Are mats really that detrimental to your game?

[Herbie]

Mats are very flattering to a poor strike and a poorly hit 7I will still fly vaguely like a sweet strike.

Hit a poor strike on grass and its different.

Agree with birdieman, I get all sorts of wrist and elbow pains after hitting short clubs at the range because of the lack of forgiveness in mats.

seconded.

Any sort of positional iron shot is going to be compromised by an unyielding mat IMHO. Even a first cut of grass is going to be more forgiving than typical range mat. I personally take the results from mats with anything shorter than a 4 iron with a pinch of salts as far as quality of contact and distance is concerned.

bill

There are a whole host of probs with mats, how many people use a SW on mats???? Worst club you could use on mats in my view.

 

[DelB]

Worst club you could use on mats in my view.

Surely a putter would be worse??

 

[Herbie]

Worst club you could use on mats in my view.

Surely a putter would be worse??

depends if you are hitting a draw or fade with it!

 

[DelB]

depends if you are hitting a draw or fade with it!

Knowing me, it would be a full blown slice!

 

[Robobum]

There are a whole host of probs with mats, how many people use a SW on mats???? Worst club you could use on mats in my view.

Herb, I am obviously in the minority here, but I hit all my clubs off the mats including my SW. It's just a stock 54* Vokey so hasn't got any funky grinds on it or anything.

I said in another post about ball first contact and this is even more prevelant with the short clubs. I have no problem just pinching the ball off the mat, if you can master it off a mat you will have no problems back on the course especially if the fairways are really soft (we wish) as you will not end up trying to dig a new bunker!!

 

[CarpeDiem]

I even go down to a 60*.

 

[Robobum]

I even go down to a 60*.

It's the bounce that is the problem and the SW generally has more.

I hit my 60* as well the only problem I have with it is that it leaves half of the ball left in the grooves after each shot!!

 

[CarpeDiem]

It's not to bad when its range balls that your tearing up, but when its brand new Pro V's and £3 a pop then it hurts.

 

[Parmo]

Last weekend I was ripping AD333s like crazy off mats with my 60*, what a great feeling cleaning the plastic out of the grooves

 

[CarpeDiem]

Are your range balls AD333's ?

 

[Robobum]

It's not to bad when its range balls that your tearing up, but when its brand new Pro V's and £3 a pop then it hurts.

Too true, my 4some partner hates me, he always takes the odds and pegs up a new Prov on the 1st, leaves me about 80 yds. He marks the ball on the green to clean it and finds half of it missing, he's gonna want to change partners when I renew my Vokeys this year!!

 

[Parmo]

Are your range balls AD333's ?

range balls??? I have to take my own and collect my own!!

Its a field about 220 long and 140 wide shaped like a triangle with two bays at the top, no one uses them except me as they use the grass.

 

[CarpeDiem]

When you go and collect them from the back of the field do you have to tell people your going so they don't hit you. Just asking as I have only used range's in which a tractor collects them.

 

[USER1999]

Parmo, if there isn't a tractor, what do you aim at?

 

[Parmo]

When you go and collect them from the back of the field do you have to tell people your going so they don't hit you. Just asking as I have only used range's in which a tractor collects them.

Nar, the only time is if there is a noob there and their balls are spread across the field (usually like mine). I just tend to walk over lookin in the direction of the other users and have a nod to them and they are fine. I tend to get there early morning so its empty and cheap.

Parmo, if there isn't a tractor, what do you aim at?

The juniors mostly

There is a pole at 210 in the top corner or for 4 upwards a tree line and the pitching green is 50 yards from the bays.

 

[CarpeDiem]

Parmo,

How many balls have you lost on there, must be loads.

Have you ever been tempted to take other peoples balls?

 

[Parmo]

Parmo,

How many balls have you lost on there, must be loads.

Have you ever been tempted to take other peoples balls?

I used to have about 200+ topflites and if a shot was wayward I wasnt bothered, but since I changed to 333's, NXT, old Pro Vees and the likes I find my practice has improved!! I tend to buy 50 AD333 lake balls for about £20 and any decent ball I find goes in the bag, I can loose a few but somedays I find more than I loose, usually top flites I find

I have seen people nick my balls before, before I marked them all with a huge X otherwise if you are using an area people avoid it.

 

[RGuk]

If it's bounce you're after.....check out this bad boy...!!

I've been honing my skills with this little comedy wedge now for a week or two. full shots, half shots, up-the-nose shots, shots of rum and got shot of woolworths.

Has there been a mysterious issue of mats? Noo000.....
Have I carted myself to the doctors to fix my $million hands? Noo000
Is it possible to hit short irons of artifical turf? Noo000, whoops, sorry, YES!!!!!

Thank goodness my range doesn't have AD333s, the milling on this face could be used by the missus in the bath to do her legs!!!!

 

[USER1999]

As much as I like Macgregor (I still have a set of 1025m's as I can't bring myself to get rid of them, they are sooo pretty), that is one ugly sucker. I hope it really does the biz, because it needs to to compensate for the looks.

Clubs like that are why they invented head covers.

 

[DelB]

...that is one ugly sucker.

You may want to go back and check your spelling!