Mats vs. Grass at Practice Range

[David in FL]

Hate mats.

I'm fortunate enough to live in an area that allows me to always practice on grass.

One exception.....if I know I'm going to have to play a course with fairways that are extremely firm, I'll sometimes find a place with some mats just to tighten up my ball striking.

Still don't like 'em though.

[10monster01]

Where i live i do not a have a place around me that has mats, thank god, lol. As a avid driving range attendee i refuse to hit it off mats, i feel like its inconsistent. But maybe I'm just bias haha

[Stretch]

Decent mats are just fine. Don't be a prima donna.

[dak4n6]

We just had the same thread last week, and I will reiterate that mats allow a club to skid forward, which can mask a fat shot as carpediem said.  And yes, if you are experienced you can tell the difference, but on grass the feedback from a fat shot is so much more direct and obvious that it goes straight to the brain, whereas with a mat even though I felt that the last shot might have been fat, I'm not sure how much, and the ball flight was pretty good, so I don't do as much to correct on the next swing..

And then I go out to the course and chunk around until I can make an on-course correction.

[Zeph]

Good mats are OK, but I will always pick grass over mats if I had the option. Bad mats (most range mats in my experience) are a tragedy. I've got my own mat strip which I bring to the range, so I don't have to hit off those wretched things anymore.

[Golfingdad]

There is nothing wrong with practicing on mats.  I have two ranges I use near me, one with mats only, and one with both where they charge extra to hit off of the grass.  I always pay to use the grass because of the more accurate feedback, but I still get a lot off of hitting on the mats.  If your choice is practicing on mats or not practicing, certainly practicing on mats is the better option.

[x129]

You don't have to use the rubber tee. There are numerous products that give you a decent tee that you can use on mats.

As far as grass versus matts, I would rather hit off of a good mat (i.e. the ones that allow you to hit down and through. Not the ones that are carpet) than bad grass (i.e. the stuff that is 90% sand). Good grass would be my first choice but that is very hit and miss.

Originally Posted by Mr3Wiggle

I'm fine with mats.  Obviously grass is preferrable, but the range I go to changes out their mats regularly.  My biggest gripe about mats is practicing tee shots.  I don't like the rubber tees that are often too high or too low.

[RPMPIRE]

There aren't too many grass ranges in my area, unfortunately, unless you're a member of Olympic, Lake Merced, SF Golf club, etc. There is a range that is a short drive away that provides grass and mat, but the grass is about 90% sand. You chunk one and it's a sand explosion into your face. The mats aren't changed as regularly as they should. Most get pretty firm after only a couple of months. If you can tell what a fat shot is on a mat, I say mats are still okay. Doesn't beat grass, but most grass ranges in my area are sand traps topped with grass.

[AmazingWhacker]

I don't see a problem with mats at all.  Yes, when you are first learning then mats can hide fat shots and/or make you think you are hitting draws when you're actually not.  Once you learn the difference - and it's easy to tell just by sound/feel, it's no problem at all.

Once you learn to make good contact, it's not tough to do.  After watching The Players I got a little crazy and decided to take an old club and hit one right off my garage floor.  A year ago I would've thought it was impossible but it was actually no problem -  but I still prefer the mat, lol.

[carpediem4300]

After watching The Players I got a little crazy and decided to take an old club and hit one right off my garage floor.  A year ago I would've thought it was impossible but it was actually no problem -  but I still prefer the mat, lol.

Haha so much win

[B-Con]

Definitely prefer grass. Will gladly use matts if it's the only option, though. My local range does mats on weekdays and grass on weekends through the dry season (excluding days following rain). But a light layer of grass on top of a loose sand/soil mix is not pleasant. Deep divots or fat shots can spray all kinds of wonderful stuff up into your face, especially if there's a face-on breeze.

[nobackswing]

if it's mats only, i'll hit driver and teed up hybrid clubs.  nothing else.

i regret spending so much time learning golf on mats and thinking i had hit "good" shots that in reality hit 3 inches behind the ball.

i really like bobby clampett's sand drill to help my students make sure they master the "little ball before big ball" concept.

[carpediem4300]

hitting off the mats last night i was shanking and hitting most shots fat

moved onto the grass and hit everything fine with a nice little divot

its more than likely a personal to me thing,...but i cant stand matts

[keeps21]

Originally Posted by dak4n6

We just had the same thread last week, and I will reiterate that mats allow a club to skid forward, which can mask a fat shot as carpediem said.  And yes, if you are experienced you can tell the difference, but on grass the feedback from a fat shot is so much more direct and obvious that it goes straight to the brain, whereas with a mat even though I felt that the last shot might have been fat, I'm not sure how much, and the ball flight was pretty good, so I don't do as much to correct on the next swing..

And then I go out to the course and chunk around until I can make an on-course correction.

This happens to me, I hit the ball pretty well on the range.

Then on the course I'll hit at least 3 fat shots per 4 holes which kills my score (not to mention my wrist), more often than not I'll hit at least 1 fat shot per hole, sometimes more!

[bwdial]

Originally Posted by x129

You don't have to use the rubber tee. There are numerous products that give you a decent tee that you can use on mats.

As far as grass versus matts, I would rather hit off of a good mat (i.e. the ones that allow you to hit down and through. Not the ones that are carpet) than bad grass (i.e. the stuff that is 90% sand). Good grass would be my first choice but that is very hit and miss.

This.

I bought one of the "down and through" mats and it is really helping my ball-striking.  Of the ranges by me, one is all (crappy) mats and the other is all (even crappier) grass.  I'll take a good mat over either of those any day of the week.

[MakinTelevision]

Originally Posted by Mr3Wiggle

My biggest gripe about mats is practicing tee shots.  I don't like the rubber tees that are often too high or too low.

This. I prefer grass and am lucky to have a very nice range close to me that is all grass with about 50 boxes.

[anthony]

Grass is always better. I have a nice mat that I use at the local range, but since I found a nice (and priced well) range with grass mats, I drive 25 minutes out of my way to go there. If grass isn't an option, I would definitely get a nicer mat (I have a real feel) to take with you. I haven't seen a range yet who's standard mats weren't horrible at best.

[jamo]

I don't mind those new-style mats with the fake grass that aren't like hitting off concrete. Come to think of it, I think I'd rather have a nice mat over really crappy grass. I used to have a small rubber tee that let you stick wooden (or plastic) tees into it that I would bring with me, but I'm not sure what happened to it.