What did you do about large turf in sim room?

[Rbl]

So I’m starting my build and want a large section of turf, 15 foot by 15 foot. I will also have mat on top to hit from. I’m unsure of what direction to go. I have been researching the forum, and the best price I have seen for putting grade turf is $3.37 per square foot from Menards. Global syn-turf all green pro putt 44.

I guess my question is if I need the putting grade turf for the sim. Do you guys use the large area and practice putting on your own, unrelated to sim. Are there cheaper but still nice enough synthetic turf options that aren’t for putting? Does the sim putting experience get improved by having putting quality turf all around?

Thanks.

[rjd1975]

I built my sim about a year ago and had poured through this site and others asking many of the same questions everyone else asks. One thing that I read was see if there is a local distributor of artificial turf in your area. Go there and see if they have remnant pieces that will work for you. I did this at my local Synlawn place and it worked great.

[gnomike]

Agreed! In fact I have reached out to local STI and SynLawn reps to see what remnant pieces they might have... X fingers lol

[gene438]

Putting turf comes in many prices and quality. The indoor/outdoor carpet stuff you see at Home Depot, etc. is really just cheap plastic fibers...but it is better than nothing. Better quality turf will be in that $4.00 sq ft. range and higher. The turf in my simulator is my most expensive part .... but in my opinion it is worth it. I practice putting for hours when watching movies and TV. When people come over, it is the first thing they do.....

The good news is that most turf comes in 15 ft. wide rolls, so, your room dimension is perfect. You can get one piece and not have any seems. Another point that most people don't realize is that when you get a piece that size, you probably will not have to nail or adhere the turn to your floor. It should be heaving enough to lay on it's own. Once I stretched out my turf 15 x 22, it laid flat and required no nailing or gluing down.

Another interesting fact about true putting turf, if you want the speed of the turf to be faster, you actually brush in sand and it speeds up the green....and helps lay down the piece as well.

[dack]

Hi Gene: Sorry if you stated this in an earlier post, but what turf did you buy? Thanks.

[gene438]

I used the synlawn product - Classic Put. Here is link.

https://www.synlawngolf.com/shop/synlawn-classic-putt/

And yes, if you are putting down a large single piece like mine...15 x 22, you do not need to nail it or glue it down. Now, I did nail down the left edge of mine before I realized it was not needed. My plan was to nail down that edge and then spread it out and stretch it tight....but, when i rolled it out, it was so heavy that it just layed down perfect. I stood in the middle and tried to wiggle my feet and get the turf to move, etc....nothing....solid as a rock, so I just left it alone. I vacuumed it a few times to get it perfect and it has been the same for 2 years now.

[gnomike]

Gene, that was great feedback, thank you. I almost went with that product too, but opted for a product by Bella Turf instead which is almost identical to STI's NP50 ... incidentally, the picture on the product page looks terribly cheap and plastic-y, but IRL it's great:

https://bellaturf.ca/bella-turf-products/country-club/

It is lighter weight than the Synlawn product, though. Due to that, my room size being half of yours, and your great info, I'm pretty sure that I will tack mine down... I'm hoping good carpet tape will be sufficient.

[wbond]

I think it really depends on what you want to do with the turf. You mention you're planning to have the hitting mat on top. If you are not planning on putting and want to have a mat on top, then you can go with anything. My setup is in my garage and was just looking for turf to put down to stop the ball from bouncing around. I found a workout facility that was closing and got turf from them really cheap. I have my hitting mat on top and then i have a separate putting station using NP50 from STI. I just looked again on facebook marketplace and there are a few ads selling turf, you may want to check that out as an option.

If you want to use the room for putting, then get a good quality turf and create a drop in section just for the hitting mat.

[simmb]

As wbond says, depends what you want from it. I only put in artificial turf for aesthetics I never enjoyed practicing putting so made it an easy choice. I just went for a middle of the road 30mm pile artificial turf, not cheap rubbish but not the most expensive stuff either, Think I paid around 300 pound for 17.5ft X 13ft.

[Rbl]

Thanks for info this far. Has anybody tried or heard of using foam eva interlocking tiles as padding underneath my turf? Seems like I can get enough for around 100 bucks

[gnomike]

I've heard of that and was planning on doing it myself. The rep at STI that I spoke to said it gets done quite a bit too. What I don't know, is if people glue the turf to the foam or free float it on top... does it shift/buckle?

[aja]

Can't really see the point in laying the carpet on top of foam. Going to be pretty spongy and not like a golf course at all.

I have carpet tile directly on on plywood.

[gnomike]

aja The main point is a way to have the turf the same height as the hitting strip. Besides, we're not talking spongy foam here. This is the dense stuff that is used in gyms and the like. Think of it like padding under your carpet so it doesn't feel too rock hard. Anyway, everyone decides what feels best to them.

[OhioGolf]

Have you checked out Rubber Flooring Inc?

https://www.rubberflooringinc.com/artificial-grass.html

I just ordered about 8 different samples from them. Seems like they have some good options and at reasonable prices. Not sure if anyone else has used them.

[mikestuewe]

Have you checked out Rubber Flooring Inc?

https://www.rubberflooringinc.com/artificial-grass.html

I just ordered about 8 different samples from them. Seems like they have some good options and at reasonable prices. Not sure if anyone else has used them.

I’m interested in rubber flooring too. Seems like a good price per square foot. If anyone has purchased, please share your thoughts on how well it putts

[gnomike]

I ordered this extra thick EVA foam tile to put under my putting turf. I have a small sim room and will do the whole floor.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07BXMCNM8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This should make the final height the same as my hitting strip (fiberbuilt) which I plan to insert. Before I cut into the turf and foam, though, I think I'll take the opportunity to make a DIY DivoitAction and/or TrueStrike, but without cutting the turf... i.e. from the top my turf will be completely seamless! It will be finicky to get the positioning right, and of course the putting turf won't stay pretty being hit off all the time, but for a while I will have a super clean looking sim room... like walking on a fairway playing golf.... aaah happy thoughts....