pin, a whole group plays a virtual 18 holes at St Andrews, the club runs course-permission tests, tournaments or corporate events on its own range. Cardew states the ambition clearly: it is about the entertainment factor, no longer just warming up.
Indoor golf simulator: the living room as Pebble Beach
About half of the devices sold end up in private homes, often in dedicated simulator rooms. Alongside that, a scene of indoor golf centres is growing. In almost every major German city there are now two or three such venues, in Berlin alone four, plus some in Munich, Hamburg, Nuremberg or Gelsenkirchen. It is no longer just pioneers; franchise concepts and larger investors are entering too, because a viable model can develop from the year-round indoor business. Anyone with a simulator can play more than a hundred world-famous courses, from Pebble Beach to St Andrews.
What golf facilities take away from this
- TrackMan makes the driving range measurable, entertaining and thus easier to monetise
- With the TrackMan Range, the warm-up area turns into competitions, events and tournaments
- An indoor simulator extends the season and keeps members in the clubhouse in winter too
- New membership models combining outdoor and indoor blend sport and experience
- Data and AI will become a fixed part of the playing experience in the medium term
Online against the world: virtual golf
Playing against other people without leaving the house has long existed, just not yet in real time for golf. In cycling, Zwift and Peloton run; in motorsport, virtual racing has established itself. In golf, Cardew thinks it is inevitable, but the sport cannot be compared to a Wii, because the skills that decide success outdoors also count in the simulator. Anyone who has to hit 250 metres straight, pitch cleanly and putt reliably does not win on thumb dexterity. Live play against others is not yet possible, but in the works. Striking during the Covid year was the BMW Indoor Invitational, where pros such as Bernd Wiesberger and Martin Kaymer competed live from their simulators with the audience online.
Outdoor golf has barely changed in 30 years and will hardly change. Indoor will look completely different in the next 20 years.
Covid as an accelerator
At first the crisis hit TrackMan too, especially the baseball business with its strong TV ties. In golf the opposite then developed. Worldwide the sport saw around twenty percent more growth than in previous years; many amateurs put a TrackMan in the living room for the closed period, some simply set up a net in the garden. From this situation the online area grew strongly, and the link between tour pros, teaching pros and amateurs was deliberately expanded. What began as a stopgap gave the indoor segment a boost that will probably remain after the pandemic too, because many have come to value the advantages of playing at home.
Who works at TrackMan
TrackMan employs around 450 people, all in Denmark. About half work in sales, the other half in development. For a tech company that is very development-heavy, because the product is constantly being advanced. In Germany five employees work exclusively for TrackMan, with sales running directly, without distributors. For job seekers: good software people are needed constantly and sit in Copenhagen, where there are also internships, working-student roles and study options. Sales and marketing are distributed locally across the markets, from Spain through France to the UK.
What comes next: handicap, tournaments, AI
With drone surveys, TrackMan can offer any golf course worldwide as a simulation. Members can play their home course in winter too, which significantly increases loyalty. A dedicated handicap system is also planned, based on the World Handicap System. Add to that online tournaments and, in the medium term, live play where you compete against someone in another city and see their shots in your own simulator. Leaderboards, team formats, dedicated majors and, in perspective, prize money belong in this picture.
A track of its own is artificial intelligence. Cardew sketches software that, after a round, evaluates that someone hit five shots to the right and recommends suitable drills. During play, too, the system could give tips on how best to approach a hole. The company is working on such modules.
AR and VR: not yet in series
TrackMan is also testing augmented and virtual reality, but a series rollout is not yet on the cards. Cardew assumes it will come, and at the same time stresses that the industry clearly leads technologically in tracking. When someone opens up the topic, TrackMan will be right at the front.
How indoor tackles the four golf problems
The overall picture gets interesting when you soberly sort the hurdles of golf. The USGA names four central points: time, difficulty, compatibility with family, and cost. Indoor golf addresses all four at once. A round takes less time, it is more accessible thanks to the digital evaluation, it fits better into everyday and family life, and it is cheaper both to operate and to play. Add combined outdoor-and-indoor memberships, and the ability to play any course in the world rather than just your own.
Conclusion
TrackMan is a prime example of a golf sport becoming more digital, more measurable and more entertaining, without losing its roots in nature. For golf facilities there is a double opportunity in this: additional income from driving range and indoor offerings, and a much lower barrier for new target groups who long had little to do with the classic image of the sport.
