Divot Simulator Golf Mat

This is an extremely well designed and built product. Watch the video - it does exactly what the video says it does. When you hit off a mat, you feel a bounce, and if you suffer from elbow issues (golfer's or tennis elbow), you can injure yourself on a mat. When you hit a ball off this divot simulator, you feel the ball hit the club and that's about it. No jolt to the elbow. Additionally, if you hit it fat, you can really tell - the ball goes much shorter. But again - no pain - the mat slides so you don't have that jolt. This product can teach you how to hit the ball first with great feedback, and it greatly reduces any pain I have had after practice. Finally, it's great for hitting short shots (< 100 yards). Again - you have to hit the ball first to get the right distances, so it's instant feedback vs. hitting a mat, where a fat shot can go just as far as a regular shot. Highly, highly recommended.

This is a total rewrite of my original review. I have been using it heavily and have a better perspective of it now.1. It is useful, ruggedly built and not inexpensive.2. Use only on a clean surface, not on dirt. The sliding tray has little clearance and any debris will jamb it.3. It comes apart for cleaning, but is assembled with many little screws, both phillips and hex. They are stainless steel, so they don't rust, but are easy to lose if you are not meticulous.4. The mat will get shaved down in time and a new one is not a bargain at $30. It is both glued and screwed in.5. It is fairly thick so you do need to stand on something close to the same height. The company sells a thick mat, which surely is nice, but at $150...6. The hitting action is decent, but there is a lot of inertia and so is not quite like soft turf that just whips out on those well-watered courses you see on tv. It is better than hitting into hard courses most of us actually play on. The whole concept of divots needs to be seriously debated anyway.7. Both ends need a built-in ramp so it is easier to scoop balls up onto the surface. I made one out of wood for the rear and it works very well. Much better. I also made a wooden ball feeder tray the same height as the surface and that helps a lot.8. It sure would be nice to have a ball strike indicator surface, maybe slowly unbending "grass" or something.9. For taller golfers, at least, the part you stand on is not long enough and so their feet are off of it and don't hold it down.10. Golf is not easy or cheap. It requires a huge amount of time to achieve anything above embarrassing results. The job of golf demon is reserved for the the most senior and cleverest demons.11. How else can you get in daily basic swing practice? Not everyone can drive to a range every day. A day off and you are toast. You need something like the Fairway Pro at home.12. This also allows you to practice a different swing every day. I have practiced hundreds of them already! Watch a video or read an article and out the door to try it. How good is that? Of course what happens is that it will work for awhile, then go away, and so you try something else. The Fairway Pro gives you this flexibility.13. The Fairway Pro, their mat to stand on, a decent net, a ball feeder tray, a ball pick-up device...this is gonna cost you and you need some room, but it is pretty ideal really if you don't have easy access to a golf course for practice. Figure on the spare hitting surface mat as a consumable item and plan on getting a new one every few months. You might find all of this would be better set up on a base of artificial turf (or real) so the balls don't spin back and scatter all over.I took off a star for the expense. This unit and the accessories are pretty spendy.

At first glance I was impressed with the Fairway Pro. It seems to be relatively heavy duty, and the striking action was very realistic. However, after I have used it a few months, some problems have arisen. It has become "sticky" and the mat will go forward but will not automatically retract. This means I have to get down and manually push it back in position after every shot. It has become such a hassle to use that I've just gone back to my old hitting mat. I have cleaned it as suggested and still no luck.The plastic railing along the side is also subject to cracking on a mishit. I know some of you are thinking "I'll never hit the side", but believe me, after thousands of shots, one or two will go astray. This plastic railing is a very weak point in an otherwise solidly made machine.If I could get my money back for this I would. I am using my old $30 mat and am doing just fine. I know we can't expect perfection, but this thing cost $150. I expected it to last more than a few months.

The turf used is of very good quality. Paired with the spring loaded pad makes for a great portable hitting surface. It has a great feel when hitting shots but you can tell if you have hit a bad shot by how much the sled moves. You need to have some sort of hitting mat to get your feet at the same level as the Fairway Pro as well as holding it in place while you hit.I can see this lasting a long time as you can easily put it inside when done using it so that the elements don't wear it down like a typical hitting mat.

I absolutely love this. My 8 year old daughter is a Junior World Champion and we hits balls into our backyard net from a Mat. I try to minimize her from hitting from a Mat because it doesn't the same feel as hitting from the grass.So after buying this and using it for several months these are my thoughts:PROS:1. It does slide forward when you strike the ball and does feel like taking a divot.2. The ball flight is more accurate. When she hits from the mat, even when she hits it slightly fat, it still flies like normal. On this, if you hit it fat, the mat slides forward so the strike is not good, just like hitting it fat.3. She uses this indoors all the time to practice her "Brush the Grass" swing drill. That is the best golf swing drill we have found to have a good ball strike.4. Prevents injury. Since it slides forward when you hit it, it is not jarring unlike when you hit from a mat which has given me injuries in the past.CONS:1. The frame on it is plastic and can get damaged if you hit it by accident. So always put your club in the middle so that you can reduce the risk.SUMMARY:I just love it and it really does work as described. I hope I don't damage it so that I can use it for more years to come.

A complete waste of money. It's actually cumbersome to use vs a standard mat and there are really no benefits. It slides but it still will turn your club face and cause a lot of shanks. Plus you can't return it. Their customer service goes to a black hole.