Cheapo mat vs. $$$$

[Capz65]

I'm using a $200 4x5 mat from golfers warehouse. The feel isn't realistic although I have nothing to compare it to. What do the pricey top of the line mats bring to the sim? Just trying to gauge how high a priority it is to upgrade.

[Mmr1234]

Sorry for the late reply. I have tried a few and what I have come to learn was that, yes, they matter. But the different brands work better for different swings. My first one was really cheap and thin. It was causing a lot of soreness, mostly in my neck and forearm. So I then sought out the opposite of that and got a Country Club Elite. It is a great mat. But, it only helped a little with my soreness. I recently switched from a country club elite to a Fiberbuilt and I have been pain-free and have no issues, and it feels great.

I have a shallow inside-to-out swing and the big thing I am working on fixing is my low point behind the ball. With the cheap mat, I was just pounding the concrete. No shock absorbtion. With the country club elite, it was too think and it was grabbing my clubhead too much. This was making me sore too, but also screwing up my sim data.

I feel like the FIberbuilt type mat is likely a good middle option for most people, but consider your swing type!

[Anansi]

My primary concern when purchasing an expensive mat was injury prevention. I tend to play or practice daily, and I wanted to avoid medial epicondylitis (golfer’s elbow). My first mat was a cheap “tri turf” mini-mat that came with a net I purchased. That mat had little padding, and I had to be careful with my strike, even when I was using it on grass. My second mat was a “Fairway Pro”. The FP mat had a spring-driven slide mechanism that allowed the turf to move forward, and simulate a divot being taken. The FP had decent padding, and I carried it to the driving range with me to practice so I didn’t have to hit on cheap range mats. The FP did a great job protecting me from injury. My biggest issue with that mat was it’s size. I occasionally hit the housing while trying to correct my swing path. Unfortunately, the FP’s spring mechanism had a plastic part that eventually broke, which later rendered the slide mechanism inoperable.

I’d previously used and enjoyed Fiberbuilt surfaces at local driving ranges, so I went with a Fiberbuilt studio mat when building out my sim. I’m happy to report that after more than a year I’m still injury-free, and the hitting surface (Fiberbuilt “grass”, looks like a stiff bristle brush placed upside down) is in fine condition. I like being able to get under the ball to simulate high launch flop shots, and I’ll occasionally use the “performance turf” section (the stance mat in my setup) when I want to practice short game off of a traditional tight lie. I also putt on the Fiberbuilt surface, which I find rolls true enough for sim purposes. (I have an ExPutt, also highly recommended, that I use for putting-specific practice when I can’t get to the course.) Due to the construction of the surface, I have to closely monitor whether I’m hitting the ball “fat”. The FB grass will punish fat strikes, but not nearly as much as the “performance turf” or similar construction mats, which deliver more of a shock/club twist when you hit behind the ball.

Depending on how you deliver the club, you can use cheaper mats without too much injury risk. The biggest variable is your AOA , especially with wedges and short irons. If it’s shallow enough, a cheap mat won’t hurt you.

[jdang307]

Been thinking about building a mag strike for a while now. Someone built one here, and described how it worked, and what would be needed to make it better. Just a hitting surface, magnets, and a frame of some sort to keep the turf from flying.

[James Spratke]

I'm interested as well. I want to buy one but can't get one shipped to the US

[GullLakeMi]

Depends if you are digger or picker. If digger, mat will matter a lot to find right feel without causing injury yet impacting ball flight appropriately.

[Brettster]

Hi jdang307 ,

Been thinking about building a mag strike for a while now. Someone built one here, and described how it worked, and what would be needed to make it better. Just a hitting surface, magnets, and a frame of some sort to keep the turf from flying.

I believe it was wbond that had a post about trying almost all the name brand mats, and mentioned building his own MagStrike. I would like to find one - or a way to build one too... PM me if you want to try to work on this together? The only one I found online was 1,200 Euros only available from EU, so I don't even think it would ship to USA?

I'm a digger, especially on short irons (wedges), and need to find a way to be able to hit that shot effectively without injury and producing the correct shot outcome in the simulator. I have a Fiberbuilt mat on my ProTee (built in), and an extra one I could use to hit off for my Garmin Approach R10. I'd like to compare how that is to real life, as I saw somewhere the comparison was that it was not as real as TrueStrike.

Which leads me to another point - creating a DIY Gel Mat is another option that I'm looking at.

