Not all synthetic grass is the same. Almost all grass you’ll see installed for golf greens will be a hybrid from hockey or lawn bowls. While these grasses give the ball an excellent roll (the manufacturers claim that testing shows that synthetic grass will roll the ball better than real grass), there is a major problem with these hybrid grasses.
And that is they don’t allow for lofted shots to be played onto the green and then have the golf ball come to a stop. What you get is a “trampoline” effect, the ball will hit the green and then bounce over. If you’re looking for a synthetic golf green that will allow you to practice chipping, pitching, bunker and even full shots, these greens are not realistic enough. They look brilliant and are awesome for putting only, but they don’t quite get full marks.
I discovered during my research that getting the ball to spin and stop on synthetic grass is not that easy. It has been an issue for many years and probably the reason that synthetic grass hasn’t been widely adopted in the golf market. That is until now…
Helix yarn is quote possibly the most exciting development in golf that I’ve seen. It has been manufactured specifically for golf and has some unique features:
– it is super soft while at the same time being extremely durable
– it is non directional which means there is no grain or nap and this gives a terrific roll
– the unique manufacturing process gives the grass impact dampening capabilities and this is what helps the ball to stop
The very first synthetic grass green I played on was in a mate’s backyard. It looked fantastic and it was used a lot by his family for a play area, but for golf the green was too hard and fast. It was almost useless for any decent golf practice and if you wanted to chip balls onto it there wasn’t any hope. The balls would hit the green and nearly bounce over the fence. And when I was looking at installing my own green, I didn’t seriously consider synthetic because of this first experience.
When I discovered that a real green was prohibitively expensive and required constant maintenance and care, I was forced to look at the synthetic option once again. And this is where the Helix yarn came to the rescue. When I first tried it I hit a little pitch and watched in amazement as the ball landed, checked (just like a grass green) and then roll to the hole. I was hooked and sold in that one chip shot.
Since having my own Helix green installed in my backyard I have been mighty impressed. I use it everyday and it’s a fantastic tool to help me coach clients plus give my own game some much needed practice. If you’re in the market for a synthetic green or would like the idea of having your own practice environment, there’s only one yarn that should be used.
The future
I’m convinced this grass will have a positive impact on the game of golf. If nothing else, Helix yarn will give climate challenged environments the option of having incredibly realistic playing surfaces. The surface is that good that I can see the day when entire golf courses are made from synthetic materials.
– weather proof (wet, hot, dry)
– low maintenance
– no need to water (ideal in arid conditions)
– fewer ground staff needed
If you’d like more information about synthetic golf grass then please contact me.
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