Having experienced one of the wettest winters and springs I can remember here in the UK, there has been very little golf played and so my short game is very much on the ropes. I often find my swing doesn’t feel too bad if I don’t play much but my putting suffers severely and so I couldn’t have been more excited when the PrimePutt putting mat arrived on my doorstep.
As soon as I took this mat out of the box, I knew it was going to be different from any other putting mat I had used before. The heavy weight indicated straight away that it was made from premium, robust material and I wasn’t disappointed. PrimePutt uses tour-grade nylon turf that it claims mimics the feel and roll of PGA Tour greens at tournament speed, running between 10-11 on the Stimp meter. Thanks to the realistic nature of this putting mat, it’s ideal for using some of the best putting training aids on to help develop your stroke.
The PrimePutt putting mat boasts a proprietary cup design which mimics a full depth cup on the course and so when putting from an angle, you can actually shave the lip of the hole – exactly what I’m trying to stop doing when on the course!
The mat unrolls easily and while it did have a few humps in initially, after walking on it and leaving it to rest, over time these bumps flattened out providing a smooth roll, similar to the greens at my home course and making it one of the best indoor putting greens. By rolling the mat up turf-side out, you should decrease the chances of any bumps and continue to get a good roll from the mat. The mat is really low maintenance as well which I love and can easily be hoovered to pick up any debris that is disrupting the performance.
While it can be used on any surface, I only had the chance to lay my mat on carpet which meant it moved around a little and that was a little annoying having to adjust it after my customary three putts. The rubber on the underside of the mat I’m sure would stick in place much better when used on either wood or tiled flooring.
The mat is available in multiple size options, ranging from a 1.5ft x 9ft single hole mat, all the way up to a 3ft x 15ft 3-hole mat. I opted for somewhere in the middle at the 3ft x 9ft length which I found to be the right size to fit in most rooms. The three holes may be a little overkill if I’m honest as no matter which hole you putt towards, it’s still a straight putt and there is less than 6” in length between the hole at the back and the two at the front, so it’s not as though it’s a longer putt. If I was to make one main criticism, it would be that if there are three holes, the mat has to be wider. Even when putting to the middle hole, my heels were hovering over the edge of the mat and it was only by putting to the hole on the right of the three, that I felt I could stand comfortably.
All in all I was really impressed with the quality of this mat and there’s no doubt it’s one of the best putting mats that I have used. The sleek, wooden engraved back-stop collects balls without them bouncing back in the way of your next put and gives the mat a premium look to sit nicely in your home or office.