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If you’ve got a golf course simulation at home or if you happen to operate a driving range, you might be interested in investing in some suitable golf mats. Designed to replicate conditions a golfer would experience on an actual course, golf mats can help make the experience a lot more realistic, allowing players to adjust their swing and strategy to better prepare them for the actual thing.
Before you head on down to buy just any golf mat, you should know that not all of them are the same. Minute differences in the way they’re designed can make a world’s worth of changes in terms of performance. So you better believe that some golf mats might not meet your standards and preferences.
Eager to find the best golf mat to suit your needs? Learn all about them with our definitive guide on finding the most ideal golf mats on the market.
If this is your first time encountering the concept of a golf mat, you might not be sure what their purpose is. After all, if you’ve got a lawn fully covered in turf, what’s the point of a simulation mat in the first place?
Let’s flash back to the first swing you ever did on turf. How much of your club’s head actually hit the ball, and how much grass and soil did you unintentionally knock out of its place in the ground?
Yup, practicing your swing can get dirty. Unless you’re ready to call your landscaping guy after every practice session, you should make sure you’re swinging your club on terrain that won’t come flying when it’s accidentally hit.
If you were thinking you could probably just practice on that paved portion of your backyard, you should keep in mind that your swing won’t always be on point. So practicing on any terrain other than soft grass or something similar could damage your expensive clubs.
How much money goes into achieving a perfectly manicured lawn? If you want to practice your put on your grass, you should be ready to incur the cost of having it regularly replaced and patched up.
Now, if you don’t want your backyard to look like it was damaged by a hundred miniature land mines, a golf mat can be an inexpensive solution. Mats range in prices depending on the material used to make them, but even the most expensive ones don’t cost a lot compared to a full landscaping job.
Okay, so we’ve established that practicing your swing on grass might not be the smartest way to improve. But because golf courses are mainly made of grass, it’s important that you become accustomed to similar conditions so that you’re able to translate what you’ve learned during practice more effectively.
Golf mats are made from simulated turf, which essentially makes them look, feel, and behave like grass on a course. This is as close as you might get to the real thing during practice, so they’re much more ideal if you want to really get the feel for swinging on an actual course.
Swinging a golf club with all the momentum and energy your body can muster can generate a pretty powerful hit. Imagine swinging with maximum force over a paved surface – the slightest miscalculation could damage your club and render it broken.
A soft simulation turf comes with multiple layers of padding and foam underneath. These help soften the surface to make it feel more like a loamy soil under grass. Aside from giving you a more realistic experience, the design is also intended to protect your clubs.
Differences in golf mat designs can change the way you enjoy what you’ve chosen. Understanding the minute feature variations each one provides can help you discover which one will truly meet your needs.
Are the small, simulated blades of grass thin, short, and loosely packed? Or are they thick, long blades that are tightly spaced? Differences in the way the simulation turf is arranged on the base can change the way your ball behaves, and the way it reacts to your swing.
Generally, golfers prefer thinner shorter blades, because they’re better at replicating golf course conditions. But other variations can be good if you want to challenge your swing and learn how to manage on more challenging terrain.
There are two main materials used for a golf mat’s base. These are rubber and silicone. Choosing between the two depends mainly on the type of feel you’re looking to replicate at home.
Rubber based golf mats tend to be slightly denser, so they feel like tightly packed soil, dirt, and rocks underneath turf. Silicone on the other hand feels softer and has a lot more bounce. Personally, we find that silicone is the better of the two in terms of imitating golf course conditions.
Another thing you may want to consider when it comes to the base is whether or not it can take an actual tee. Some golf mats allow users the ability to drive tees into the base to help replicate conditions on an actual course. These are much more stable, and work better for practice than free-standing tees used by other golf mats.
How big does a golf mat have to be? When it all comes right down to it, the measure isn’t set in stone. It really depends on how much space you’re comfortable working with.
For your guidance though, it would be ideal to choose a mat that lets you stand freely in your swinging position with room to spare. A larger surface area lets you practice without the need to constantly be mindful of where you stand in the mat’s space. Longer mats let you set-up several balls at once, so you’re able to move from one hit to the next without having to keep bending down to replace your ball.
This mat is rated the best pick based on our research, and for several sound reasons. Firstly, the manufacturer doesn’t lie when it says that the mat feels like the real deal, providing users a suitable training surface that perfectly replicates golf course conditions.
Another plus for the Real Feel is that it can take an actual tee. The design’s structure lets users stand a tee into the mat, making it easier to practice a variety of swings with greater accuracy. Other than that, the mat also features a sturdy base, realistic grass, and durable construction that’s guaranteed to survive heavy, daily use.
Finally, we also want to talk about the size of the mat. Extending 30 inches along its length, users can set down multiple balls along the strip to practice faster swings without bending down repeatedly to set a ball in place.
Coming in at second place on our list of golf mats is the Rukket mat. Designed with three different kinds of turf, this mat lets you practice your swing on a variety of textures getting you ready for whatever the course throws your way.
The extra large mat was designed for personal use, and is impressively portable. But because of its exceptional quality, it’s also often used as a commercial golf mat in driving ranges and practice courses.
You may also consider purchasing the golf net too which is ideal for both indoor or outdoor use. This can be purchased separately or as a combo which comes with the golf mat and net with a bag to carry and store them in.
It’s definitely up there as a more expensive pick. But because of its premium quality, you’re not likely to experience buyer’s remorse after purchasing it.
For the perfect marriage of affordability and quality, we’ve chosen this mat. Coming with a bunch of free accessories, an 8 year UV-warranty, and a convenient ball tray, clocking in those hours of practice can be incredibly easy and hassle-free with the Dura-Pro.
Exceptional durability, great value for money, and impressive versatility are some of the features that this mat has going for it. Of course, we think a few improvements to the texture of the turf could have ranked it higher on our list. Nonetheless, it is a suitable choice, especially when you consider that it’s really not that expensive.
You don’t need to damage your lawn or your club in your effort to practice. A simple solution like investing in the best golf mat you can find can be a practical and easy way to safely practice your swing at home.
Our top pick? All things considered, we think the CC Elite Real Feel Mat satisfies all the considerations for a top quality golf mat and much more. This premium turf perfectly replicates golf course conditions, giving you a suitable practice surface that makes it easier to translate what you’ve learned to the actual range.
