Are driving range mats really bad for your game?

Question

I saw this quote which was an answer to someone else: "Stop using irons on driving ranges with synthetic mats. You need to practise irons off the grass. The mats give you a bad habit."

Now I'm a little confused. My local driving range has astroturf mats, and there is no option to play off the grass in front of the bays. I dont change how I play off mats or off grass, and I'm generally quite consistent with my irons. So what's the general opinion on mats?

Answer 1

I believe it is better for your golf game if you hit off the grass, you don't hit off mats when you play so why practice that way. I sometimes have to hit off mats like you do in your situation but I try to avoid it as much as possible.

Have a good one and good luck with golf...

Answer 2

I dont like them at all because you cant take a divot and hit down on the ball at all so stay away from them if at all possible!

:) best answer here!

Answer 3

theres nothing wrong with practicing on mats

im 14 years old and i have a handicap of 5 and i practise every day on mats

so i think they are fine

Answer 4

The only thing different about them is you can't make divots on mats

Answer 5

I can see the point in the other ideas. Personally, I use them to correct my swing if the ball is fading or drawing. Currently, I gotta diagnose what's wrong with my chip shot so that'll be where I'll start. Much easier than doing it on some grass.  

Answer 6

eh no because the grass would be the same!

Answer 7

mats are fine for practice. a proper golf shot consists of hitting down on the ball and HITTING THE BALL FIRST. i prefer hitting off mats cuz most grass ranges are crappy, unless you are at a resort golf course with a really good grass range

Answer 8

My home course has both mats and grass tees; if the grass tees are open that is where I will practice.

A few problems with mats:

-the mats do not accurately represent how your ball will sit on grass.

-mats do not punish you if you hit the ball fat.

-rare is it that you get a perfect lie; with grass tees you can replicate hitting out of a divot or on an uneven lie (ball above/below feet)

-the tees on mats are not consistent with how a ball sits on a tee, nor is the tee height adjustable.

If mats are your only option...go with what you can.

Answer 9

I think the quote must mean that you can't get right under the ball take a divot and create backspin, well i'm not good enough to do that anyway so i just want a good clean swing.

Answer 10

I don't like to play of mats personally. They don't feel right and your club bounces off them.

You might think you can hit your irons well on the grass now but it's like saying "you can fly a plane well after only piloting a video flight simulator." http://www.grouchygolf.com/2006/06/avoid...

I don't want to bore you with aload of text so just check out that blog above and it's all there.

But remember that is a biased view but I don't think many people will say that hitting off the deck of a mat will be useful, because of hitting fat shot. On a fairway it won't be anything like a driving range.

Answer 11

I use the Driving Range (DR) purely to get my swing back in the groove. Using woods at a DR is OK as you should not be grounding the club on address and if you should just catch the mat the smooth and rounded bottom of the wood will just glide over it. The iron shots on grass often produce a divot as you go through the ball. On a mat it will bounce and then your shot will not be "clean". When I was first given lessons I was on an indoor range with mats and I hated it when I caught the mat as it jarred up my arm. Now, 10 years on I cannot make a divot because my brain will not let me hit the ground. In consequence my iron shots for distance are not always the same. In short I think that hitting irons off mats is very bad for your game.

Answer 12

yes there no good

Answer 13

No it doesn't do anything to your game. It's giving you a habit of what you would do on the fairway or teeing off. The mats are just like the fairway grass. Mats are great to practice your swing on. You haven't got that same edge like you have on the course but still... So no it doesn't affect your game

Answer 14

Mats do not provide the same type of surface as a real golf shot.  You can't take a divot, etc, but practice off a mat is better than no practice at all, so if that is all that is available to you, then don't worry about it.  Mats are hard on joints though, like knees and elbows, so don't hit too many balls off them or you risk injury.

Answer 15

Mats are fine for swing drill, the only difference is that you obviously get bounce off the mat if coming down steeply.