Updated November 2026. The DeepSwing launch monitor is live on iPhone in the App Store. The Android version follows as an update.
A home golf simulator used to start with a launch monitor that cost more than a used car. In 2026 it can start with the iPhone in your pocket. Put it on a tripod next to the ball, hit into a net or an impact screen, and the shot flies on an iPad, a TV or a projector a second later.
This guide covers what you actually need: how much room, how much light, which screen, what it costs at three budgets, and where a phone-based simulator reaches its limits. The setup steps use the DeepSwing launch monitor (5 free shots every week), but the space, safety and light advice applies to any home simulator.
What you need
- An iPhone that films 240 fps, and a tripod that reaches 1.5 meters (5 feet).
- A hitting mat. Grass outdoors works too.
- Something to stop the ball: a net, or an impact screen inside an enclosure if you want to project onto it. Golf net specialists like The Net Return and enclosure makers like Carl's Place sell both.
- A screen for the picture: an iPad, a Mac, a TV or a projector. The iPhone's own screen works for a start.
- Light. Much more than you think.
- Optional: a PC with GSPro if you want its course library.
How much space you need
Space decides more than budget. Measure before you buy anything.
Ceiling height
Take your driver, stand at address in socks and make a slow full swing. If the club touches the ceiling, so will your real swing. Most golfers of average height need about 2.7 meters (9 feet) to swing a driver freely, taller golfers or steep swings 3 meters (10 feet) or more. If your ceiling is lower, you can still hit irons and wedges.
Width
You need room to swing plus room for the camera. With a camera launch monitor like DeepSwing's, the iPhone stands opposite you, on the far side of the ball, about 1.5 meters (5 feet) away from it, so your follow-through cannot reach it. Count your stance and swing on one side of the ball and the tripod on the other: about 4 meters (13 feet) of width is comfortable for a right-hander or a left-hander. If both should play, center the hitting area so either side has room.
Depth
From the ball to the net or screen, leave at least 2.5 to 3 meters (8 to 10 feet). Closer than that, balls bounce back hard, and the screen moves so much that it wears quickly. Behind you, leave enough room for a full backswing, about 1.5 meters (5 feet). Total depth: about 4.5 to 5 meters (15 to 16 feet) for a projector setup, less for a simple net.
Light: the part most people get wrong
A camera launch monitor films at 240 frames per second with a very short exposure so the ball stays sharp. That needs a lot of light. Outdoors in daylight there is plenty. In a garage with one ceiling bulb there is not, and the app will tell you it is too dark or miss shots.
- Light the ball and the mat, not the room. Two bright LED floodlights aimed at the hitting area from the front and the side work better than ceiling lights.
- Avoid hard shadows over the ball, including your own at address.
- Pick flicker-free LEDs. Cheap LEDs pulse with the mains frequency, which a 240 fps camera can see as brightness flicker between frames.
- A projector setup wants the room dark around the screen and bright at the ball. Keep the floodlights low and pointed away from the screen.
The screen
The iPhone measures. Something bigger should show the shot.
- iPad. The simplest upgrade. Open the launch monitor on the iPad and it finds the iPhone by itself. The iPad then shows the range, the course and every number, and the iPhone only measures, which also saves its battery.
- Mac. Works the same way, and drags onto a projector or a large monitor in full screen.
- TV. Via AirPlay or an HDMI cable from the iPad. A 65 inch TV behind a net is a perfectly good simulator screen.
- Projector. The full simulator look on an impact screen. A short-throw projector mounted above or in front of the hitting area avoids casting your shadow on the screen. DeepSwing has a projector view that fills the picture with the range and puts the numbers along the edge.
- Google TV. With the Android version of DeepSwing (coming as an update), an Android phone sends the range straight to a Google TV, including projectors that run Google TV. No iPad or PC in between.
What it costs: three budgets
Prices are rough US figures for October 2026 and vary a lot by brand and country. They assume you already own the iPhone.
Budget 1: net and iPad, under $500
Tripod ($20 to $40), a practice net ($100 to $250), a basic hitting mat ($100 to $200; premium mats from makers like Fiberbuilt cost more) and two LED floodlights ($50 to $100). Use an iPad or a TV you already have. Fits in a garage, a basement or the garden. This is a real simulator in the sense that every shot flies on a range or a course with its measured numbers. It just does not look like one.
Budget 2: impact screen and projector, $1,500 to $3,000
An enclosure with an impact screen ($500 to $1,500), a better mat ($200 to $500), a short-throw projector ($600 to $1,500) and proper lighting. This is the setup that looks like the bays in a golf store, run by the phone and an iPad or a Mac.
