DIY Golf Mat
Building you own hitting mat is one of the easiest ways to save on your golf simulator setup. Golf mats range anywhere from $200-$1000 depending on the size and quality of the mat. In this guide we show you how to build a golf mat for $100!
What you need:
- 2 4’x8’ sheets of Lauan Plywood ($32.96)
- 1 4’x8’ foam insulation board ($20.98)
- 8 Interlocking Puzzle Floor Tiles ($23.68)
- 8’x8’ of Outdoor Carpet ($12.80)
- Driving Range Practice Mat Insert ($13.99)
How to build it:
This will give you a 4’ x 8’ hitting mat coming in at just $104.41. The great thing about building your own golf mat is that you can customize it to your liking. You can easily double or triple this to make an entire hitting platform from ball to net. Instead of outdoor carpet, you can use astroturf. In general, you can get away with mixing and matching materials. Find left over materials, visit the junk yard, and use your imagination! Using a hitting insert is a huge plus because it prevents you from needing to buy (or build) a whole new mat once it starts to wear and wrinkle. Simply replace the hitting insert! After you get all your materials, building the mat consists mostly of stacking all these materials on top of each other with some glue. The only semi-difficult part may be cutting out the area for the hitting insert. Luckily the interlocking puzzle floor tiles and outdoor carpet come out to the same height as the hitting insert. So cutting out the right length and width is all you have to worry about.
To build you will simply glue one sheet of the Lauan Plywood to each side of the foam insulation board like an oreo. After that sits for a while, lay the interlocking puzzle floor tiles to the top of the Lauan Plywood and plan out where you will want to make a cutout for the hitting insert. Once you’ve made your cutout, glue the interlocking puzzle pieces to the top of the Lauan Plywood. The last step is to do the same thing with the outdoor carpet onto the interlocking puzzle pieces. Then insert your hitting mat! Pretty easy! Check out the video to see the final result. Credit to Jay Smith for providing this video and these ideas.
The negative side to building your own golf mat is that you run the risk of ending up with a lower quality product prone to wearing down and breaking. Building your mat may save some money up front, but considering there are some quality mats available for only $100-$200 more, in the end it may be worth the slightly higher cost. Here are two great low cost options for golf mats:
Fiberbuilt Flight Deck ($99)
SwingTurf Golf Mat ($469)
