The thrill of thwacking a golf ball into the horizon never fades.

Even when it’s virtual.

On a snowy, frostbit March afternoon, amateur golfer Brandon Medeiros stands on artificial grass in a pod at Tribe Golf, a new indoor golf lounge tucked into a strip mall off Garden of the Gods Road. PGA golf professional and longtime coach Leighton Smith stands nearby, ready to check out Medeiros’ stats on TrackMan, a high-tech golf simulator that also offers virtual putt putt, family games and the ability to play courses around the world.

Medeiros takes a bunch of swings, sending his ball into a screen that blunts the ball’s trajectory and deposits it gently on the ground, then looks to Smith for feedback. The hourlong session is meant to tune up his game before he spends the summer competing in tournaments. Membership at the lounge might be next for the competitor. That way he can come in whenever he wants and use the technology to practice.

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“I don’t want to lose what I worked on today,” Medeiros said.

Smith spied an opportunity in Colorado Springs’ bursting golf market. With only two city-owned golf courses open to the public, and five or six country clubs or golf courses with long membership waitlists and top dollar fees, the time was ripe to open an indoor golf lounge. The pandemic also turned into a ripe time for golf due to its outside nature. New golfers entered the sport in droves over the last two years, Smith said.

The new business, with its four TrackMan simulators, cozy couches and a bar, opened Feb. 1, and is already home to a weekly league night, private parties, corporate events and wine and whiskey tastings.

“I wanted a laid-back golf environment,” Smith said. “Golf has a lot of stereotypes, like it can be stuck up, but I wanted a smaller place where people can rely on the technology or get really good coaching and hang out. If you want to pursue golf and your goals and dreams, pursue it. If you want to hang out and play with some new people, this is the spot, too.”

Gary Venable, his wife and two daughters have taken lessons from Smith for years, and now visit Tribe Golf. Venable is pumped about the way Smith has coached his kids, who both now play high school varsity golf.

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“It’s definitely unique for our community and something we’ve been lacking,” Venable said. “Golf is more than just a game. Where else can you spend four hours with teenage daughters and they want to spend it with you? For them, Smith is more than just a golf instructor. He’s someone they can talk to, and somebody that guides them as well.”

Swing for it

Smith came late to the game of golf. After a neighbor took him out for nine holes in high school, he quickly dropped football and lacrosse in his junior year to join the Air Academy High School team. After graduation, he went through the PGA Golf Management program at University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, and left a PGA professional. But he didn’t dream of becoming the next Tiger Woods or running a golf course. He wanted to teach.

“It’s important to do what you love,” Smith said. “My passion is on the side of using golf to build people’s confidence to help them achieve goals. Being outside, working on people’s games with cool technology — that’s where I want to be, versus competing or running a golf course.”

After college he took a job at a golf academy in South Carolina, where he worked as a coach under Hank Haney, Woods’ coach at the time.

“What he taught me was how to gain confidence from a client or from a student,” Smith said. “That and managing competitive players.”

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Smith moved back to the Springs to help start a chapter of First Tee, a nonprofit that helps kids learn life skills through golf. Five years later, he started his own business, Leighton Smith Golf, to teach competitive players. He still runs that business alongside the new golf lounge, and was awarded the Colorado PGA’s Player Development Award in 2017, and named last year’s Colorado PGA Teacher of the Year.

“Golf is a thing where it’s only up to you,” he said. “The Tribe vibe — if you want to compete all over the world and win, perfect, we have the coaching and facilities. If you just want to sip wine and learn about golf or bring girlfriends in and learn about golf, perfect, this is for you. I want people to say that was the highlight of my week after they leave.”

Contact the writer: 719-636-0270