A feel for the ball, even with ‘E7sen Indoor Golf’

Martin Harnik (35) knows all about balls: after 68 appearances for the Austrian national football team and over 300 for various top clubs in the Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga, Martin Harnik has scaled back his football career and, since the pandemic, has turned his attention to golf. In spring 2020, he was still playing for HSV and saw the restrictions becoming increasingly strict: “Apart from golf, not much else was allowed,” recalls the tall sportsman with a ponytail. He had held his golf licence since 2008, but Martin Harnik only truly fell in love with golf when he came up with his mega-plan: ‘E7sen’; an XXL-branded indoor golf facility in Glinde on the eastern outskirts of his hometown, Hamburg. Since February 2022, the dream has become a reality and Martin Harnik offers, across over 600 square metres, 8 Trackman bays where over 200 courses can be played digitally, a 50-square-metre putting green by Puttview, lounge areas and a stylish sports bar.
 

Martin Harnik initially chose PC CADDIE for a pragmatic reason: “I liked the all-in-one solution right from the start,” he comments, “the excellent online features for booking the bays, payments, till management, membership administration and catering – everything runs on a stable system.” With the experience gained in the first year, further arguments in its favour have emerged: “The various features are popular with our customers and my staff because they are often self-explanatory and therefore easy to use. The inventory management system runs absolutely smoothly and is easy to customise.”
 

And why is the facility called Iron 7 and not Driver or Putter? “For one thing,” explains Martin Harnik, “Iron 7 is the first club a beginner picks up, and this shows that our facility is designed for everyone; for amateur golfers and professionals alike. The facility is a place to train and improve; at the same time, it should also be a place where you can have a good time with friends. Secondly, 7 is my lucky number; and that has already been more than confirmed in the first financial year.”