I’ve seen it mentioned here in a few spots but I wanted to give my .02 on the insert from gunghogolf after getting it installed and putting through 100-200 swings.
First off, the team there at gung-ho does a great job; from answering initial questions prior to purchase (skytrak) and follow through on the back end. They also shipped ahead of schedule which was a nice surprise.
My original mat had a longer ply height resulting in lower than expected numbers when I first starting using the ST. At first I questioned the unit but was able to run it side by side with trackman to verify. This also gave me a chance to hit off a fiberbuilt insert. Launch numbers were comparable to irl but as a digger I couldn’t quite warm up to the feeling. ST and TM launch speeds and angles were nearly identical throughout the session so I was able to single out the mat as most likely culprit.
I decided to give the Holy Grail Strip a try and so far I’m very pleased. Install was pretty straight forward, I haven’t stuck it down yet so I can’t speak on the adhesive.
Ball/club interaction is good and so far seems to give very accurate results compared to the feeling of the swing whether fat/thin/push/pull.
Anybody else give it a try yet?
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Spin is a result of speed and spin loft (dynamic loft minus angle of attack). Both Fiberbuilt and Holy Grail hitting surfaces allow you to freely hit down and through the ball like you can on a soft fairway, so if you make ball-first contact, spin and launch angles should be similar. The problem with many other types of mats is you cannot really hit down through the ball - not without eventual pain anyway - so you start picking the ball clean, shallowing out your angle of attack. -
I'm thinking the FB straightens out the shot a little because of reduced spin. Do you have any spin numbers FB vs HG? As I understand it, normal mats will produce less spin, but higher launch angle. That's an issue for me because I am a lower ball hitter, and mats always inflate my launch angle. -
Indyfish - Very sorry for the delay on yours. Our production line had not yet ramped up in June, but now we're fully operational and have stock on hand. -Ron -
Glad you hear you're liking it! Thanks so much for another thorough review. 👍 -
I had my first experience with the Gung Ho Golf Holy Grail hitting strip last night. So from a 12 HCP perspective, I was hitting some flush shots, a bunch of fat's and a few thins... Here are my observations vs my Fiberbuilt.
1. Forgiving to your joints when you fat one, maybe not as much as the Fiberbuilt, but Its tough to say. I had a pretty bad night of swinging last night and I can't truly attribute that to me fatting the shot more often than not...
2. More true to real life punishment for fatted shots. I normally carry my 6i around 185-190 and on my fatted shots it was coming up at around 160ish. Thats almost exactly what I've seen on course. Additionally shot direction for most my fatted shots tends to be a fade/slice. I saw that more often than not with the Holy Grail strip. The Fiberbuilt has a tendency to let you get away with fat shots a bit more and I think the bristle design somehow (no idea how) straightens your ball path out.
I like that its more realistic in terms of punishment. I always felt like Fiberbuilt was great but let me get away with some pretty aweful shots in the sim.
What I really like. Its probably 1/10th the weight of the fiberbuilt hitting strip. I have my sim in my wife's bay of the garage, so I need to put my fiberbuilt mat away each time to park her car in there. It's much easier moving it now, and it also seems like the transfer of energy doesnt move the stance mat as much any more so it stays in position.
Added bonus is putting on this strip is night and day vs the Fiberbuilt. Ball rolls true and I feel much more secure putting in the simulator on this.
All in all, an excellent alternative to Fiberbuilt. I highly recommend it for the price, and I am looking forward to implementing this in another setup for a friend as well. Well done Ron!!! GungHoGolf -
My pleasure Ron. And again, great job by you and your boys in Austin.
I've got some black tee holders from Finger Ten already, so, I'll mess around with the drill this fall/winter...although that air-conditioned sim room seems like a better choice than the course lately LOL -
Thanks for the thorough review, Cab!
Regarding drilling for a rubber tee, we've tested that, and it works well. Use a 5/8" drill bit, and you can just drill straight down thru the turf and thru the plastic underneath (avoid the support foam areas if possible, and also avoid areas you'll be hitting with irons, as the hole may slightly weaken the spot).
Then stick the driving range tee up through from underneath - they seem to "stick" at whatever height you pull them too, and are easily adjusted. The black rubber tees on Amazon (https://amzn.to/3fwp1QR) may be less visually distracting than white ones. -
Had the chance to spend some quality time with my new Holy Grail yesterday. Feedback/input/thoughts…
First, GungHo service was impeccable.
I didn’t see the “long” strip on the site, so called. No answer (from out of the country, as I was on a work trip). No sooner had I hung up from voicemail, they called me back. I was looking in the wrong spot. Missed the shipping deadline for the day by a few minutes, but was told if I ordered in the next few minutes, he could probably get it out in time. Hung up and ordered on line. Shipping email showed up 10 minutes later.
I happen to live 2-3 hours north of GungHo, so the thing showed up the next day, before I was even home from my trip! 👍🏼
The mat is pretty much what I expected, as a Divot Action user. It’s supported by foam strips for the entire length vs. the metal tension clips DA uses. The rubber padding in the photos was my attempt to quiet the DA clips from striking the underside every shot—the source of my biggest DA complaint…very loud in my small sim room. With the foam, the HolyGrail is about as quiet as I think I can get things.
Turf seems quality, color is off from the DA, and doesn’t match the FB stance mat exactly, but close enough. It matches my landing area, and anything that’s not neon works for me, TBH.
The height is very slightly off. Might be a foam sizing issue, a tray issue (Fiberbuilt seems to have about 10 different models, all different, and mine is 2+ years old). It not enough to need build up, but not an “exact match” either. As shown, it’s about a groove low, probably not a big deal at all, unless the foam sags with age.
With Uneekor, only an ~18” section is detectable, so the 46” strip is overkill. You can see how my DA was offset forward of center. That has as much to do with my room as the mat…I can’t move the tray and still clear the back wall. I plan to use it as is then rotate it 180°. I will use the extreme front or back for wedge warm up swings with no detection.
I’ve resigned to the Tomahawk tees as a sim user, but if I get a wild hair, I might drill a hole for a rubber tee holder in the DA as an experiment. Again, I have about a +/-2” fore/aft window that allows me to swing driver, so I could use the fixed tee location and real tees (my favorite part of the original FB strip)
The HG plays very true to real life, in my opinion. Probably due to the length of the flexible portion, I think it’s superior to the DA. Very similar turf, so expect they will wear about the same, and I am concerned about the foam sagging long term. BUT, with DA, you need to re-bend the clips once in a while and tear the entire thing apart to change them…I’m betting I could swap out the foam with waaaay less hassle on the HG.
Glad I bought it. IMO, and for my set up, the subtle but definite differences vs DA are pluses. The “minuses” are truly of the nit-pick variety. If starting fresh, Holy Grail gets my recc.
Well done Ron and GungHo!Attached FilesLeave a comment:
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What is the exact cutout size (LxWxD) of the True Strike mat? We may consider it.
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