Fiberbuilt vs. Country Club vs. TruStrike mats for home simulator

[kjmtthws]

Hoping to hear from people that have used the above.. What are the pros/cons.. durability.. 

 

I am setting up a home simulator and don't mind spending a bit of money to get it just right.. But don't want to throw money away unnecessarily if I don't have to.. 

 

Also, my ceiling height is right at 9 feet.. hoping that is enough

 

 

[JB_007]

I recently set up a home sim as well - I ended up going with the Fiberbuilt and honestly it's one of the best mats I've ever used (personal opinion) - A lot better than the course near me that have indoor sims. 

 

A friend had a CC mat and he was in the camp of, after a while, he had some elbow pain. I will say he left his outside year around ( in CT) so I'm not sure if that played into it. He would hit probably 200-300 shots a week on it.  His experience was a huge reason I went the FB way, and after a few shots on mine, he's considering it too.

 

Never tried a True Strike

 

...just one persons experience though. 

 

 

[Golf Pig]

I read tons of reviews for those 3 mats and ultimately went with a Fiberbuilt 4x9 studio mat. I couldn't be happier with this choice. Zero joint pain... you can hit balls off of the stance mat portion and it takes real tees... the grass insert doesn't skew launch monitor data... the mat is very durable and looks brand new after nearly 5 years of continuous use.

 

Regarding ceiling height, unless you have a really flat swing I would recommend 10 feet minimum.

[Stuart_G]

On 11/22/2021 at 3:56 PM, kjmtthws said:

Also, my ceiling height is right at 9 feet.. hoping that is enough

 

That will depend on your height and swing plane and club lengths.   For some that will be plenty, for others it might be a problem for the longest clubs.

 

 

[DallasDan]

I put in a fiberbuilt in my simulator room and have been hitting off of it for over 2 years now. Minimal wear and tear on the mat except for the plastic tee. You'll have to order replacement plastic tees off of the fiberbuilt website. No joint issues for me. I have suffered joint issues before in my younger years when i got a membership to a driving range in Mill Creek, WA. The mats were pretty hard and unforgiving. that is my only point of reference. You'll stand a couple inches above the floor. 9 foot ceilings are gonna be tight. How tall are you. If you are under 6' with less than a 45" driver you may be okay...but depends on your swing plane. 

Edited November 29, 2021 by DallasDan

[knickerbocker]

I use a Fiberbuilt in my garage sim setup and it is awesome.  I had a CC mat before with a net only setup.  After using that 1 -2x a week, I was hurting after a month or so.  

 

My only complaint about the FB is the grass really can mess with turf interaction.  I tend to way more fat shots with the FB compared to grass.

Edited November 29, 2021 by knickerbocker

[Seattlegolfnut]

Lots of folks on another forum for golf simualtors (golfsimulatorforum) recommended a stance mat with a Divot Action and there was a good DIY instruction thread for that too. Gunghogolf.com has an improved version they call the Holy Grail mat strip. I have one and it is really nice. No pain; realistic “fat” shot penalty; normal spin numbers on skytrak.

 

I went through a couple different fiberbuilt setups before this…

Edited December 3, 2021 by Seattlegolfnut

[jayhawkeye]

I have FB and CC.  Strong preference for the FB.  Never had the elbow issues with the CC but also never enjoyed it that much…. So I didn’t use it nearly as much as I do now with the FB.

[taiwangolfer]

Anyone tried the Quattro mat?

[Godfather]

I have tried many. I like the Fiberbuilt strip. It’s easy on the body. Quattro is okay, but I prefer the Fiberbuilt. DivotAction or the Holy Grail (gung-ho golf) strips are other options. I did a homemade DivotAction and it was solid. If Fiberbuilt isn’t appealing to you (some say not great to putt off), check those out. 
 

9 ft is fine. Most everyone I’ve had over can swing driver and mine is 9’1”. Some can’t if their swing is upright or have a high finish.

