Matts....... Line them up properly, please!

As Darthvega alluded to, the mats aren't there to help you align, that would be an alignment tool... same goes with tee markers, pots or whatever you want to call them....

...why not ask the green keeper to follow you round and put tour sticks at your feet ;)
 
We had new winter matts a year ago that are set permanently into the ground. They are around 12 ft x 4 ft with nylon type bristles, you can set your tee in it just like on normal grass. Much better than temporary teeing plates and they dont get so slippery..
 
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SocketRocket said:
We had new winter matts a year ago that are set permanently into the ground. They are around 12 ft x 4 ft with nylon type bristles, you can set your tee in it just like on normal grass. Much better than temporary teeing plates and they dont get so slippery..
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We have a mixture which includes a couple of the new type that you allude to, certainly a great improvement, I don't have that nagging fear while swinging that I could end up on my butt
 
We only have them on the Par 3's during Winter but they're horrific.
They're rock hard - even when not frozen - and lumpy.
YOu can never get a tee into the things as the holes are plugged up with old tees so I don't bother except on the 200 yarder.
It means I need a really good stike to get the ball where I want it to go - now is that with an in-to-out swing and an open face or an out-to -in swing with a straight face...???:thup:
 
I can see where Oddsocks is coming from. :whoo:

If the mat is not facing in the general direction of the fairway it's really awkward to line up properly when standing skew whiff on a small piece of mat.
 
Imurg said:
We only have them on the Par 3's during Winter but they're horrific.
They're rock hard - even when not frozen - and lumpy.
YOu can never get a tee into the things as the holes are plugged up with old tees so I don't bother except on the 200 yarder.
It means I need a really good stike to get the ball where I want it to go - now is that with an in-to-out swing and an open face or an out-to -in swing with a straight face...???:thup:
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I am trying my hardest to keep a 'Straight Face' :)
 
Golfmmad said:
I can see where Oddsocks is coming from. :whoo:

If the mat is not facing in the general direction of the fairway it's really awkward to line up properly when standing skew whiff on a small piece of mat.
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Finally someone with an understanding. If your standing on a MAT that is 4ft square but miss aligned, even if you line yourself up correctly in your range of vision you still see the edges of the mat pointing off at strange angles which gives you alot less confidence of being aligned correctly
 
they take in to account the slip coefficient & traction loss of the shoe spikes on the matts in conditions when they'll be needed most & work out that most will slip hit a SNAP SLICE & get it back on track from where they're aligned

:D
 
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I would have thought the very least a good greenkeeper should do is line up the mats properly. We don’t all have new mats that are soft or big enough to move around on. Most have the tee holes close to the edge anyway, that in itself makes it difficult to align especially when using a long club. The other thing, without a mat you can pick a spot in front of the ball to line up with…I do it about half a meter in front of me. I can’t do that on the mats so the parallel edge of the mat does help.

This is not a big ask, I don’t see this as a moan, I see this as something that shouldn’t arise in the first place and is so easy to remedy. Oh, if the mat needs aligned I just do it anyway.
 
tommo, the course we played had the mats in a fixed place, you couldn't move them as they was built into a railway sleeper base great for stability but very poor when the base has been built incorrectly aligned. Around 50% of them were aiming where they should be, but one was aiming at a tree around 30ft into the cabbage.

I just cannot see why any decent green keeper or groundsman would build a fixed base aiming in the wrong direction... especially taking into account that the course in on mats for at least 4 months a year. Like you i tend to stand behind the ball, pick a point in front of the ball like a leaf, broken bit of tee, bit of gravel etc and aim off that, but as you quite rightly mentioned, with the tee holder being so close, the edge of the mat can sometimes act like a tour stick, swinging across as straight line by your ball doesn't inspire confidence.
 
How do you cope in summer if your ball is close to the edge of the fairway and the grass cut isn't pointing at your intended target??

That guy doesn't caddy for Robert Rock anymore, perhaps he could come and line you up??
 
Robo, in the effort of not lowering the forum tone with what actually went through my head when i read the above post, ill reply with a simple "what ever" ;)

after all, IPC have asked us to filter out both bad language and insults as its an open forum.
 
Good to see we both agree on something then. Its a shame when some people saw the post as valid, and "other"(s) saw it as a feeble effort to have a cheap pop. Maybe its the elitist HC you carry that makes us mere hackers points invalid.
 
Sorry, please clarify in the title that you only want people to post if they agree with you, it will save you having to get hot under the collar again.

Elitist? Now that's funny.
 
Not sure why anyone would argue against mats pointing at least in the general direction of where your supposed to be hitting the ball? Whether you think it makes a difference or not what valid reason could there be to not just point them down the fairway? Unless someone can give a reason as to why they would be pointing in the wrong direction then the OP has a valid point.
 
Airlie_Andy said:
Not sure why anyone would argue against mats pointing at least in the general direction of where your supposed to be hitting the ball? Whether you think it makes a difference or not what valid reason could there be to not just point them down the fairway? Unless someone can give a reason as to why they would be pointing in the wrong direction then the OP has a valid point.
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Because all the proper tees on courses do not so why should winter springboard mats?

If you cant stand on the mat and guage what direction to aim and line up accordingly then as Robo says, get a lab with a High Viz yellow coat to assist you.
 
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