Budget 3: add GSPro
GSPro is PC simulator software with thousands of community-built courses. It costs about $250 a year as of 2026, and it needs a Windows PC with a capable graphics card. DeepSwing sends every shot to GSPro like any other launch monitor, so you can use both: DeepSwing's own range and courses for practice, GSPro for a round at a course you know.
For comparison: a radar or photometric launch monitor alone costs from about $500 for a Garmin Approach R10 to several thousand dollars for a Foresight unit, before screen and enclosure. That is the money you save, and the trade-off is that spin is estimated instead of measured.
Start with Budget 1: get the DeepSwing launch monitor from the App Store now. On Android, start with Google Play; the launch monitor follows as an update. Your first job: film five swings into your net with 1 Swing and check that your swing still looks like your range swing indoors. The yearly Pro plan starts with a 7-day free trial.
Setting up the launch monitor in your room
- Place the ball where you will always hit from. Mark the spot on the mat.
- Put the tripod opposite you, on the far side of the ball, about 1.5 meters (5 feet) away. Mount the iPhone sideways, 1 to 1.5 meters (3 to 5 feet) high, tilted down so the ball sits in the marked zone on the screen.
- Measure the lens height above the mat and enter it. One centimeter off is about one percent of ball speed, so use a tape measure, not a guess.
- Lay a club on the mat pointing at the center of your screen and turn the tripod until the yellow line runs along it. That is your target line.
- Wait for the checklist to turn green (phone level, ball found, ball still), then hit. The next ball is found by itself.
- Pair the iPad, Mac or TV, choose a range, a course or a game, and play.
Once the tripod is set, leave it. Moving it means aligning again. A strip of tape on the floor around the tripod feet makes the next session a one-minute setup.
What you can play
DeepSwing's launch monitor comes with its own simulator, no extra software needed. (Other launch monitors usually pair with separate simulator apps such as Awesome Golf or GSPro.)
- A 3D driving range with target rings and greens, and views from the tee, following the ball or from above.
- Full 18-hole courses with seasons and weather, in six worlds: the range, an autumn forest, links, storm, night and canyon.
- Range games such as closest to the pin, longest drive, target practice and the robot mower hunt, plus daily challenges.
- Up to four players at home, or a round against the computer, in stroke play, match play or Stableford.
- Putting on greens with real slopes.
- Session stats per club with averages, dispersion and a PDF report, so practice nights also tell you your real yardages.
With a second iPhone or an iPad as a swing camera, every shot also gets a full swing analysis, so the simulator doubles as a lesson. The launch monitor film shows the whole setup in action.
Safety
- Check the ceiling with a slow driver swing before the first real one.
- Side nets or baffles stop the shank that goes sideways. In a garage, protect the car and the windows.
- Keep 2.5 meters or more to the screen, and use a screen made for golf impact, not a bed sheet.
- Nobody stands on the far side of the ball except the tripod.
- Use real golf balls, and only with a net and screen rated for them. Foam and practice balls fly differently from real balls, so their numbers mean nothing.
Where a phone simulator reaches its limits
Spin is estimated from club, speed and launch, so a shot you hit with too much spin flies like an average shot with that club. Very dim rooms do not work. And you need to set up the tripod carefully once. If you want measured spin for club fitting or play in a dark basement without lights, a photometric launch monitor is the better base. We compare the two in launch monitor app vs real launch monitor.
For everything else (practice nights, a winter league with friends, knowing your 7-iron carry) a phone, a net and a screen get you most of the way for a fraction of the price.
Ready to build it? Get the launch monitor, then use the first evening for one thing only: ten shots with each of three clubs, and write down the average carry. That list is worth more on the course than any new club.
FAQ
How much space do I need for a home golf simulator?
About 2.7 to 3 meters (9 to 10 feet) of ceiling height for a driver, 4 meters (13 feet) of width with a camera launch monitor beside the ball, and 4.5 to 5 meters (15 to 16 feet) of depth for a projector setup. A simple net needs less depth.
How much does a home golf simulator cost?
With an iPhone as the launch monitor, a net, a mat and a screen you already own, under $500. With an impact screen, enclosure and projector, about $1,500 to $3,000. Dedicated launch monitors add $500 to several thousand dollars on top.
Can I use my TV as a golf simulator screen?
Yes. Put the TV behind a net (never where a ball can reach it) and show the range from an iPad via AirPlay or HDMI. With an Android phone and DeepSwing's Android version, a Google TV shows it directly.
Do I need a PC for a golf simulator?
Not with DeepSwing: the range, courses and games run on the iPhone, iPad, Mac or Google TV. You only need a PC for PC software like GSPro.
Does a phone launch monitor work in a garage?
Yes, if the garage is well lit. Add two bright, flicker-free LED floodlights aimed at the ball. A single ceiling bulb is not enough for 240 fps.