CLEARWATER, Fla. - Bud Firth’s happy place is at the driving range.

There are driving ranges closer to Bud’s house than the one at the Chi Chi Rodriguez Golf Club. But Bud doesn’t mind the longer commute.

”I like to come here because primarily, I’ve made a lot of friends here,” Bud said. “It’s always a good time. They always try to make your visit a happy one. And always working to improve the facility.”

What You Need To Know

  • Power Tee now in use at Chi Chi Rodriguez golf course in Clearwater 

  • Power tee automatically resets a ball on the driving range tee after each shot 

  • All of the driving range proceeds spent benefit the Chi Chi Rodriguez Youth Foundation

There’s something else that Bud gets at this driving range that he can’t get at others nearby. In fact, you can’t find this at any other golf club on the East Coast.

The future of golf is here, right here in Clearwater.

Power Tee is the latest invention to help you raise your golf game while lowering your score. The device makes an outing to a driving range more efficient and easier on the back.

“I only have to bend over one time to dump the balls in,” Director of Golf Al Arrigoni said.. “It sets the ball the same way every time. So if I’m working on alignment, as I hit the ball, I don’t really have to move and I can get the next ball.”

Arrigoni appreciates the ease at which Power Tee works. First you dump in the bucket of balls. Then the automated system delivers a new teed up ball after each swing. The level of tee can also be adjusted, depending on what club you are using.

“It’s a lot of fun,” he said. “It’s user friendly. It is technology in the game which the game is evolving to.”

There’s a bonus to trying out the latest technology at this driving range. All of the proceeds spent benefit the Chi Chi Rodriguez Youth Foundation. That includes the school where kids who struggled in a traditional classroom setting get more one-on-one educational time. 

And they also learn life lessons through the game of golf. Bud’s learned a lot from golf too. And with the Power Tee tool, he can give back and get a better golf score.

“I admire what they do for the community and everything they give back to the community,” Bud said. “And these automated mats are just an extension of that. 

“It’s a long drive compared to where else I could go, but I always find myself coming back here.”