[wbond]

You might be talking about this thread. https://golfsimulatorforum.com/forum...itting-station

Been thinking about building a mag strike for a while now. Someone built one here, and described how it worked, and what would be needed to make it better. Just a hitting surface, magnets, and a frame of some sort to keep the turf from flying.

[Brettster]

Yes wbond - that's it... just wondering a few things about your Ultimate DIY Hitting Station:
---
1.) Curious how the MagStrike mat is holding up and where you bought it? I cannot locate it for sale anywhere except in EU (close to $927 Euros).

2.) Are you still using MagStrike only for your hitting mat? I'm in process of finding the best... have Holy Grail and SigPro Softy coming, but likely will also drop in a FiberBuilt (protee sensor top for now) to try out. I know previously from playing in Sims, the only one that felt good to me (and my wrists/arms) was FiberBuilt - but never tried these newer varieties or the DivotAction or FairwayPro. As you may know, Divot-Action is out of business as the owner passed away, and Fairway Pro is unresponsive as well, no replies from them.

3.) Have you used an actual TrueStrike? How did that do for you? I'm considering making my own Gel Mat underneath as it appears it could be the 'most realistic' from a numbers standpoint - just don't know if it will protect my arms enough?

Thanks for covering all of these mats...

[wbond]

1- holding up just fine, also have additional strips when it wears out. Got it from a USA vendor when it was sold here
2- I use that and Fiberbuilt only now
3-yes I’ve used the original a lot as well but still didn’t think it’s as good as magstrike or Fiberbuilt

[Brettster]

wbond

1.) which USA vendor was it? Do they still offer it?
2.) is it Fiberbuilt grass series you use? Read somewhere it may provide inaccurate readings at times because of height of fibers? Fiberbuilt 300,000 strikes warranty would be 100 years?
3.) I think TrueStrike original does not have much gel? I wonder if you ever tried a DIY gel mat instead, maybe it's better? I'm considering that as well, doesn't seem to hard to build, the only hard part is sourcing the big chunk of gel to use in the mat?

Thanks...
-Brett

[wbond]

Wittek and no they don’t. No idea which series it is, it’s the 1x1 panels that interlock together and I have never heard of Fiberbuilt causing inaccurate readings and no reason why it would. I made a diy gel mat and used the original. Gel is easy to come by, the problem is getting the right hitting surface and thickness.

[Capz65]

I've been brainstorming for awhile to come up with the most realistic diy mat. I don't see gel as the best base unless it's very soft. But I can't picture a very soft gel holding its shape or lasting very long. I think the underlayment should be as close as you can get to dead air. And deeper than the couple inches the gel inserts allow. I'm picturing some kind of bouncy open cell foam with plenty of open air space to replicate hitting through fairway turf. I'd also like the forward movement like the Soft strike design.

[Brettster]

Capz65 - what's 'soft strike'? Do you mean 'True Strike'? Forward movement... wait a minute, are you talking about the mat with the forward slider on it - that likely is 'soft strike'? How much does that run, sizes and options? Where do you find it for sale?

[Capz65]

Soft strike is seen here. Some here bought it and gave positive feedback. I'd still like to see that forward motion combined with open air cushion underneath.

[Brettster]

Thanks Capz65 - looking into that at the moment... do you know where to purchase? Regarding that motion with an open-air cushion - if someone were to make one, how much would be willing to pay for it? (possibly considering making one).

Thanks,
-Brett

[Capz65]

My build needs to be custom inlayed into the concrete garage floor. I have no room for a raised platform due to ceiling height. I have a few ideas how to build the dual action mat. But I can say if you come up with something that I end up building and using I'd be happy to compensate you as thanks.

Softstrike mat was sold here about a year ago and through facebook. Not sure if it's the same as the softstrike at hdgolf.com.

[Brettster]

Hi Capz65 - ok, thanks, I will consider it. Why do you think that is better than 'TrueStrike' which uses gel under the mat, or 'MagStrike' which uses a slider that is held down with magnets?

Thanks...
-Brett

[wbond]

There is no slider on a magstrike. There are magnets embedded in the base and opposing magnets embedded in the bottom of the hitting strip. The opposing magnets force the strip to float in air. Strips of rubber on the sides hold the floating hitting surface in place.

Hi Capz65 - ok, thanks, I will consider it. Why do you think that is better than 'TrueStrike' which uses gel under the mat, or 'MagStrike' which uses a slider that is held down with magnets?

Thanks...
-Brett

[James Spratke]

What size magnets did you use when you made yours? I'm going to try to make one