Another DIY Divot Action build

[martybauer31]

This site was hugely helpful in me building out my stance mat and my divot action mat, so thought I would just post pics and give links for what I just built, hope folks find it helpful. My mat is a combination of great ideas I saw throughout these pages and so I kind of combo'd some of them together.

For my stance mat, I made it a 4x6 square out of 1" thick foam workout tiles I ordered from Amazon, and some nicer putting green from Home Depot.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/TrafficMaster-Putting-Green-6-ft-Wide-x-Cut-to-Length-Artificial-Grass-TMSPUTT06CTL/313236789

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KBPTHJN/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1

The DIY Divot Action was made from a piece of 12x24 lexan from Home Depot, the supports at the end and the interior I made from cutting away pieces from the foam workout mat, and I bought a chipping mat from All Turf Mats. I needed to shave the foam down slightly to match the height of the stance mat as the lexan and the purchased hitting mat stood taller. I then just cut a section off a foam sponge for the middle to keep the mat a bit firm and not have any contact with the cement underneath the mat. The chipping mat and the lexan went together with some 3M Super 77 adhesive spray and the foam was added to the bottom with construction adhesive. You'll want to play with the heights of the foam and the sponge to find what amount of flex works for you.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/LEXAN-12-in-x-24-in-x-093-in-Clear-Polycarbonate-Sheet-GE-33/202038063

https://www.homedepot.com/p/QEP-7-1-2-in-x-5-1-2-in-Extra-Large-Grouting-Cleaning-and-Washing-Sponge-70005QP/100173109

https://www.homedepot.com/p/3M-16-75-oz-Super-77-Multi-Purpose-Spray-Adhesive-77-24/100067550

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Loctite-PL-Premium-10-fl-oz-Polyurethane-Construction-Adhesive-1390595/202020473

https://www.allturfmats.com/Premium-Chipping-Mat-p/ht1224.htm

I spent about a week just hitting off the putting green and it left crap all over my clubs and broke down really fast. It's great to stand on and looks nice, but definitely not for hitting. The chipping mat I got I have only hit on for a day or so put it leaves no residue (so far) on my clubs and the seem to move through it pretty well, time will tell.

Please ask questions or comment, thanks again!

[Brettster]

Hey martybauer31 - thank you for the great post! Also, for including links to every item you used to build out your mat. That will allow anyone to pickup the same materials and one that I may try myself.

How is that AllTurf mat holding up? I want to build something like that, and would like to have several lengths of turf to hit off throughout the strip... I have samples from PurchaseGreen of several of their longer grass that would work for first cut and longer rough. You might want to check them out, but they will probably not fall into the cheapest category:

https://www.purchasegreen.com

I could see the AllTurf Mat acting as fairway. How many balls have you hit on it, and is it holding up? How are your wrists feeling so far?

[martybauer31]

Hey there, I've only hit a couple hundred balls so far, but I'm happy with it. Didn't seem to leave any residue and no issues with pain anywhere.

[Brettster]

Thanks, please keep us posted on how it holds up... Thanks again, I'll let you know when I start building my own mat, probably soon. My build is scheduled for completion before Thanksgiving! Getting really, really excited!

[runpuddrun]

This site was hugely helpful in me building out my stance mat and my divot action mat, so thought I would just post pics and give links for what I just built, hope folks find it helpful. My mat is a combination of great ideas I saw throughout these pages and so I kind of combo'd some of them together.

For my stance mat, I made it a 4x6 square out of 1" thick foam workout tiles I ordered from Amazon, and some nicer putting green from Home Depot.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/TrafficMaster-Putting-Green-6-ft-Wide-x-Cut-to-Length-Artificial-Grass-TMSPUTT06CTL/313236789

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KBPTHJN/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1

The DIY Divot Action was made from a piece of 12x24 lexan from Home Depot, the supports at the end and the interior I made from cutting away pieces from the foam workout mat, and I bought a chipping mat from All Turf Mats. I needed to shave the foam down slightly to match the height of the stance mat as the lexan and the purchased hitting mat stood taller. I then just cut a section off a foam sponge for the middle to keep the mat a bit firm and not have any contact with the cement underneath the mat. The chipping mat and the lexan went together with some 3M Super 77 adhesive spray and the foam was added to the bottom with construction adhesive. You'll want to play with the heights of the foam and the sponge to find what amount of flex works for you.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/LEXAN-12-in-x-24-in-x-093-in-Clear-Polycarbonate-Sheet-GE-33/202038063

https://www.homedepot.com/p/QEP-7-1-2-in-x-5-1-2-in-Extra-Large-Grouting-Cleaning-and-Washing-Sponge-70005QP/100173109

https://www.homedepot.com/p/3M-16-75-oz-Super-77-Multi-Purpose-Spray-Adhesive-77-24/100067550

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Loctite-PL-Premium-10-fl-oz-Polyurethane-Construction-Adhesive-1390595/202020473

https://www.allturfmats.com/Premium-Chipping-Mat-p/ht1224.htm

I spent about a week just hitting off the putting green and it left crap all over my clubs and broke down really fast. It's great to stand on and looks nice, but definitely not for hitting. The chipping mat I got I have only hit on for a day or so put it leaves no residue (so far) on my clubs and the seem to move through it pretty well, time will tell.