[happy_guy]

On 11/22/2021 at 3:56 PM, kjmtthws said:

Hoping to hear from people that have used the above.. What are the pros/cons.. durability.. 

 

I am setting up a home simulator and don't mind spending a bit of money to get it just right.. But don't want to throw money away unnecessarily if I don't have to.. 

 

Also, my ceiling height is right at 9 feet.. hoping that is enough

 

I have had a CC mat for 3 years now.... and I am about to frankenstein it a bit.   I am going to cut out a strip from it and then insert a Fiberbuilt replacement piece into it.   I have heard from many in the Skytrak world that Fiberbuilt appear to give the most accurate spin numbers.... (your results may vary... lol)

 

[HappyGilmore22]

I've been using a cheap $80 thin turf mat on some foam interlocking pads for the past year but it's beat up so looking to buy something durable that I can hit all clubs on in my garage. Have only really been hitting wedges and short irons on my cheap mat. Trying to decide between the Fiberbuilt turf series or grass series of these ones below. Anyone have an opinion on which of the grass vs turf they prefer? I've never used either. I prefer the square shape but don't see why it's so much more expensive. Is the grass version worth the upgrade for a smaller mat? For the grass version can you hit off the stance portion as well?

 

-performance turf square 5x5 is $719

-performance turf rectangle 4x6 is $679

-performance turf hourglass 5x5 is $550

 

-performance grass hourglass 4x5 is $799

Edited January 10, 2022 by HappyGilmore22

[khalespace]

10 hours ago, HappyGilmore22 said:

I've been using a cheap $80 thin turf mat on some foam interlocking pads for the past year but it's beat up so looking to buy something durable that I can hit all clubs on in my garage. Have only really been hitting wedges and short irons on my cheap mat. Trying to decide between the Fiberbuilt turf series or grass series of these ones below. Anyone have an opinion on which of the grass vs turf they prefer? I've never used either. I prefer the square shape but don't see why it's so much more expensive. Is the grass version worth the upgrade for a smaller mat? For the grass version can you hit off the stance portion as well?

 

-performance turf square 5x5 is $719

-performance turf rectangle 4x6 is $679

-performance turf hourglass 5x5 is $550

 

-performance grass hourglass 4x5 is $799

Buy the one with grass, hitting off the grass is much better for your wrist and elbow. I have been using mine for 1 year and the grass strip looks brand new. It's amazing they have raised their prices 30% in 1 year.

[HappyGilmore22]

2 hours ago, khalespace said:

Buy the one with grass, hitting off the grass is much better for your wrist and elbow. I have been using mine for 1 year and the grass strip looks brand new. It's amazing they have raised their prices 30% in 1 year.

Amazon has the same grass one on sale for $720 so might go with that

[RCGA]

I have a Fiberbuilt Grass mat. I find it too plush and easy to mask fat shots. 

 

 

[khalespace]

16 hours ago, RCGA said:

I have a Fiberbuilt Grass mat. I find it too plush and easy to mask fat shots. 

 

 

I can tell when I hit it fat on the Fiberbuilt grass. Yes, you still get 90% of the distance but definitely it is easier on your wrist and elbow.

[Dax279]

I guess it depends on your space and what you are looking for.  Do you want a seamless hitting strip implementation with the rest of your flooring, or are you ok with having a hitting mat that sits a couple of inches above the rest of your surface? If so, then there are some good options for this (which includes the fibrebuilt). 
 

I have not owned the CCE matt, but have heard mixed reviews of the matt.  For me, the biggest concern would be how others had said how bad it has been on their joints.  This is a real concern for me and many others as you will make many strikes off the matt. 
 

I really liked my Truestrike matt, but switched away from it when I decided to go with something more seamless.  This matt is excellent though and while I can see that it may also lead to some joint issues, I never experienced anything. The only issue that always worries me is how the matt wears down.  The green strip seems like it would hold up well, but pics of it online and sweingworn examples in person did worry me. 
 

my current hitting strip is the Fibrebuilt.  It is a great matt (my impressions are it was not as good as the Truestrike, but it is very close). Fibres take a bit of getting used to and some say that fat shots are not punished enough, however, for me I feel that a fat shot still get punished. If you take a deep divot, then I would note that the hard plastic base could get hard on the joints. If I recall, this matt does come with a 300,000 shot guarantee. 
 

others to consider:

 

1. divot action (see videos from Mr. Short game as this is what he uses.

