Copyright Athlon Sports
Launch monitors are everywhere now. Swing analyzers, too. But PLATFORM Golf built something different. They didn’t measure the ball or the club. They measured what’s beneath the golfer’s feet. Co-Founder and CEO Thomas Hackett engineered a solution to indoor golf’s most persistent problem: flat surfaces that bear no resemblance to actual golf courses. His digitally actuated platform replicates any lie condition with precision measured in tenths of a degree. Getting there took years of engineering challenges, a pivotal moment at the 2023 PGA Show, and a complete reimagining of what the product could become. PLATFORM Golf now sits at the intersection of hardware innovation and software intelligence. Installations include TaylorMade’s headquarters, Cobra Puma Golf’s facilities, and Yas Links Abu Dhabi. Elite coaches like Brad Faxon, Claude Harmon III, and David Orr use the technology. The company is building toward an ambitious vision: verified, off-course competitive golf that could fundamentally change how the game is played and practiced. The 2023 PGA Show Epiphany: When Everything Changed The 2023 PGA Show in Orlando changed everything for Thomas Hackett and his team, just not in the way they expected. “We had a great show,” Hackett recalls. “We won Best in Show at the show, which was a huge honor. But more importantly, we had the opportunity to meet with hundreds of people in the industry, coaches, facility owners, technology partners, and really understand what the market needed.” Those conversations revealed something unexpected. The PLATFORM wasn’t just a training tool for elite players seeking to perfect their swings on uneven lies. It was a data generation machine with far broader applications. “The breakthrough was realizing that we had built something that could generate incredibly valuable data about how golfers actually perform on different lie conditions,” Hackett explains. “Every shot hit on our platform creates data points about pitch, roll, ball flight, and performance outcomes. That data could inform everything from club fitting to course management to coaching methodologies.” This realization sparked a fundamental shift. The hardware became the foundation for a much larger vision centered on data, software, and digital experiences. Engineering Excellence: Measuring What Matters At the heart of PLATFORM Golf’s innovation lies a deceptively simple question: How do you accurately measure and replicate the infinite variety of lies found on a golf course? The answer required solving complex engineering challenges that had stymied previous attempts at adjustable golf platforms. “The biggest engineering challenge was definitely the inclinometer technology, the sensors that measure pitch and roll,” Hackett reveals. “We needed precision down to a tenth of a degree to truly replicate real course conditions. Anything less precise, and you’re not giving golfers an authentic experience.” The specifications are remarkable. The platform adjusts pitch from -10 to +10 degrees and roll from -15 to +15 degrees, covering virtually every lie condition a golfer might encounter. The platform also needed to move smoothly, quietly, and reliably thousands of times without degradation. “We went through multiple iterations of the inclinometer system before we got it right,” Hackett notes. “But that precision is what allows us to do things like verify putting performance at distances up to 22 feet, or create training protocols that expose golfers to the statistically accurate distribution of lies they’ll face on course.” That statistical accuracy matters more than most golfers realize. According to PLATFORM’s data analysis, 96% of approach shots on a golf course come from uneven lies. Putting accounts for 42% of the game. Yet traditional indoor training environments prepare golfers for perfectly flat conditions they’ll rarely encounter in actual play. From Perfection to Platform: A Strategic Rebrand The story of PLATFORM Golf begins long before Thomas Hackett’s 2023 epiphany. Its origins trace back to Glen Coombe, a putting expert and biomechanics innovator who created the original Perfection Platform. This manually adjustable putting surface trained golfers to read, feel, and trust slope underfoot. Recognizing the commercial potential in Glen’s invention, Robb Gibb stepped in to build a business around the product under the name Perfection Platforms. Robb turned Glen’s prototype into a scalable tool for instructors, fitters, and facilities. Critically, he digitized the control system with inclinometer technology, laying the technical foundation for what would come next. The platform gained traction with elite putting coaches like David Orr and Kevin Weeks. During this growth phase, Robb received key strategic support from Thomas Hackett and Rory Flanagan, who advised on product-market fit, go-to-market approach, and commercial strategy. Their involvement would prove transformative. In 2024, Thomas and Rory acquired the business and rebranded it as PLATFORM Golf, with a bold ambition to redefine how golfers train, simulate, and learn using real-world slope underfoot. They immediately expanded the hardware roadmap, moving from static and manual platforms to digitally actuated systems capable of changing lie angles in real time. “The rebrand was about opening up our aperture,” Hackett explains. “Perfection Platforms suggested we were only for elite players seeking perfection. But our technology has value for golfers at every level. Whether you’re a tour player working with Claude Harmon III or a weekend golfer trying to break 90, understanding how you perform on different lies makes you a better player.” The new name also better reflected the company’s expanding product ecosystem. PLATFORM Golf wasn’t just selling hardware anymore. It was building a comprehensive platform that included software applications, coaching tools, and digital training experiences. This strategic shift opened new market opportunities. PLATFORM wasn’t competing solely in the ultra-premium golf simulator space. It was creating an entirely new category: data-driven, lie-adaptive training systems that could serve multiple use cases across the golf industry. The Data Revolution in Golf Coaching Elite coaches are incorporating the technology into their teaching methodologies in fascinating ways. The company has attracted some of the most respected names in golf instruction, each finding unique applications for the platform’s capabilities. “What’s fascinating is how differently coaches use the platform,” Hackett observes. “Brad Faxon, who’s one of the greatest putters of all time, uses it extensively for putting analysis. He can set up specific slope conditions, measure a player’s performance, and identify exactly where they’re losing strokes on the greens.” Claude Harmon III takes a different approach. He coaches major champions and top-ranked players, using the platform for full-swing