Before “eatertainment” became a buzzword and interactive social venues began appearing across the country, Mike Speets had already placed his bet on something simpler: people would always need a reason to gather.
A self-described “golf nut,” Mike first saw the potential of golf simulator technology at a trade show in 2018. At the time, the idea of building a social experience around simulators, food and drinks still felt new. But to him, it felt like the future.
By 2019, the idea for Crush It was taking shape. In 2020, he was ready to open the doors.
Then the world closed.
“There was no grand opening,” Mike says. “I had to open in the middle of a pandemic.”
For a business built around connection, the timing could not have been harder. Mike describes the first year and a half as survival mode. Still, little by little, people came. Local families showed up. The losses became break-even months. Eventually, the business found its footing.
And truly, he’s never forgotten the neighbors who helped him get there.
Today, Crush It Social, formerly Crush It Sports Lounge, looks far different from the original concept Mike launched with six multisport simulators. Those simulators remain part of the experience, offering golf, soccer, football, baseball, zombie dodgeball and carnival games, but he has continued adding new ways for guests to stay, play and connect.
In 2024, a roughly 4,000-square-foot expansion, dubbed “Crush It 2.0,” brought six Duckpin Social bowling lanes, augmented reality darts and more interactive attractions. More recently, a pickleball simulator joined the lineup.
“I’m constantly looking to innovate and stay ahead of the trends,” Mike says.
That evolution is also behind the new name. Crush It Social better reflects what the business has become: not simply a sports lounge, but a place built around being together.
Guests can stop in for lunch or a cocktail, reserve an activity for a night out, or celebrate everything from birthdays and corporate events to baby showers, team parties, Sweet 16s and engagements. Mike understands the magic of that kind of gathering personally. He and his wife, Kristin, held their own wedding reception at Crush It, where guests played games between cake cutting and celebrating.
For Mike, that kind of connection feels especially meaningful now.
“In a post-COVID environment where everybody works from home and everybody’s communicating on direct messages and emails, you miss that face-to-face,” he says.
Maybe that’s part of what makes Crush It work. The games draw people in, but the real experience is what happens around them: the laughter between turns, the stories shared over a drink, the simple joy of being in the same room.
This fall, the menu leans into that sense of fun with shareable charcuterie, seasonal cocktails and an espresso martini flight featuring salted caramel, pumpkin spice and spiced chai flavors. The Texas Smoke Show adds a little theater of its own, topped with a bubble that pops and releases a cloud of smoke.
The same community that helped Crush It survive its earliest days remains woven deeply into the business. Mike supports Southlake and Grapevine schools, youth sports teams and local events, including various Southlake Dragon events. He has donated to school programs, helped sponsor a pickleball court at Old Union Elementary and regularly hosts the GRACE Gifting Party ahead of the organization’s annual gala.
For Mike, giving back is personal. He and Kristin live in Southlake with their son, Liam, a future Dragon, and are also parents to his stepdaughter, Maddy Matthews.
There are already plans for another evolution in 2027, with upgrades to the bar and dining area and a few new attractions still under wraps.
But for all the technology, expansion and innovation, the heart of Crush It Social remains surprisingly simple: for a few hours, the outside world can simply wait its turn.
Sometimes being ahead of the curve means seeing what is coming before everyone else.
And sometimes it means understanding what people will never stop needing: a place to come together.