Business Concepts
Top Golf Competitors (2026): 9 Topgolf Alternatives Tested
The top golf competitors to Topgolf, from Drive Shack and Main Event to indoor golf simulators. Compare venues, bays, pricing and skill levels.
If you love the hitting bays and the food and drink menu but want options, the list of top golf competitors is longer than most people think. Topgolf built a category, and a wave of rivals now chase the same crowd: groups who want a tee, a target, and a beer in the same place.
Quick answer
The biggest Topgolf competitors are Drive Shack and Main Event Entertainment among venues, plus indoor golf simulators like Five Iron Golf, X-Golf and BigShots Golf. Each offers an interactive golf experience with games for all skill levels, but they differ on price, atmosphere, and how serious the golf practice gets.
Key takeaways
- Drive Shack is Topgolf's closest direct competitor on the venue side, with driving range bays plus a full-service restaurant.
- Main Event leans multi-sport: golf is one game among bowling, arcade and laser tag.
- Indoor golf simulators (Five Iron, X-Golf, BigShots) win on year-round, all-weather, climate-controlled play.
- TopTracer technology and ball sensors power the gameplay at most of these venues.
- Pick by intent: birthday parties and corporate events vs. real golf instruction and club fitting.
Who Are Topgolf's Biggest Competitors?
Topgolf sits inside the entertainment and leisure industry, not just golf. So its competitors split into two camps. One copies the venue model: big hitting bays, a rooftop bar, pizza, and a laid-back gathering vibe. The other rebuilds the experience indoors with golf simulators.
This is a classic business concepts story: a company invents a category, then rivals attack it from both the premium and budget ends. The first camp is led by Drive Shack and Main Event Entertainment, both tech-driven and both chasing the same Father's Day crowds and weekend groups.
The second camp, indoor simulation, is where the game of golf gets more advanced and the coaching gets real. For context on the original, Topgolf popularized microchipped driving range golf balls that score themselves. Every competitor below is measured against that one trick.
What Topgolf Offers, and Where Rivals Differ
Topgolf offers a package built for non-golfers: heated, climate-controlled bays, a deep food and drink menu, event spaces, and a point-and-swing format that caters to mixed groups. You do not need to know how to hold a golf club to have fun, and that is the whole point.
Every serious Topgolf alternative copies one or two of those pillars but rarely all of them. Some match the social, something for everyone energy. Others match the golf experience and skill development. Reading where a rival leans tells you exactly who it is for before you book.
Drive Shack and Venue-Based Topgolf Alternatives
Drive Shack is the most obvious Topgolf alternative. Its venues pair multi-level hitting bays with a food and drink menu, event spaces, and the same point-and-swing gameplay. It also runs Puttery, a cocktail-driven miniature golf concept for people who want the social side without the full swing.
Main Event Entertainment is a softer competitor. Golf is one option in an arcade-heavy building that also has bowling and laser tag. For birthday parties and corporate events where not everyone is a golfer, that versatile format has something for everyone and often wins.
BigShots Golf and 4ORE Golf round out the venue tier. BigShots uses industry-leading TopTracer technology in its bays, so the ball tracking and stats match what serious golfers expect. 4ORE Golf leans into golf instruction and club fitting alongside the lounge and bar, bridging entertainment with actual golf skills.
None of these is the biggest golf company by revenue. That title belongs to equipment giants like Callaway, which actually owns Topgolf. But on the venue floor, Drive Shack and Main Event are the names that pull customers away from a Topgolf booking.
Topgolf's real moat was never the golf. It was turning a driving range into a place non-golfers want to spend three hours and a hundred dollars.
Golf Simulators and Indoor Topgolf Competitors
The fastest-growing group of Topgolf competitors never builds a giant outfield at all. Indoor golf simulators recreate full golf courses on a screen using high-speed sensors and 3D ball tracking. Five Iron Golf and X-Golf are the franchise leaders, with BigShots and local studios filling in.
These venues are climate-controlled and year-round, which matters in cold cities. You get state-of-the-art simulation, a lounge, food, and a tee that plays Pebble Beach in February. Pricing is usually per hour and per bay rather than per person, which changes the math for small groups.
The golf game itself is also more serious here. Many simulator studios sell golf lessons and structured coaching, so the same screen that hosts a casual birthday can run a 60-minute swing session the next morning. That dual use is something most outdoor venues cannot match.
This unbundling of a venue into focused niches is its own pattern, the kind of shift we unpack in how reintermediation reshapes industries. For golfers, the simulator is where the real practice happens, feeding you stats and providing real-time feedback on swing path and ball speed.
Pair that with a sensor tool like Arccos on your own golf equipment and you have a serious advanced golf setup, not just a party.
Top Golf Competitors Compared
| Competitor | Format | Best for | Tech |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drive Shack / Puttery | Outdoor bays + mini golf | Direct Topgolf alternative | Ball-tracking gameplay |
| Main Event | Multi-sport arcade venue | Mixed groups, birthdays | Casual interactive games |
| BigShots Golf | Outdoor hitting bays | Golfers who want a venue | TopTracer technology |
| 4ORE Golf | Bays + instruction | Lessons and fitting | Coach feedback, stats |
| Five Iron / X-Golf | Indoor golf simulators | All-weather practice | 3D sensors, simulation |
How to Choose Between Topgolf Competitors
Start with intent. If the goal is a gathering, food, and a rooftop bar where skill levels do not matter, Drive Shack or Main Event will feel closest to home. The interactive golfing experience is forgiving and the menu does the heavy lifting.
If the goal is golf practice that improves your handicap, choose an indoor simulator or a fitting-focused venue like 4ORE. You trade the big outdoor venue energy for accuracy, golf lessons, and a mobile app that logs every shot. Weather and season tip the scale too: simulators are the safe year-round pick.
Budget matters as much as vibe. Outdoor venues usually charge per bay per hour, so a packed group of six is cheap per head, while a simulator booked solo for a lesson is not. Check the package and any event-space minimum before you commit a Father's Day or birthday crowd.
Zoom out and this is just incumbents getting sliced the moment a rival rethinks one part of the experience, a tension we explore in the benefits and risks of innovation. Topgolf created the category; its competitors are now winning by niche, not by copying the whole thing.
Top Golf Competitors: FAQ
Who is Topgolf's biggest competitor?
Drive Shack is Topgolf's biggest direct competitor, offering the same multi-level hitting bays, ball-tracking gameplay, and full-service food in a single venue.
What are places similar to Topgolf?
Places similar to Topgolf include Drive Shack, Main Event Entertainment, BigShots Golf, 4ORE Golf, and indoor golf simulators like Five Iron Golf and X-Golf.
What brands are like Topgolf?
Brands like Topgolf include Drive Shack and its Puttery concept, Main Event, BigShots Golf, and simulator franchises such as X-Golf, all targeting groups who want golf plus food and drinks.
Who are the biggest golf companies?
Beyond venues, the biggest golf companies include equipment makers like Callaway (which owns Topgolf), Titleist, and TaylorMade, plus tech players such as TopTracer and Arccos that power the gameplay and stats.