 

2. Holy Grail hitting strip from Gungho golf. This one is new, but seems to be getting good reviews. 

[HappyGilmore22]

I saw the divot action on mr. short game's video as well and looked good. The monster mat for around $360 has me looking as well since it's just going in my garage. Just don't see too many reviews for the monster mat but does look good.

[DS12312]

The reviews on the monster mat seem paid to promote it.  I don't think any of the reviewers are actually still using it in their indoor set ups

 

However, I haven't used one so I'm just speculating.  It might be a great mat.

Edited January 12, 2022 by DS12312

[HappyGilmore22]

https://fiberbuiltgolf.com/collections/shop-all/products/square-performance-turf-tee-box?variant=31959377018962

Is anyone using this mat? How is it for the price? The grass one is good but I'm not sure I like how plush it is. There is also a 4x6 that is a little cheaper that would also work

[happygolfer]

2 hours ago, DS12312 said:

The reviews on the monster mat seem paid to promote it.  I don't think any of the reviewers are actually still using it in their indoor set ups

 

However, I haven't used one so I'm just speculating.  It might be a great mat.

 

I was intriguied by the two reviews I saw on youtube. I usually take them with a grain of salt if they don't state if the item was provided gratis or was paid for. I got the same feeling that it didn't last long with the gentleman from Garage Golf as I didn't see him using it in subsequent videos. He also states that he "believes it retails for $368" which is correct but that statement on its face suggests he didn't pay retail.  It may be a great mat but just that he likes another mat better.  The Let's Play Through channel review acutually compared to another mat and I believe anyone could see that the  Monster Mat was way better than the thin mat that it was compared to. I kind of chuckled when they quoted the owner of the company that sells the Monster mat that it was the closest a golf mat could be to Augusta or Pinehurst. The company google review page had two less than stellar reviews with one of them telling the owner he can't review his own product and to which the owner deleted it. 

 

I was going to order a custom Monster mat (5'x7') as they state they could do that.  I would like to have have room to put my launch monitor on the mat so it would be level with the hitting area.

 

Then I said to myself WTF and ordered the Fiberbuilt Grass Series Studio Golf Mat. I'm just hoping there are not allot of posers out there that would be ashamed to admit they dropped that kind of coin on a $1k plus mat but then again, you don't see many on the BST or ebay.

 

In 2015, there was a highly recommended on the forums golf mat that was called the "Monster Tee Golf Turf 48" x 60"" that sold for $99 plus $20 shipping from a place that is still around called All Turf Mats. I found the receipt in my gmail.  I still have that mat in my garage up north and its a decent mat that is still in good shape. It's thick like the Monster Mat and I find small fibers around my garage after I use it. I never thought to vacum it like Garage Golf did. I never used it for more than an hour ot two a week and never had sore joints. Its just that I purchased a BLP on initial release and was going to wait until I went back north in May but said WTF and bought a Net Return Pro and the FB. 

 

 

[DS12312]

I use the synthetic turf international ez tee hybrid tee golf mat (same one as TXG) and like it.  I found a dealer near me that had a 5x6 remnant for dirt cheap and it's held up great.  If you go to their website you could find your local dealer and reach out to them

[HappyGilmore22]

On 1/12/2022 at 8:19 PM, DS12312 said:

I use the synthetic turf international ez tee hybrid tee golf mat (same one as TXG) and like it.  I found a dealer near me that had a 5x6 remnant for dirt cheap and it's held up great.  If you go to their website you could find your local dealer and reach out to them

Do you have any pictures of this mat? Looks pretty good and the 4x6' is only $405 which seems reasonable. They also have a sim turf mega mat which is a little more expensive. Their website isn't very good since they have generic pics of the same thing for all mats, the mega one just shows it's thicker but doesn't say what is different from the ez hybrid one.

