Location » Alexandria
Phone » 703-924-2600
Fees » Weekend: $6 per game (20 balls); Weekday: $4.80 per game. Much less expensive when purchased in bulk.
Uniqueness » 5
Food/Drink » 4
Facilities » 5
Value » 3
* Out of a possible five golf balls
Description » A one-of-a-kind, double-decker, all-weather, target driving range with scoring competitions, rock music, and food and drink. Facility includes a short-game practice area with two greens and a bunker, two 18-hole miniature golf courses, a patio and a sports bar.
Reason to play » No driving range in the Washington area is as fun or technologically advanced as TopGolf. Plenty to enjoy for kids, teens and serious golfers, but most appealing for young adults as a night out, hitting golf balls, drinking buckets of beers and eating finger food.
Get lucky » The facility is to golf what popular D.C. nightspot Lucky Strike is to bowling, but with lower prices, a more age-diverse clientele and less elegance. General manager Willie Wilson also compares TopGolf to sports bar and arcade chain Dave & Buster’s.
Previous incarnation » Formerly the Mid-Atlantic Golf Center, the facility was taken over by Golf Entertainment Inter-National in 2005 to replicate three successful TopGolf operations in England. TopGolf Alexandria remained the lone facility of its kind in the U.S. until two were built in the Dallas area and one near Chicago.
Technology » Players hit to 10 targets — ranging in distance from 25 to 240 yards — and points are accumulated. Balls contain microchips and the score for each shot is displayed instantaneously. Players not interested in scoring can have distance readouts for each shot.
Pick your spots » TopGolf does 65 percent of its business on the weekends. On a recent Friday night, it took 80 minutes to get a bay. Other complaints were limited parking, some mats in poor shape and no liquor license (just beer and wine).
No pressure » “If you look at the people in the bays, you see their swings, most are there to have a good time, to play the games and hang out with friends,” Wilson said.
Finger-Lickin’ Good » This is better-than-average pub food — wings, chicken fingers, sliders, paninis, and Angus beef burgers, most priced at $9. Beers range from Pabst Blue Ribbon ($2.50) to Guinness ($6).
Honors » TopGolf was named one of the nation’s top 100 ranges by Golf Range Magazine. Others in the Washington area on the list include Olney Golf Park, Arundel Golf Park (Glen Burnie), Night Hawk (Gambrills), East Potomac (Haines Point), and Dulles Golf Center. Other popular ranges include 1727 (Dulles), Waters Landing (Germantown), Sunnybrook (Manassas), Woody’s (Herndon), and White Flint (Rockville). Hilltop (Alexandria), Broad Run (Bristow), Oak Mar (Oakton), and Virginia Golf Center (Clifton) include nine-hole courses.
Nighttime » TopGolf steps up its game at night with stadium lighting, lighted targets and louder music. On Friday nights, TopGolf hosts Patio Palooza with live music.
