Hitting Forged Irons off artificial turf mats

I tried out the Mizuno JPX 919 Forged irons today and I loved them. I've heard that hitting forged irons off of artificial turn mats on a regular basis can have an adverse effect on them (loft, lie angle, etc.). The driving range at my club uses mats Tues. through Thurs. and some Fridays, then grass on Sat. and Sun. So if I bought those Mizunos, I'd wind up hitting them on mats about half the time. Should I be worried about that? What exactly do the mats do to affect the clubs? Is it something that can be fixed by having the clubs re-adjusted back to their original setup once a year or so?

Thanks

Yes, mats will affect forged irons if used on a regular basis. As you say, potentially loft, lie angle, etc. could be affected. All of that is fixable of course, but you'll need to be more on top of it than if you were hitting cast irons. Mats are also harsher on your joints. Forged irons or not, I would never hit a ton of shots off of mats, but that is me.

Proof will be in the pudding if you start noticing changes out on the course with their performance. If they are playing fine despite practicing off of mats, then just roll with it as long as you can.

Thanks for the response. It just occurred to me that our range mats have two surfaces - the typical hard green surface with no shag to it at all, and right next to that, another type of turf that is about the length and thickness of shag carpet. The ball sits up on that longer surface a bit, and I don't typically feel the same shock off that surface that I do from the harder surface. I guess if I got the Forged irons, I could just hit them off the shag surface exclusively.

Many times people blame the irons for changing their lofts or lies and never once think to check if the shafts have become bent. It is far more likely that the shaft has bent right at the hosel than the head. Especially if you are using KBS shafts.

As for hitting off the shag as opposed to the mat, you have to consider the resistance that each surface exhibits. I've seen many a "shag" mat that has far more resistance to the shot than any "harder" mat. Neither is going to be friendly to the player if you are a big divot taker.

used to below to a club that only had mats, and I used to practice a ton with forged irons. I would check them a couple times during the season and find that several clubs were out of spec. For some reason, it seemed to be the low and high numbered clubs that had moved. The mid irons always seemed pretty close. I am going to have to respectfully disagree that it is more likely that the shafts have bent than the lofts/lies have changed. I used to build clubs, so I would see a lot of different shafts, and really didn't see any that were bent. However I did play some KBS shafts and several of those suckers bent right at the hosel.

If I were hitting forged irons on mats and didn't have access to a loft/lie machine, I would be content having them checked at the beginning of the year, and mid season or so.

Thanks everyone. So to summarize, it sounds like any affects the mats would have on the forged irons can be fixed with a fairly inexpensive trip to the fitter once or twice a year? And likely nothing permanent? Safe to say I shouldn't let that one issue steer me away from those irons if I really like them otherwise? Thanks.

Mats should be banned at driving ranges everywhere. Can kill your clubs, kill your hands, and give false feedback on shots.

Throw far...

We all played forged irons back in the 80s and I never heard anyone say anything about the irons bending. I guess it's possible but I wouldn't worry about it unless weird things start to happen on the course.

I hit my forged irons on my mat at home all the time. I’ve never had an issue. Had them checked after regular rounds and hitting them at home all the time. In 3 years one or two irons loft were off by half a degree. Lie angles were all correct

Maybe it’s worse for someone that has a steep descending swing that tries to take divots out of the mat. But I take shallow long divots on the course and never had a problem with mats.

I read once that Lanny Wadkins checked his specs after every practice session. OCD, a bit, but he was making a living with those tools.

Basically, your club lie angle will creep upright over time. All else being the same, the softest forged metals will naturally move the fastest. Make friends with a clubbuilder who has a bending setup.

My cure is just not to hit off a matt. I havent had a range session in 3 years and im playing better then ever.. in the 80s almost every round... knocking on the door into the 70s.. bad days low 90s. I usualy even just show up and jump on the first tee... now i fully get that this is not really the norm so im not saying do get any practice but maybe find a grass range around town? I absolutely despise hitting off of a matt... its harsh and unrealistic to real golf. Its almost as if the results should matter anyways how diffrent it is.

I have wondered more and more, where you wrxers go to hit off grass. In my area, I can think of one facility within 20 miles with grass tees on the range that has grass worth hitting off of, another with grass of the quality of an unkempt suburban lawn, and everything else is matts. I don't have access to private club facilities but I always thought range matts were part and parcel of ranges. It wasn't until I joined this forum that detrimental effects of matts were even worth thinking about.

I don't generate beaver pelts with my divots, do tons of forged on mat practice. Have had maybe one set that went out of whack and that took 3 years to do it.

It can happen but isn’t as frequently as you read. This is how myths get started. One person says it and it spreads over the years. I practice mostly on mats and have played forged irons for two decades. I have had a set of MP33s to out of spec where they needed to be bent back to spec but those were played and practiced with way more than an average set.

I know it harms my joints... I get terrible elbow pain if i hit off of them regularly..... i stay away

I live in Europe too (Netherlands). Grass is rare here, everyone is supposed to hit it off the mats. I know one golfcourse within 45 minutes from my house that offers grass. But just like you: it's like unkept suburban lawns, doesn't come close to any fairway, let alone a teebox!

I have my irons checked about twice a year and I play 80+ rounds a year. Nothing is ever far out of whack unless I've hit a treeroot or a rock or something.

If given the choice between grass and mats... grass every time. Unfortunately for many of us, we have no choice but to hit off of mats all of the time.

If you have a steep golf swing, mats can eventually have a small impact on the clubs, and it's not great for your joints.

Artificial turf creates false launch and spin characteristics compared to grass, which is why you should never be fit on mats either.

All in all, I wouldn't choose forged based on whether you practice on mats or not, but it wouldn't hurt to check specs from time to time.

Hard mats or not, forged irons with softer metals need to be adjusted to make sure loft and lie are on spec.

Our club had a woman college golfer who played Mizuno forged. She told me she had her irons adjusted twice a year: Once before the college spring season began, and a second time before she went into open summer tournaments. You probably don't play as much as her, but you get the idea: tweak the forged on occasion.

You can comb or brush some mats backwards to lift up the fibers to more vertical, and have a better, softer, hit. I use my foot to pull a small hitting area back towards me when I have to hit mat. Am surprised more fitters and teachers don't advise to avoid mats if possible.

Grass maintenance has an ongoing cost... mats have a one time cost... it's pure economics.

Ideally I wouldn't recommend being fit for clubs off of mats, and if you don't have a shallow swing, you'll learn the hard way to create one.

Being steep, on a thin mat, with no padding, consistently, will mess you and your clubs up. But it’s hard. See, people Don’t mention the “Being steep” part because it makes them look bad. But that is a major part of it. You being steep and delivering your club significantly toe will definitely jack up your lies.