Verified — real FDD extraction
SBA-eligible · directory code S1953 since 2017
X-GOLF
Recreation & Entertainment · independent · est. —
X-Golf is an indoor golf franchise combining golf simulator bays with a bar and lounge. A franchisee operates a built-out facility where customers rent simulator time for play, leagues, and lessons, supplemented by food and beverage sales.
New to franchising? Start here
A franchise is a business where you (the franchisee) pay a company (the franchisor) for the right to open and run a location using their brand and system — think a local Anytime Fitness or Taco John's owned by a small-business owner, not the corporation.
Before you can buy in, U.S. law requires the franchisor to give you a Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) — a long legal filing covering its fees, finances, and history. The numbers on this page come straight from that document:
- Franchise fee — the one-time cost to buy in.
- Royalty — the ongoing cut of your sales you pay the franchisor.
- Item 20 — how many locations opened and closed, the basis for our verdict (from Proven & strong down to Distressed — or Too new to judge).
The verdict
Not enough disclosure
Distress
No verified FDD extraction to judge from. Any figures shown are labelled sample data or independent federal records.
Exit rate · latest year
3.3%
vs 5.5% across 15 recreation & entertainment systems
Cost to open
$1.2M–$1.8M
Item 7 total investment range
SBA loan defaults
3.0%
vs 14.8% avg across rated brands
Behind the verdict
the record, factor by factor · Item 20
3-yr trend · Item 20 Table 1
terminations + ceased-ops vs. all exits · Table 3
transfers vs. base · Table 3
actual vs. projected openings · Table 5
Item 19 disclosure + completeness
Systemwide units
2023–2025
Survival record
FDD Item 20 · outlet status by year
In fiscal 2025, 4 of 121 franchised outlets left the system — a 3.3% annualized exit rate, vs 5.5% across 15 recreation & entertainment systems. Not every exit is a failure — but this is the measurable floor.
Show the outlet tables ↓Hide the evidence ↑
| Status (FTC) | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outlets at start | 9 | 11 | 20 | 70 | 98 | 123 |
| Opened | 5 | 9 | 5 | 28 | 24 | 14 |
| Transfers | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Terminations | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Non-renewals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reacquired by franchisor | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Ceased — other reasons | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| Outlets at end | 11 | 20 | 24 | 98 | 123 | 133 |
| Net change | +2 | +9 | +4 | +28 | +25 | +10 |
The lender's view
SBA 7(a)/504 loan performance · FY1991–present
Banks have made 169 SBA-backed loans to X-GOLF franchisees since 2017. Of the 33 that have resolved, 3.0% were charged off (defaulted) rather than paid in full, versus 14.8% across 576 rated brands.
3.0%
1 of 33 resolved defaulted
93.0%
avg. charged-off $ ÷ approved $
2.8%
default rate × loss severity
$620,482
what recent franchisees borrowed
43 mo
approval → charge-off, defaulted loans
18 vs 6
distinct banks still lending
Charge-off rate by loan approval year (%)
SOURCE: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA LOAN DATA (DATA.SBA.GOV), FY1991–PRESENT · MATCHED TO X-GOLF BY FRANCHISE NAME · RESOLVED = CHARGED-OFF + PAID-IN-FULL
The owner's side of the deal
FDD × federal loan record
A typical X-GOLF buyer since 2020 borrowed $620K through SBA — about $91K a year in debt service. Against the brand's own disclosed median unit revenue of $95K, that is 96.1% of every dollar the store takes in — before rent, payroll, food, or royalty.
Who finances it
the Huntington National Bank
78.4% of this brand's loans
That lender charges off 10.1% of its loans to other franchise brands, vs 14.8% nationally.
Who buys it
23.2%
first-time franchise owners
The rest already owned at least one other franchise. Across the corpus, brands bought mostly by repeat operators charge off at roughly 10% versus 17% for brands sold mostly to newcomers.
Does experience help here?
Not enough resolved loans to split
Computed from 169 SBA 7(a)/504 loans to X-GOLF franchisees joined to the brand's own FDD. Debt service assumes level amortization at the average disclosed term and rate. A lender's rate excludes its loans to this brand, so it reads the lender, not the brand.
What it costs — and what it drags
FDD Items 5–7 · fees, investment, royalty
Buying in means a $40K franchise fee (Item 5) and a total investment of $1.2M–$1.8M (Item 7). The franchisor publishes an earnings claim (Item 19) — read its methodology closely.
To open (Item 7)
$1.2M–$1.8M
all-in investment range
Franchise fee (Item 5)
$40K
upfront, one-time
Royalty (Item 6)
7%
of sales, ongoing
Your figure — cross-check against this brand's Item 19 and current-owner validation.
Royalty you'd pay / yr
$70K
7% of sales, before profit
Over a 10-yr term
$700K
royalties alone, excl. ad fund
This is not profit. It's the only money the FDD actually pins down — what you put in, and the royalty you owe on every dollar of sales. Your real take-home depends on labor, rent, food cost, and ramp-to-breakeven, none of which any FDD discloses.
Build a real pro-forma for X-GOLF with an independent CPAModeled risk
FDD Risk Score · modeled from the public record
Modeled from the public record, this brand looks safer than 96% of systems we score.
Risk percentile
4 / 100
Loan-corroborated
Modeled SBA charge-off
5.8%
Observed SBA charge-off
3.0%
Top drivers: Single-lender dependence (lowers) · Share financed by high-loss lenders (lowers) · Investment ceiling (log) (lowers) · System size (log units) (raises). 15+ resolved loans stand behind this estimate. A linear scorecard built from this brand's own disclosure figures plus the federal loan record behind its franchisees; full spec and cross-validated accuracy on the methodology page. A score is context, not a verdict.
Distress signals
news-sourced · bankruptcies, closures, lawsuits
No recent closures, bankruptcies, or major lawsuits found in the news for X-GOLF. That's a good sign — but it reflects news coverage, not a guarantee.
A broker is paid by the franchisor to place you. An independent CPA is paid by you — and the job is pressure-testing X-GOLF's numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.
Talk to an independent CPA before you buy →X-GOLF franchise questions, answered from the filings
What percentage of X-GOLF franchises closed last year?
In X-GOLF's latest FDD Item 20 (fiscal 2025), 4 of 121 franchised outlets left the system — an annualized exit rate of 3.3% — compared with 5.5% across 15 recreation & entertainment systems tracked here. That counts terminations, non-renewals, and "ceased operations — other reasons." There is no official failure rate, and not every exit is a failure, but this is the measurable floor.
How much does a X-GOLF franchise cost?
Per X-GOLF's 2026 FDD, buying in requires an initial franchise fee of $40K (Item 5) and a total initial investment of $1.2M–$1.8M (Item 7).
What royalty does X-GOLF charge?
X-GOLF charges an ongoing royalty of 7.0% of gross sales, per Item 6 of its 2026 FDD.
Does X-GOLF disclose earnings (Item 19)?
Yes — X-GOLF makes a financial performance representation in Item 19 of its 2026 FDD, reporting a median unit volume of $95K. Read it closely: franchisors choose which units and which metrics to include.
How often do SBA loans for X-GOLF franchises default?
Across 169 SBA-backed loans to X-GOLF franchisees since 2017, 1 of the 33 that have resolved were charged off — a 3.0% default rate, versus about 14.8% across all rated franchise brands. This is the lender's-eye view of franchisee failure, drawn from public SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA data and independent of the franchisor's own disclosures.