MIAMI (WSVN) - Crowds showed up to Marlins Park but not for a baseball game. They’re there to play golf.
Opening day is still a few months away, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing happening at Marlins Park.
Not exactly unrecognizable but the field and parts of the stands have been transformed into a pop-up golf course.
The park teamed up with Stadiumlinks to make it happen.
“It’s really a lot of fun out here because when else are you going to have a chance to hit golf balls inside Marlins stadium?” said a golfer. “This is probably the first and last time ever.”
That’s exactly how the owner of Stadiumlinks wanted people to feel when he came up with the idea in 2016. The company has transformed many ball parks across the country.
“He’s an avid golfer, and he was at a baseball game one day and was like, ‘How cool would it be to hit balls from the upper deck?'” said event director Kevin Corrigan, “so he kind of ran with the concept and put it all together, and now you see what you got on the field there.”
Golfers found the idea exciting.
“I’ve hit from elevation before like mountain courses but nothing that compares to this,” golfer Drew Scarbrough said.
Dozens of golfers took advantage of the unique experience early on day one.
“A bunch of friends were sending me stuff too, saying, ‘Did you hear about this?’ Yes! We’re already signed up,” another golfer said.
There are nine holes at different levels around the stadium, and each hole corresponds to a flag on the field.
“The scoring works where a hole-in-one is an eagle. Inside the painted circle is a birdie, inside the green you’re aiming towards is par,” Corrigan explained. “Anywhere on the field is a bogie, and if you hit it in the seating bowl, it’s a double bogie, and we probably are going to take away your clubs.”
He’s kidding. It’s all smiles here — even if you have a few bad rounds.
“Give it a try,” Scarbrough said. “It’s definitely memorable.”
You can come out Saturday and Sunday, between 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. For tickets and more information, click here.
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