If you ever dreamed of playing golf like PGA pros Lee Janzen and Rocco Mediate, actor Samuel L. Jackson or slugger Ken Griffey Jr., now you can , in the comfort of your own back yard.
Janzen, Mediate, Jackson and Griffey are just a few clients that have utilized San Diego-based Eagle Greens to install outdoor putting greens at their homes.
The company started five years ago and has seen its share of courses from average to grandiose.
A smaller request was for a 250-square-foot green for $2,500, and one of the largest, an 8,000-square-foot course in Rancho Santa Fe, cost $70,000.
“When I first started, people wanted the (putting greens), but people didn’t know much about them,” said Scott Griggs, Eagle Greens’ founder. “Once they found the product was out there, it really took off.”
Griggs said the idea of outdoor putting greens has been around for nearly 20 years, but it took some time to migrate to the West Coast.
“It started on the East Coast because people wanted to be able to play golf year-round,” he said. “It got so popular, it started moving West. It’s the next best thing to a real golf course.”
Unlike putting greens, Eagle Greens courses require no maintenance, and they can be enjoyed come rain or shine.
The greens are made of polypropylene turf , the same material used for artificial turf football fields.
Growth for Eagle Greens has been steady since raking in $100,000 in revenues its first year to $435,000 in 2000. So far this year, Griggs has sold more than $200,000 in putting greens and expects to break $900,000 by the end of the year.
Griggs said from day one, he knew he was in the right business.
“I knew this was an up and coming business, and had the potential to be a big business,” he said.