training on uneven lies. He’ll create specific scenarios his players are likely to face in upcoming tournaments and have them practice those exact conditions. David Orr, another PLATFORM ambassador, focuses on the diagnostic capabilities. He uses the data to identify patterns in how players compensate for different lies. That information helps him make more informed decisions about swing changes and equipment recommendations. This diversity of applications validates PLATFORM’s core thesis: accurate lie replication and measurement create value across the entire spectrum of golf instruction and improvement. PLATFORM Golf has secured partnerships and installations that read like a who’s-who of golf’s elite institutions. The TaylorMade headquarters installation stands as perhaps the most significant endorsement. “Having our platform at TaylorMade HQ is incredibly meaningful,” Hackett says. “They’re using it for club fitting and testing, which makes perfect sense. If you’re fitting someone for clubs, you want to see how those clubs perform on the lies they’ll actually face on course, not just on flat ground.” Cobra Puma Golf has similarly integrated PLATFORM technology into their fitting and testing protocols. These partnerships provide more than prestige. They generate valuable data and feedback that inform product development. The company’s international expansion reached a milestone with the installation at Yas Links Abu Dhabi, marking PLATFORM’s debut in the Middle East. “The Yas Links installation was our first in the Middle East, and it represents the global appetite for this technology,” Hackett notes. “Golf is growing rapidly in that region, and facilities there want the absolute best technology available.” The company has also partnered with TruGolf, a leading golf simulator manufacturer, to integrate PLATFORM’s hardware with TruGolf’s software and projection systems. This partnership expands PLATFORM’s reach into the broader simulator market while maintaining focus on its core differentiator: accurate lie replication. PLATFORM Academy: The Peloton of Golf While the hardware installations at elite facilities generate headlines, PLATFORM’s most ambitious product may be PLATFORM Academy. Hackett describes it as “the Peloton of golf.” “PLATFORM Academy is our software application that delivers structured training programs, challenges, and competitive experiences,” Hackett explains. “The vision is to create engaging, gamified training that keeps golfers coming back to practice, because let’s be honest, most golfers don’t practice enough or practice effectively.” The Academy leverages the platform’s unique capabilities to create training experiences impossible on traditional flat surfaces. Users can follow progressive programs that systematically expose them to increasingly difficult lie conditions, compete in challenges against other PLATFORM users globally, and track their improvement across multiple performance dimensions. “We’re taking inspiration from what Peloton did for indoor cycling,” Hackett says. “They made indoor training engaging, social, and addictive. We want to do the same for golf practice.” The Academy also addresses a critical challenge in golf improvement: specificity of practice. Rather than hitting balls aimlessly on flat range mats, users can practice the exact shots they struggle with most, receive immediate feedback, and track progress over time. Awards and Evolution: Recognition and Refinement PLATFORM Golf’s innovation hasn’t gone unnoticed. The company won Best in Show at the PGA Show and Best in Show for Athlete Performance at the Golfweek Tech Lab, and has garnered recognition from golf media, technology analysts, and industry insiders. The company has evolved its product based on user feedback and market learning. Early versions focused primarily on full-swing applications, but user demand drove development of enhanced putting capabilities, including the ability to verify putts up to 22 feet with precise slope replication. The Future: Verified Off-Course Competition When asked about his vision for PLATFORM Golf over the next three to five years, Hackett’s answer reveals ambitions that extend far beyond selling hardware to elite facilities. “Our big vision is verified off-course competition,” he states. “Imagine being able to compete in a tournament from your home simulator or local facility, with complete confidence that the conditions, measurements, and results are legitimate and standardized. That’s what we’re building toward.” This vision addresses one of golf’s fundamental limitations. The game requires access to golf courses, which are expensive, time-consuming to reach, and weather-dependent. Verified off-course competition could democratize competitive golf while creating new formats and opportunities for engagement. “We want to create a world where you can play a competitive round against someone across the country or across the world, on the same course, under the same conditions, with verified results,” Hackett explains. “The technology to do this exists now. It’s about building the ecosystem, establishing the standards, and creating experiences that golfers find compelling.” This vision requires more than just hardware and software. It demands building a network of verified installations, establishing protocols for competition, and creating a community of users who trust the system’s integrity. But if successful, it could represent a paradigm shift in how golf is played and experienced. “Golf has been constrained by its physical requirements for centuries,” Hackett observes. “We have an opportunity to expand where and how golf can be played, while actually making the practice and competition more realistic and data-driven than traditional formats. That’s what gets me excited about the next few years.” Building the Future of Golf Training PLATFORM Golf’s journey from engineering challenge to industry innovator illustrates how breakthrough products often emerge from a willingness to reimagine fundamental assumptions. By questioning why indoor golf training should accept flat surfaces as inevitable, Thomas Hackett and his team created technology that’s reshaping how elite players prepare, how coaches teach, and how the industry thinks about practice and improvement. The company’s evolution from hardware manufacturer to platform provider positions it at the forefront of golf’s technological transformation. Elite partnerships validate the technology. Ambassadors champion its applications. An ambitious vision for verified competition drives the roadmap forward. As the company expands globally and refines its product ecosystem, one thing remains clear. The flat surfaces that have defined indoor golf for decades are giving way to a new reality. Every practice session can now replicate the infinite variety of conditions found on the world’s greatest courses, measured with precision and tracked with data that drives real improvement.
