Golf has become the most recent sport to scratch the potential of blockchain technology with Play Today bringing a Web3 element to the real world. Co-founded by brothers Michael and Mark Dries, Play Today is bringing a sensible balance of the benefits of blockchain without requiring users to be super tech savvy in return.
The company has developed a digital scoring app linked to a crypto wallet which creates a permanent (and immutable) record of the user's scores, and encourages virtual competition. Users play a round of golf, score their round using the app in place of traditional scoring and submit that for their handicap while also minting a scorecard onto the blockchain using the digital wallet.
The company is also investing in NFTs and looking to build a virtual clubhouse metaverse for users that will involve exclusive events and features, with golf related tokens to be used to unlock metaverse experiences, participate in virtual leagues, buy and sell digital collectibles, and earn rewards.
With the ongoing success of the AO Art Ball NFT project, Play Today looks to take blockchain interaction a step further and shake up the traditional paper and pencil scoring system used by golfers, which suffered greatly with social distancing over covid.
Using the Flow Blockchain, the same blockchain that runs NBA Top Shot, Play Today is anticipating over 100,000 mobile users by the end of 2023, out of an estimated 60M golfers globally.
Offerings which provide a sound user experience and bring the benefits of immutable, and hopefully transferable and accessible scoring, are poised to unlock the sports market for players of all kinds as blockchain continues to spread into the backend of our lives.