Working on perfecting your golf game with the help of a golf mat is a great way to keep regularly practicing, without having to pay the price of hitting a bucket of golf balls at your favorite golf course or local driving range. Paying to hit balls can quickly add up to be a major expense, especially if you like to practice a lot.
A good golf simulator can help re-create the fairway experience, and provide you an opportunity to work on your swing from anywhere. And at a fraction of that cost! Another way to save money is by purchasing high-quality reconditioned practice golf mats, along with some practice balls, and go at it every single day in your backyard.
Keep reading to discover everything you need to choose the best golf mat for you below.
What to Look for in a Golf Mat
If you plan to practice frequently, you don’t want a golf mat that deteriorates quickly, and that means it has to be durable and well-made. The longest-lasting golf mats on the market today are those made with an upper layer consisting of polypropylene, which stands up very well to repeated golf swings.
How your golf mat feels is essential.
So you can approximate the actual feel of a golf course, your golf mat should have the same kind of feel that real grass on a course does since most of your golf swings when you play on an actual course are taken from somewhere on the fairway. For this purpose, you need to look for a polypropylene golf mat, which is also foam-cushioned, because that will come closest to feeling like standing on the grass of a real fairway and hitting approach shots toward the green.
The realistic feel of a foam-cushioned polypropylene golf mat will improve your practice sessions, which in turn will improve your handicap on the golf course. If your practice sessions feel totally different from conditions on a real golf course, you won’t be able to transfer anything you’ve learned on to the course itself.
What are the Differences in the Types of Mats Available?
There are three main points to consider when choosing a golf mat that’s right for you.
1. How does the mat help your swing on and off the course?
The first thing is that it has the right feel so that your practice sessions are pretty much the same as your rounds of golf are.
2. Can the mat damage your clubs?
The second thing you should be concerned about is that the upper layer of the golf mat does not impart any damage to your clubs after repeated swings.
3. What is the golf mat made of?
Basically, there are three distinct materials which are used as the upper layer in the construction of any golf mat:
Nylon
Nylon is the most durable of these three, and it will provide you with the longest-lasting golf mat that you can purchase. However, nylon lacks the natural feel that a polypropylene mat does.
Polypropylene
Polypropylene has the advantage of being both durable and more resistant to water. So, if you leave your golf mat outside all the time, this type of mat will hold up better under frequent rains, stand-up to the heat of the sun, and it won’t wear as quickly as polyethylene.
Polyethylene
Polyethylene is another material that can withstand the abuse of repeated golf swings, although it lacks the long-term durability of nylon and the water-resistance of polypropylene.
Virtually all golf mats are constructed using black rubber as the base layer, and this will be about a half-inch thick. It’s intended to provide a softer surface to stand on to simulate standing on the ground in the middle of the fairway.
Pros & Cons of New vs. Used Mats
There are certain advantages to using both new and used mats. Using a brand new mat will, of course, provide you with the longest-lasting type of mat, assuming that you have purchased a high-quality mat, to begin with. But a used mat can give you almost the same degree of long life, especially if it has been re-conditioned by the seller.
Probably the biggest single advantage of a used golf mat is the extraordinary price savings you can achieve. Buying a used mat will often earn you a discount of a full 66% off the cost of a new mat, and for that savings, you won’t be sacrificing any quality, as well as very little playing life.
A used mat will last nearly as long as a brand new mat, and if maintained properly, may, in some cases, even exceed the useful life of a new golf mat. If your whole justification for buying a golf mat in the first place is to save money from daily practice at the driving range, it certainly makes sense to purchase a used mat. Furthermore, if you happen to be an environmentally conscious person, they will appeal to you because you will also be recycling an existing golf mat, rather than causing additional resources to be wasted in the construction of a new one.
Does Size Matter?
Size does make a difference when you’re practicing your golf swing, especially if you feel a little crowded or confined by using a smaller-sized mat. Golf mats are generally manufactured within a range of sizes that includes on the smaller end, a 12-inch by 24-inch mat, and on the larger end, a 60-inch by 60-inch mat. If you really want to feel comfortable with your golf swing, and if you’re going to practice with all the clubs in your bag, you’re better off purchasing the larger golf mat.
Usually, these larger mats will have several tee holes placed strategically around them so that you can vary your driving practice, and so you can also change your iron and hybrid practice to different points on the mat. Some mats even come equipped with varying levels of simulated turf so that you can practice under different course conditions, i.e., cut fairways, rough, and semi-rough. Generally speaking, the way to go with size is to choose the largest mat available, because it will come closest to simulating real golf course conditions.
The Rawhide Golf Mat Advantage
When it comes to high-quality reconditioned polypropylene golf mats, you can’t beat Rawhide Golf Co. Our large-size mats come from one of the top golf facilities in the country and are virtually like new. Rawhide mats provide the feel of being on the course and won’t damage your clubs. They’re the perfect practice golf mat for both home and golf facility use.