BigShots gets its start in Springfield

Springfield’s newest attraction is ready for visitors to take their best swings.

The north-side entertainment center at the intersection of Kearney Street and Glenstone Avenue opened May 17, said General Manager Brian Inman. The project is a partnership between O’Reilly Hospitality Management LLC and ClubCorp.

Management company officials declined to disclose construction costs, but a Springfield building permit lists a $6.5 million declared valuation for the 12-acre development, where a former Kmart was demolished last year. It originally was expected to open in 2020, but officials said various complications, including weather, sewer easement issues and the coronavirus pandemic, contributed to the delay.

“I knew our soft opening wasn’t going to be a soft opening,” Inman said of the May 17 BigShots launch, which had a line of customers waiting to gain access to the 37,000-square-foot facility. “I had our team ready for that.”

Declining to disclose early attendance or sales figures at the 1930 E. Kearney St. venue, Inman said, “It’s exceeded our budget expectations.”

The entertainment attraction’s features include 56 driving range bays across the two-story building, 3,500 square feet of meeting space, an outdoor putting green, and a full-service restaurant and bar. It employs 150, around half of which are part-time jobs, Inman said.

O’Reilly Hospitality spokesperson Kerrie Van Sickle said a grand opening is slated for mid-to-late-June, when finishing touches should be completed.

The local BigShots entertainment center is the second to open in as many months for O’Reilly Hospitality. The company also collaborated with ClubCorp on a franchise in Fort Worth, Texas, Inman said. The first BigShots opened in Vero Beach, Florida, in 2018, according to the company’s website, which also lists a fourth franchise coming to Bryan, Texas, later this year.

ClubCorp bought controlling interest in 2018 of Peoria-based BigShots Golf LLC.

An expanded version of this article will appear in Springfield Business Journal’s May 31 print edition.