If you’re searching for a Portsmouth driving range to improve your golf game, you’re spoilt for choice. From traditional outdoor ranges to high-tech indoor golf simulators, there’s something for every type of golfer. But which option gives you the best return on your time and money?
In this article, we’ll compare the outdoor driving range experience with the indoor golf simulator experience at Par Society, Portsmouth’s premier indoor golf venue. We’ll break down the benefits, limitations, and why more local golfers are choosing indoor tech-powered practice over the traditional buckets-of-balls approach.
What Makes a Great Driving Range?
Let’s start by setting a baseline: a great driving range should do more than just give you a mat and a bucket of balls. Whether indoor or outdoor, the best facilities help you:
- Improve your swing consistency
- Get actionable data about your performance
- Practice in comfort year-round
- Make the most of limited time
In Portsmouth, you have a few outdoor options (which we’ll cover shortly), but the indoor option at Par Society delivers on all of these — with a few extras thrown in.
Traditional Outdoor Driving Ranges in Portsmouth
When most people think of a driving range, they picture a long row of bays overlooking a grassy field. You buy a token, grab a bucket, and start swinging. Portsmouth offers a few decent outdoor ranges that deliver this classic experience.
Pros of Outdoor Ranges
- Real ball flight: You can watch your ball fly naturally, which feels satisfying — especially on well-struck shots.
- Open air: You’re outdoors, which for some people feels more “real” and refreshing.
- Variety of lies: Uneven turf (depending on the range) can sometimes simulate real-course lies.
Limitations of Outdoor Ranges
However, outdoor ranges in Portsmouth (and across the UK) come with a few challenges:
- Weather-dependent: Rain, wind, or cold can cut your session short — or make it miserable.
- No feedback: Most ranges don’t provide ball data, club metrics, or shot dispersion patterns.
- Repetitive practice: Without targets, structured games, or data, sessions often lack focus.
If you’re just looking to hit a few balls for stress relief, outdoor ranges work fine. But if you’re trying to lower your handicap, break 90, or tighten your dispersion, you need more than a bucket of balls.
Enter Par Society: Portsmouth’s Indoor Golf Experience
Par Society is an indoor golf simulator venue in Portsmouth offering a far more advanced — and weather-proof — approach to practice. Powered by industry-leading GSPro software and elite-level ProTee VX and Uneekor Eye Mini Lite launch monitors, this isn’t just screen golf. It’s your new golf lab.
What You Get at Par Society:
- Data-rich feedback: Ball speed, club path, face angle, smash factor, launch angle, spin rate, carry distance, and more.
- Play or practice: Choose to grind on the virtual range or play iconic courses like Pebble Beach, TPC Sawgrass, or Augusta.
- Year-round sessions: No more checking the forecast — every bay is open rain or shine.
- Private bays: Practice solo, bring a coach, or play with friends — up to 4 per bay.
- Skill-focused games: Improve shot shapes, target control, or distance consistency using interactive challenges.
Whether you’re a beginner looking to build confidence or a single-digit handicap chasing marginal gains, Par Society turns every session into structured improvement.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Outdoor Driving Range | Par Society Indoor Golf |
|---|---|---|
| Ball Flight | Real but untracked | Simulated, fully measured |
| Shot Data | None | Full metrics from club and ball |
| Weather Impact | High (rain, wind, cold) | None — year-round comfort |
| Course Play | No | Yes — play hundreds of courses |
| Coaching Friendly | Varies | Ideal for lessons, on-screen feedback |
| Group Friendly | Often limited | Yes — up to 4 players per bay |
| Pricing | £6–£10 per bucket | From £15/hour (per bay, not per person) |
| Session Quality | Hit & hope | Structured improvement |
Who Should Use a Traditional Range?
Let’s be fair — outdoor driving ranges still have a place:
- If you’re a total beginner, hitting outdoors helps you get the feel of ball contact.
- If you’re working on rhythm without overthinking mechanics, sometimes fresh air and repetition is what you need.
- If you just want a casual session, the open-air environment might be more social.
But the moment you want to understand why your ball went left, how far it carried, or what your club path was, you’re guessing in the dark.
Why More Portsmouth Golfers Are Choosing Indoor Practice
Golf is hard. So why make it harder by practicing blind?
Indoor golf with launch monitor feedback is no longer just for tour players. With affordable hourly rates, split between friends or used solo, it’s become the smart option for regular improvement — especially during the UK’s endless winter months.
At Par Society, every session helps you:
- Track progress over time
- Work on weaknesses with measurable data
- Stay engaged with game-based training
- Make better equipment decisions
- Actually enjoy practice again
And let’s not ignore the convenience: book online, turn up, indoor bay, play your way.
Real Talk: Cost vs. Value
Let’s break down the numbers.
An outdoor range session might cost £8–10 for 50–75 balls. For a solid session, most golfers buy 2 buckets — that’s £16–£20.
Par Society’s indoor bays start from £15/hour — and that’s for the entire bay!
When you consider the feedback, comfort, tech, and flexibility, it’s not even close. The value per pound at Par Society is far higher.
Final Verdict: Indoor or Outdoor?
If you’re after casual vibes and fresh air, Portsmouth’s outdoor driving ranges are still a solid option.
But if you’re serious about improving your game, want reliable practice all year round, or just fancy playing Augusta with your mates after work — Par Society is where Portsmouth golfers are heading next.