Please ask questions or comment, thanks again!

Love this! How is it holding up so far?

[pjconnolly12]

This is amazing and almost exactly what I am looking for. Unfortunately I need to be able to pick up the mat and store it against my garage wall, so we can park a car in there when needed. This means the foam workout pads won't work as they may fall apart when trying to move it, could be a hassle.

Any recommendations from anyone on something else I can put below the stance mat to get it to the height I need?

Unless anyone knows if these mats can be glued together or stuck to the stance mat with some adhesive, then they would be perfect.

[runpuddrun]

the 1" pads with the turf glued to it would not fall apart if you wanted to lean up against a wall.

[martybauer31]

Love this! How is it holding up so far?

Hey, so far it's worked great! I can immediately tell when I hit it fat, the Mevo reflects it and it doesn't hurt me. I've probably hit a couple thousand balls so far and zero wear on the turf is shown. I'm new and admittedly still figuring out my swing and have bashed an end and cracked the lexan. For the moment I have simply just applied some adhesive to the area and put clear packing tape over the top to keep in place. This is 100% on me and I can't imagine a product out there that could handle getting a full iron swing on the edge and not having the same thing happen.

[runpuddrun]

Fantastic. I’m in the process of building mine out as well. Going to pretty much copy your build with a slight change in the foam supports running all the way perpendicular. Do you think the lexan is the weak point? I’m unfamiliar with divot action and holy grail plastic and what they use, but I’d think they’re not breaking after a couple thousand balls. Is there a better “polycarbonate” or plastic to use?

[Brettster]

runpuddrun - regarding 'lexan/polycarbonate' replacement, how about either 1.) ABS plastic, or 2.) Polyurethane? Let us know if you find some good sources for these products - I think craft/hobby stores might sell them?

[martybauer31]

Honestly... the lexan is fine... just don't hit it on the edge with an 85mph iron and you will ZERO issues... 😁

[Capz65]

Nice job! I've been trying to formulate a diy mat that includes forward motion like the spring loaded soft strike mat. I'd buy the soft strike but as I need two of them, for lefty players, it's just not in the budget. So I'm just throwing this out there to a fellow diy guy. I'm picturing cutting away a few inches in front of your mat, replacing it with a foam and removing a 1/4" from the mat sides. Do you think that would replicate that forward movement?

[martybauer31]

Nice job! I've been trying to formulate a diy mat that includes forward motion like the spring loaded soft strike mat. I'd buy the soft strike but as I need two of them, for lefty players, it's just not in the budget. So I'm just throwing this out there to a fellow diy guy. I'm picturing cutting away a few inches in front of your mat, replacing it with a foam and removing a 1/4" from the mat sides. Do you think that would replicate that forward movement?

Yeah, I've seen them and they look cool, but as someone who is still trying to figure out his game, I don't know what the slide gets you that divot doesn't? I think what you're saying would work though, but if you're a chunker like I tend to be, I don't think the slide saves your wrists/elbows/etc. I have tested a couple different mats without the flex in the middle, and I definitely feel it when I hit it fat more than I do on the divot action. I know it both ways and it's always reflected on my shot distance with my Mevo+, but hurts way more.

[PKR]

Good choice on the 12x24. I made mine 12x18 and I caught the back of the lexan which stuck up a little on a very bad swing and had to make another. Now I play with the ball forward on the lexan.

[runpuddrun]

Anyone have any issues with glue sticking? Like I can’t even get the turf to stay glued down. It basically all fell apart when I was setting it back in the “pit”. Turf fell off, foam fell off. I waited a good 3+ hrs. It’s cold here and I’m in my garage. Do I need to bring it inside to cure?

[Brettster]

runpuddrun - I would think you need it to be warm. Try gluing it in your basement (heated) if you have one? I'm always hesitant to do work on my Shed Sim these days, until temps warm up. I even went out last night and pulled out my Halogen bulbs because it's supposed to be down to 19 F tonight.

Read the 'application temperature' on the glue you used, also where are you storing it ('storage temperature')? I try to keep it all inside, basement, laundry/mud room, etc. Looks like we'll be getting a break here Friday (Christmas Eve) and Saturday Christmas day... if I can find some time to sneak out and finish up wiring I'll be getting my heating panels going.

There's an idea for you as well - I'm planning on 2 Econo Heat panels for my Sim Shed, could you plug those into your garage outside? More info at: http://www.eheat.com

Let us know how it works out... after you get some heat...

[keefer00]

I spray glued my first DIY mat. Worked well, but after a couple months the mat started to wear out(I bought a cheap 12x24 from Amazon) so I had to toss the mat and the lexan. For my new mat, I am using velcro strips to attach the mat to the lexan so I can just replace the mat when it wears out. I've played a few rounds with it and seems to be holding up so far.

[runpuddrun]

It warmed up to 55* today and I also got an infrared heater, brought the strip inside and redid everything last night. It’s solid as a rock now.