Having seen adverts for the Perfect Practice Perfect Putting Mat online we decided to buy one direct from the vendors website. The version we bought is 9ft long but there are also shorter and longer ones to choose from depending on your needs. 9ft is probably ideal for most home set ups but we would highly recommend measuring the area you are intending to use it in, as in addition to the length you will also need some width to avoid being cramped when taking your putting stance.
The putting mat essentially comes in three main parts. There is the mat itself which is attached to the raised, wooden end part with two holes of different sizes in it. There is also a wooden backstop and four wooden slats that fit together to create a channel for the ball to roll back to back the player. This channel worked really well and if you are practicing shorter putts you can remove one of the slats for even more convenience. Assembly was straight forward, taking less than a couple of minutes in total and the end result looked good.
So how did it actually test for us? Is it one of the best putting mats out there and a worthy training aid to add to your setup? Let's find out.
We tested the Perfect Practice Perfect Putting mat on two different surfaces, a tiled floor (kitchen) and a carpeted floor, to see how consistent and true the roll of the ball was. The good news is, the mat worked very well on both - as long as you are careful with how you store it and take care when unfurling it you should be able to get a smooth, consistent roll for many years.
It is very easy to pack away and isn’t too big when the mat is rolled up, so it’s an ideal size to be packed away underneath or behind a sofa when not in use. You can then quickly take it out and set up whenever you have the urge to roll a few putts. If you do have a space where you can leave it permanently set up then all the better. As long as you have a flat surface, you can even use it outside when the weather permits.
For amateur golfers the key to productive practice is often for it to not feel like practice. If it’s fun then you’ll spend more time doing it, and we found that having the Perfect Practice Putting Mat set up in a corner of the living room was quite addictive. When you walk past it there’s a great temptation to quickly grab the putter and try to sink a couple. If you’re watching TV and the ads come on, it’s a good way to kill some time. And without it even feeling like you’re practicing, all the time you are working on your putting stroke.
It is also an effective way to choose the best golf ball for putting with, or to get a feel for different types of putters to determine which you are more comfortable with. For example you could put a mallet putter up against a blade style putter and see which gives you better results.
There are various different lines on the mat to help with both the path of your stroke and the start line of your putts. These are the elements that really matter when it comes to consistency on the greens and finding the best putter for your stroke. Clear visual aids like these (which also help with alignment) are a great way to practice golf at home and work on any putting stroke improvements you need.
You can also set yourself challenges. If you make ten in a row from six feet on the larger hole, try to do the same with the smaller hole. We found that to be an excellent feature as when you switch from trying to make putts in the smaller hole back to the standard sized hole it feels like putting into a bucket, which is great for building confidence.
We also liked that the far end of the mat is raised to promote a more positive stroke. The pace of the mat is certainly on the fast side without being too lively, and you get a nice true roll from it. Overall this mat tested very well indeed so it was a worthy addition to our guide on the best golf mat for this year.
For more advice on how to hole more putts, be sure to have a read of our pieces on the 32 best ever putting tips, or how to read greens.