[Pens #1 fan]

I use a true strike, I got it in the package with my net return and putting green. I’ve had for about a year, but haven’t used it much. I’m a picker of the ball and I end to hit a lot of fat shots on it. I prefer to play Sim golf rather than practice so I’d prefer something that doesn’t cause fat shots. I actually just started using it again now that winter is officially here. The one thing I’ve notice that I’ve read in other threads is that I feel like the whole thing is sinking in the hitting area

[beggestdee]

I have a True Strike for my Sim, and I really like it... well, sort of. In retrospect, I probably would have chosen the new Fiberbuilt "Player Preferred" mat, because putting off of the True Strike sucks. I have an Eye XO, and I have the option of an offset putting area (to get away from the short strike area), but even then, the putting is really less than desirable. The new Fiberbuilts look to be ideal for my situation, but I just don't want to invest that kind of scratch, especially after spending a good amount on the True Strike.

 

[Wildest1]

You have to hit a few hundred balls off a mat before you know if a mat will work for you.

 

Country Club Elite and Fiberbuilt are probably the two most popular golf mat brands, but they are not inexpensive and normally you’d have to pay expensive return shipping on these heavy mats.

 

Costco currently carries samples of both, at a discount, with free 90 day returns. It’s an easy way to try these mats out yourself, and keep or order a different size if you like one. I ordered one of each:

 

Country Club Elite Real-Feel Golf Mat 3’ x 5’  - Costco $249.99 ($324.99 list)

Free shipping, 90 day free return policy

https://www.costco.com/country-club-elite-golf-mats.product.100034931.html

https://www.realfeelgolfmats.com/product/country-club-elite-real-feel-golf-mat/

 

Fiberbuilt Grass Series Practice Station - Costco $269.99 ($499 list)

Free shipping, 90 day free return policy

https://www.costco.com/fiberbuilt-golf-practice-station.product.100461497.html

https://fiberbuiltgolf.com/collections/shop-all/products/practice-station

 

I like the construction quality, feel and the use of real golf tees on the Country Club Elite. The 3' x 5' size is large enough for my 6-1 210 lb. frame. If you take small divots or you have a "sweeper" swing, this is a great deal. Unfortunately, I tend to take a deep divot and my grip pressure points start to feel sore after hitting practice irons for 15 minutes. It's such a good price for the quality that I may keep it as a stance mat or for short-term use.

 

My wife calls the Fiberbuilt Grass Series Practice Station the "toothbrush" with it's black rubber stance mat and the oval of stiff green bristles. It doesn't have as natural a feel hitting irons as the Country Club Elite, but the impact on my hands is much less and the launch monitor numbers (off a CG2) look great. They put a tee holder hole in the front middle of the turf so that you can't easily hit irons without first removing the tee-holder base. Poor design. Otherwise it seems to be extremely well built and the "toothbrush" mat has a 300,000 ball warranty.  So, you trade feel for less chance of an impact injury.  I'm returning the Fiberbuilt Practice Station but I may end up buying a Fiberbuilt Grass Series Pro Studio with the 35" x 11.75" Grass panel with 3 offset tee holes. But at $799 it's much more expensive.

 

The EZ Tee Hybrid Hitting Mat from SimTurf was mentioned above and sounds very interesting. I spoke with their rep and you can try out their mats at the PXG shops and at Dick's Sporting Goods stores that have upgraded their hitting bays in the last year to Trackman launch monitors with SimTurf mats. Unfortunately SimTurf's return policy is very strict. I asked if I could return it after hitting 100 balls to see if my hands hurt. The rep said no way! He said the mat could no longer be resold as "new" and they would not accept a return. So if you buy one of the SimTurf mats and try it out, it yours!

https://simturf.com/product/ez-tee-hybrid-hitting-mat/

Edited March 1, 2022 by Wildest1