Is a Used Golf Simulator Worth It? Here’s Why Certified Pre-Owned Is the Only Smart Play

If you’re thinking about buying a used golf simulator, you’ve got to get certified pre-owned. This isn’t a decision you can afford to get wrong.

Sure, you can almost always find something cheaper. But, oh boy, are you welcoming disaster.

Conversely, you can spend up the slightest bit more for a factory refurbished certified pre-owned golf simulator, still save a huge amount of money relative to new, and have not just the peace of mind but the actual warranty-backed guarantee that your used golf simulator is going to work exactly as advertised.

Not only is buying CPO the only way to go if you’re shopping used, I would actually argue that you should be considering it even if you thought you wanted to shop new.

But buyer beware, there is a lot of junk out there. The internet can become a dangerous place when you’re searching for a used golf simulator for sale.

That’s why the move here is to keep it simple, keep it safe, and focus on the words “certified pre-owned.” For the used golf launch monitor brands in this post, PlayBetter is where those deals live. Shop these brands used through any of the other usual retail channels and marketplaces and you’re looking at something the manufacturer never inspected, never certified, and never agreed to stand behind.

So let’s unpack all of what sets a certified pre-owned apart from any old used golf simulator. And let’s take a look at the unbelievable opportunities available to you. There are some incredible options to have your cake and eat it too with huge savings and factory-backed guarantees.

“Used” Can Mean Almost Anything, and That’s the Problem

Start typing “used golf launch monitor” into a search bar and watch what comes back. Used. Open box. Refurbished. Pre-owned. They get tossed around like they all mean the same thing.

They don’t.

And the gaps between all those terms are where people get burned.

Used is the wild card. When some listing says “used,” that could mean almost anything. Maybe it was lightly tested. Or maybe it got returned because something was wrong with it, repackaged, and shipped right back out to the next person who didn’t ask enough questions.

Open box can mean the same thing. It might suggest that it was a unit that was barely touched or a return in like-new condition. But there’s nothing to back that up or any guarantee to protect you.

Refurbished means somebody worked on it. A refurbished unit might carry a little cosmetic wear, but it’s been gone through, fixed up, and checked to run like new. Refurbished can be a great option. The problem is that if it’s not certified, well, then it’s not certified. And you could end up stuck.

What Is a Certified Pre-Owned Golf Simulator?

Certified pre-owned is the common term a manufacturer and partnering retailer use to denote that the product has been not just gone through and possibly refurbished, but actually certified as up to spec. It means that the product is performing as good as a new one would, and the brand is even putting its warranty behind it.

When you buy one of these, the manufacturer took the unit back, ran it through their full recertification process, and tested it against the same specifications as a brand-new unit coming off the line.

Garmin does it for their launch monitors. Foresight does it for theirs. Same story for SkyTrak and Rapsodo. These are not reboxed returns. They are units those companies inspected, restored to factory spec, and vouched for.

The box could show up with a scuff on it or the seal may be broken. But other than some minor imperfections, you can expect to receive a perfect-condition product.

Garmin, Foresight, and Rapsodo all back their refurbished launch monitors with 1-year warranties, while SkyTrak offers 6 months.

You can see how certified pre-owned becomes a no-brainer. Not just if you’re shopping for a used golf simulator, but even if you have been looking at new. The savings are amazing.

PlayBetter Is the Exclusive Certified Pre-Owned Option for These Brands

For the certified pre-owned inventory across Garmin, Foresight, SkyTrak, and Rapsodo, PlayBetter is the exclusive retailer. If you’re buying from somewhere else, you’re not getting a certified pre-owned.

We’re not going to cover every used golf launch monitor or every configuration possibility for a pre-owned golf simulator build. But here’s a taste of the deals that are available.

For $408, you can get a CPO Garmin R10. That’s $92 below what a new one of these costs, and it used to cost another hundred on top of that. The savings here basically buys you your first year of Home Tee Hero sim golf for free.

Save $500 on a Garmin R50. This is a self-contained, all-in-one golf simulator. There’s nothing else like it on the market. But why pay $4,999.99 for brand new, when you can get the exact same thing for $4,495?

Think about that. That’s five years of a Garmin Golf subscription. That means you could be playing Home Tee Hero on your R50 for five years before you caught up to what you would have spent to buy the R50 new.

Take $200 off a Rapsodo MLM2PRO. What might well be the best overall golf launch monitor under $1,000 can be yours for $499.99 instead of $699.99.

The thing to remember about the MLM2PRO is that most of the good features are behind the Premium subscription, which unlocks for life for a one-time $599.99. So it’s definitely nice if you can take a couple-hundred-dollar bite out of that.

Get a certified pre-owned SkyTrak+ for $1,350. Now the numbers start to get silly. This thing is almost the exact same device as the flagship ST MAX, which debuted at $2,995. To get a good-as-new SkyTrak+ for $1,350 is to do very, very well in your golf simulator build.

Or, if you want to add the dedicated speed training, slightly faster processor, and second USB-C port, how about a ST MAX CPO for $1,595?

The higher you climb, the bigger the savings opportunities become.

You could get a tour-grade Foresight GC3 at a $2,000 savings. Again, why pay $6,999 when you can pay $4,999? These are not difficult calculations.

And maybe you’re like a lot of GC3 users and also want to play GSPro. Your savings would buy you eight years of that software!

Save $5,000 on a Foresight QuadMAX! Alright, now we’re at the top of the mountain. And these savings are super serious. This is the professional-grade launch monitor trusted by the guys you watch on TV warming up to play PGA Tour events. It’s the best of the best. Only, now you can take some of the sting out by dropping it from $19,999 new to $14,999 certified.

So that’s an example of savings from a couple hundred to five grand. And all of it with the same performance as a new unit.

So, Is a Used Golf Simulator Worth It?

Well, it depends. Do you like to pay less money or more money for things that perform exactly the same? If you prefer to spend less money, you should obviously choose a certified pre-owned golf simulator. That’s not complicated.

Once again, look out for the used golf simulator traps. You do you, but my advice would be to skip the non-certified options. It’s possible that you’ll find even bigger savings, but at what risk? Unless your purchase is guaranteed, I don’t see that as the smart play.

And if you thought the retail prices you were seeing on all of these expensive launch monitors were your only option, think again. I think the savviest shoppers are going to realize that certified pre-owned is the way to go.

You can now consider yourself among the in-the-know crowd.

About PlayBetter Golf Reviewer Marc Sheforgen

Marc "Shef" Sheforgen is a golf writer whose passion for the game far exceeds his ability to play it well. Marc covers all things golf, from product reviews and equipment recommendations to event coverage and tournament analysis. When he’s not playing, watching, or writing about golf, he enjoys traveling (often golf-related), youth sports coaching, volunteering, and record collecting.