What Is the Best Place to Mount a Golf Simulator Projector?

If you are thinking about turning a spare bedroom or your basement into Torrey Pines or Augusta National, then you will need a projector for your impact screen that is mounted in a safe place – but creates an immersive experience for indoor golf.   One of the most challenging questions is where to mount your projector so that it can:

• Be protected from being hit by a golf club or golf ball
• Fills up the entire screen whether it is large or small
• Avoids players and bystanders casting shadows on the screen

There are now four different ways to set up a golf simulator projector, each with its advantages and disadvantages.  Over the years, our customer team has answered dozens of questions on this topic, and learned what can go wrong. We hope that this article will help you evaluate which would be the best projector mounting location for your specific setup and sidestep any Titanic-level mishaps. Let’s look at the four places to mount a projector.

• Ceiling Mount
• Floor Mounted Enclosure
• Cart Mounted Projectors
• Tripod Mounted Projectors

The most popular place (and easiest) to mount a golf simulation projector is on the ceiling. This creates a truly immersive experience just like in a commercial golf simulator where there is nothing between you and the screen. For most home setups, it also makes it easy for your hitting area to be used as a home entertainment area to watch golf, movies, or let your kids play X-Box on an oversized screen compared to a TV or regular home theater screen.

The best projectors for ceiling mounts in the home are short throw projectors, which can be mounted above and behind the hitting area without the risk of a golfer casting a shadow on the screen. You can use the BenQ Golf Sim planning tool, where you can input the dimensions of your room, size and aspect ratio of your impact screen, and what type of launch monitor you plan to use. The tool will generate a 360-degree view of your simulator including how far back the projector needs to be, and whether there is a risk of a shadow on the screen. Here is an example using an BenQ AH700ST projector with a 6’ 6” tall golfer in a small space with the hitting area around 8.5 feet back from the screen.  

Since most people have never mounted a projector before, there are some handy DYI videos available for those who want to do it themselves. This video can walk you through all the steps needed, including handy tips for how to ensure your projector is correctly centered when mounting your golf simulator on the ceiling. In addition, the new BenQ AH700ST projector has AutoEverything technology that has integrated cameras that will set up and configure itself to your specific impact screen that makes setup a breeze. Here’s an online review of how this works and what the image looks like on a large screen using different golf simulator software.

The third most popular way to set up a golf simulator is to put it inside a special floor mounted enclosure on the floor in front of the hitting area. This type of setup requires a projector with an even shorter throw ratio and the ability to be able to properly fill a large 150”-200” diagonal impact screen without losing focus. Floor mounts are used most often if you have a very high ceiling or if you want a portable or temporary simulator that you can remove when you’re done playing, such as in a garage. 

The first drawback of a floor mount is that the whole setup is typically in front of the golfer. So besides being visually distracting, there’s a risk hitting it with you’re a worm burner drives and knocking it out of alignment. The other drawback is that the setup is much more involved than a ceiling mounted projector. You will need a 0.5 throw ratio projector like the BenQ AH500ST, and all of these types of projectors need more correction and fine tuning of the image on the screen than in a ceiling mount.  We’ve written a nice guide on exactly how to set up a projector using the floor mount if you want to take a closer look at this option.  The most popular models for this type of setup are the $1899 BenQ AH500ST laser projector, (online review here) which adapts to any standard impact screen aspect ratio (including 1:1), and the $600 BenQ MX825ST that has a native XGA resolution that matches well for smaller 4:3 aspect ratio impact screens.

 If you don’t want to install a mount on the ceiling, you can use an AV cart to place the projector to the side of the hitting area.   This is a popular approach with “Sim-in-a-Box” packages since it doesn’t require any mounting.  You simply place the cart behind and beside the hitting area, then use either a short throw projector like the BenQ AH700ST or LU935ST, or a less expensive model such as the $1699 BenQ LU710 if you have room to place the cart further back. 

The biggest problem with carts is that they have the highest risk of creating a shadow, especially if you have both right- and left-handed golfers hitting from both sides of the playing area.  You can also get alignment issues if the cart is accidentally bumped or moved.

A newest method for mounting projectors is the tripod mount, which is available here. This allows you to mount the projector in an elevated position without the permanence of a ceiling mount. This is a great option for garages or anywhere you want temporary mounting, or ceiling mounting isn't feasible.  It extends to over nine feet high, so you want to keep it safe from being knocked over by your neighbors rambunctious Bumpus hounds.

Unlike a TV – you can set up a golf simulator in a variety of aspect ratios. For small spaces, you might want to use a more narrow 1:1 setup that is ideal for a narrow garage or basement, or go a bit wider with a 4:3 or 16:10 setup which allows more width for the same height of your impact screen.   If you want a narrower display like this, look for a projector with a Screen Fill function can enable you to change the aspect ratio of your projector with a simple press on the remote – without having to fiddle with your computer’s graphics card.  The other handy tool is lens shift. This enables you to move the projector side to side without tilting the projector. Most of the BenQ golf sim models come with digital lens shift, and the higher end models have optical lens shift as well. If you can use the golf simulation planning tool to optimize your mounting locations, these tools, as well as corner fit – can make mounting your projector yourself a lot easier.

BenQ has trained staff to help you find the perfect golf simulator projector – within your room size and budget. To help you make the best decision, you can reach out to one of our experts to set up anything from a chat to a complete online demo, to help you find the right projector for your needs.