Toptracer driving range, restaurant opens at Wildcat Creek Golf Course
Feb. 20—A new Topgolf style driving range and bar and restaurant is now open.
GolfUp 31 and the adjoining restaurant Roarry's at Wildcat Creek Golf Course is Kokomo's newest entertainment and dining venue. The two opened last week.
The business, located at 3200 Timber Valley Drive adjacent to the golf course's traditional driving range, offers 12 semi-indoor heated bays, Toptracer technology and a standard American fare restaurant and full bar.
It brings a Topgolf style entertainment to Kokomo and is the first of its kind for the city.
That fact is what golf course owner Neal Johnson hopes will make GolfUp 31 a popular destination for Howard County residents, who would otherwise have to drive to a big city for a similar experience.
Roarry's offers burgers and other sandwiches, such as a BLT and tenderloin, and a full bar with beer, spirits and hard seltzers.
GolfUp 31 has 12 heated bays, plenty of outdoor seating and will eventually feature a private group room with its own bar that can be rented out.
While the two are adjoined, one can go to one and not the other, though the idea is you'll hopefully want both.
"Some people come to golf, but then end up wanting some food or vice versa where some come for a great atmosphere and high quality food when all of a sudden they see people (at GolfUp 31) and want to go hit for a little," Shawn Sinkula, general manager, said.
Toptracer is the same technology used by Topgolf and includes several mini games, such as longest drive and closest to the pin, that can be enjoyed by those who've never golfed before as well as diehards.
Users can also play virtual golf on iconic courses such as Pebble Beach, St. Andrews and Torrey Pines.
In addition to the games, the bays can be used by golfers as a more traditional driving range but one with the tracking and logging capabilities of Toptracer through the company's mobile app.
For example, golfers can track how far and high they hit with a certain club. That information is stored on one's Toptracer profile and then can be used on an actual golf course to help one decide what club to use in certain situations.
Bay reservations are $40 an hour for up to six people. Currently, bays are first come, first serve, but an online reservation system is in the works. One can bring their own clubs or clubs can be borrowed.
The idea for GolfUp 31 has been a few years in the making but wasn't a serious endeavor until May of last year when Johnson received approval from the Kokomo Plan Commission to build the 8,400 square feet one-story building.
Like most Midwestern golf courses, generating revenue in the colder, winter months is a challenge and an increasing necessity for public golf courses to stay in business.
GolfUp 31 offers a separate reason for casual or non-golfers to visit the course, bringing new customers to the business.
"Society is more interested in entertainment and the experience than anything else, and that's what we want to provide," Johnson said. "This takes the idea of golf and makes it fun for more people."
Tyler Juranovich can be reached at 765-454-8577, by email at tyler.juranovich@kokomotribune.com or on Twitter at @tylerjuranovich.
