Can Artificial Turf Mats Impede Your Practice?
Guest Post from Millie Rainer
How many times have you swung that iron, heard it swooshing through the air and realized mid-swing there is nasty divot waiting for you? While it is useful to know the importance of taking the ball out of bad lies, it is as important not to waste your equipment and energy on a shot that makes your golf club resemble a shovel. Practice makes perfect.
A lot of amateur golfers will tell you, it is much easier to play off grass than it is to play off the artificial turf on a driving range. The mat, they say, allows you to get away with a lot of strikes that would be disastrous on the range. However, those playing on artificial turf ranges swear by the clean swing it aids.
The debate has been long and seems unending. There are many who do not have the option of practicing on grass, and some driving ranges charge extra for practicing on grass. Artificial turf is cost-effective, and to a great extent, a green option for the game of golf. The truth is, if you have a clear idea how you are swinging and how your body is positioned, you can practice on any surface and still be able to ensure improvement.
Keep an Eye on Your Swing
On artificial turf if you hit the ball badly, your ball can skid away. Do the same swing on the grass of a driving range or out on the course and you will probably dig out an ugly scar in the turf. Instead, save the turf, your clubs and your arms some battering. Go for a smoother, shallower swing, and try to make it perfect. The smooth swing works on both artificial and natural turf.
Some of the best players who practice on grass, sweep through the ball at impact, with little or no divot. It is a swing every amateur golfer should strive for. Needless to say, it gives you a far smaller margin of error than when you dig divots through the golf course. Tiger Woods might look cool doing that, but then, he is Tiger Woods.
Many artificial surfaces now, thanks to modern materials, come with a good amount of give. Practice your swing slowly, relaxing your arms for a full extension, and allow them to swing through the ball, not at it.
Get Your Own Practice Turf
If practice makes perfect, why do you need to wait till you go to the driving range to start swinging? Get your own synthetic lawn from any reliable wholesaler. Make sure it is soft enough to provide you a close approximation of the give of natural turf.
If you have a backyard with natural turf you can convert a patch of it into your personal practice yard. Dig yourself a divot and keep trying to swing through it. This will help you with your downswing, but at the cost of making your backyard look quite disheveled.
While it may be very satisfying to throw up a beaver pelt with every swing, some of the best swings are the ones that merely brush the surface of the grass. Practice a clean swing every time you go out on a driving range, and especially when practicing in your backyard.
Artificial turf has become an integral part of golf courses around the world, thanks to its low requirements of water, maintenance and durability. Of course, playing on the range is an altogether different experience, but many ranges too have begun to adopt artificial turf, quite literally leveling the playing field.
Do not miss an opportunity to play or practice on grass, but when you are out of options do not let your game suffer. Create your own practice space, be it grass or mat, it is the practice you will do on it that will make the difference to your game.
