CJ Links brings year-round golf

WESTFORD — Brian Dominguez didn’t grow up dreaming of opening an indoor golf simulator. He was a football kid, competitive, and unfamiliar with a sport often associated with patience and precision rather than power.

That changed after a round of golf with a close friend.

“He absolutely whipped me all around the course,” Dominguez recalled. “I thought, wow, if that guy can do that, golf really is the great equalizer. It doesn’t matter your size, shape, girl or boy. Golf will humble you right away, like he did that day to me.”

More than 20 years later, Dominguez is channeling that humbling introduction into CJ Links, a new indoor golf simulator designed to bring golfers and non-golfers together in a relaxed, welcoming environment.

CJ Links officially opened its doors on Jan. 7, offering year-round golf for everyone from seasoned players to complete beginners. However, Dominguez says the space is about more than a simple game.

“As a consumer of golf and indoor golf, I just felt like there were some things missing,” he said. “A big component was a welcoming vibe, a spot like this where you can come hang out, watch a game before or after your round.”

Dominguez said many indoor golf facilities he visited felt rushed. He recalled many places checking him in and checking him out as fast as possible. But CJ Links is not that experience.

Instead, CJ Links is intentionally designed to encourage conversation and connection.

“You have people who don’t know each other standing very close together,” Dominguez said. “You get to discuss and talk and just meet new people randomly.”

He hopes CJ Links becomes a place where the community bonds over golf, whether customers are swinging clubs, watching a game, celebrating a birthday, or stopping in regularly.

“Golf has a tendency to have that stuffy vibe,” Dominguez said. “But this is just a place for people to come, hit some balls, have a good time, watch a game, and meet their neighbors.”

As a father of two young children, Dominguez said affordability was a major factor in shaping the business. He noticed that many indoor golf spaces were priced out of reach for families.

“We made it a little bit more digestible here, easier for people to do a half hour if they want to do a half hour with their kids,” he said.

Lower rates, Dominguez emphasized, do not mean lower quality. CJ Links features advanced simulators and offers three different types of golf balls, allowing players to tailor their experience.

The simulators also include alternative settings beyond traditional courses, including playful environments like a farm or fire pit, turning golf into a game even young children can enjoy.

“My 2- and 3-year-old play every morning,” Dominguez said.

CJ Links is equipped for a wide range of players. Dominguez said several experienced golfers have begun coming in multiple times a week, even though the business has only just opened. At the same time, the indoor golf simulator is intentionally beginner-friendly.

“Indoor golf is a great place to start if you’ve never played before,” Dominguez said.

CJ Links also offers options for small groups, larger events, and birthday parties, making it a flexible space for social gatherings as well as practice.

“I really wanted to make sure this was a place people wanted to come back to,” he said.

As CJ Links settles into the community, Dominguez hopes the it becomes a familiar gathering place, whether customers stop in once a year or several times a week.

CJ Links is located at 103 Main Street, and is open daily from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.