Thornleigh Golf Centre

This is probably my best kept secret in Sydney in terms of things to do. I love coming here to zone out, it’s like going to a spa, but cheaper!
Great new facility complete with bright vibrant colours on the driving range to represent the grass, lakes and sand. Really stunning just to look at, let alone play here!
How it works is you pay for the golf balls in the pro shop, head outside to the range to the golf ball dispenser, place a bucket near the nozzle, scan your receipt and watch the magic of the balls being dispensed.
There are two levels and there are auto tees in some bays.
The driving range is sloped in such a way that the balls drift towards «drains» which suck in the balls and return them to the dispenser.
The facility is very well maintained and looks new and sharp.
The standout is the staff. They are true professionals, passionate, know their stuff, and friendly. The lessons are expensive but really worth it if you’re looking to improve your game — they really helped me as they were personalised to improve specific issues I was having, rather than structured as a crash course on how to play.
There is also mini golf with 2 themed courses, a café, and the pro shop sells a range of clubs, bags, and other gear.
I’m drawn to the pretty vibrant colours of the driving range and they were what got me into golf. Have come back time and time again.

A 5-​star driving range ticks each of these boxes:
1. The mats react like a fairway would by letting you hit down and through the shot (this is hard to do if they’re worn out)
2. The balls can be easily transferred onto the matt
3. You rarely have to wait to play
4. You receive value for money
5. If you’re playing at night, you can see where your balls are hit
6. It has a host of other facilities, such as putt putt
Thornleigh ticks only 3 boxes:
1. Many of the mats are worn out, particularly on the ground level which is where I enjoy practicing, making it very hard to hit down and through
2. If you’re hitting with an iron, you have to manually lift each ball out of the bucket. At other ranges there is usually a container sitting next to each mat, from which you can easily lift each ball with the iron
3. There are over 50 mats, so you’ll rarely need to wait to play
4. The pricing is generally good, as it seems to be at most ranges
5. At night you can barely see where you hit each ball, and the outfield isn’t flat, which makes it difficult to determine the height of your ball mid-​flight
6. This range has a proshop, a café, and putt putt — a good variety

Sweet double storey driving range on one side, putt putt on the other, this place must have been built with dads-​who-​get-​caught-​sneaking-​out-​for-​a-​few-​holes-​and-​then dumped-​with-​the kids-​while-​mum-​goes-​out-​for-​errands in mind.
There’s a spacious and breezy café area with decent sandwiches, coffee and cakes which you can take onto the putt putt course, but there are no bins on the one-​way course meaning you have to walk through others’ games to get to the one near the entrance.
None of the fun windmills, castles with drawbridges or dancing monkeys on this putt putt course, it’s just stretches of green, pretty wooden bridges and ponds. And since I have no golfing capabilities whatsoever, the many ponds on the 18-​hole course just meant wet hands for me. Highest score meant the I won, right?