BirdieBall putting mats have been top MyGolfSpy performers ever since we started testing putting mats.
And ever since we started testing putting mats, John Breaker, BirdieBall founder, owner, CEO and Inner Light, has been adamant: If you want true roll on a putting mat, his aerated foam is the way to go.
It’s a message Breaker has shouted from the rooftops since his first aerated foam mat debuted.
“The problem with woven synthetics, carpet, felt or any other manmade textile is they have a pattern,” says Breaker. “When the ball slows down, it follows the pattern.”
And that pattern means you’re getting far less out of all the practice you put in over the winter than you hoped.
So why, then, has BirdieBall taken a step to the left and introduced a textile putting mat? Consider it an accommodation to the realities of living in the material world.
Birdie Ball Putting Mats and the Great Foam Wars
In the BirdieBall world, “foam” without the modifier “aerated” is just a four-letter word. There’s a science to BirdieBall’s aerated foam that puts it light years away from a pool noodle and, according to our testing, closer to a real green. The secret is in the sub-base.
“Bentgrass and Bermuda grass have been highly engineered over the last 60 years,” explains Breaker. “They’re able to mow greens down to less than an eighth of an inch now. But to keep the ball on track, you have to roll the sub-base.”
In real golf, the ball rolls on the sub-base while the grass itself is there to slow the ball down. BirdieBall’s aerated foam – a unique polymer formula that creates a spongy sub-base with fibrils to simulate the grass – is about as close as it gets to reality. Textile putting mats use what amounts to synthetic grass.
“The blade for these synthetic grasses is extruded,” says Breaker. “It comes out like spaghetti, then they put it on a loom. You’re making your shape and the bobbins are running but there’s a pattern there. In a linear foot, you’ll have about 32 paths, with a gap between each path.”
Breaker says that with textile mats, there is no sub-base. The ball rolls on the surface and the surface has a pattern. And the pattern affects roll.
“The telltale sign of a textile green is you’ll notice a wobble in your ball either on the path itself or when it finally settles to a stop,” he says. “That’s telling you the putting surface is affecting the roll which is not what you want when you’re practicing your stroke.”
None of which, of course, explains why BirdieBall has decided to add a textile mat to its offering.
The Material World
So why go the textile route? Chalk it up to the realities of living in the material world.
“The pros (of aerated foam) are real-green-like roll and the ability to create true breaks and undulations,” says Breaker “The cons? Your dog shouldn’t walk on it and your girlfriend can’t walk on it with stiletto heels. It’s too much like a natural green and much of the market can’t live with those cons.”
Additionally, aerated foam is indoor-only.
“We don’t want to say goodbye to that market,” Breaker adds. “If it’s a cookout and I’m drinking beer with my friends, the roll doesn’t matter. I’m not looking for putting feedback as much as I’m looking for a good time.”
BirdieBall’s new Indoor/Outdoor putting mat finished second in our most recent putting mat Buyer’s Guide. Our testers raved about the durability and the roll. Breaker says getting the best possible roll out of a textile turf mat is a combination of the weave and the cut.
“The only difference between carpet and turf is the loop that’s created while weaving gets cut,” he explains. “When you cut the loop off you now have this blade, but you’re exposing those 32 tracks.”
To combat that pattern, the goal is to get the weave as tight as possible and cut the blade as short as possible.
“The shorter the blade, the better. But the unfortunate part is you can only cut it down to about a quarter of an inch. That doesn’t let the ball get to the sub-base so it has to ride on the surface. You’re working to shear it as accurately as you can and making those piles as tight as you can to eliminate those channels for the ball to get distracted by.”
Trade-Offs and the “Big Whoop” Factor
The decision tree between aerated foam and a well-made textile turf putting mat comes down to trade-offs. Want the truest possible roll? Go with aerated foam. Durability and indoor/outdoor use? It’s textile turf.
“That’s the trade-off but it’s still a blast to use,” says Breaker. “It’s all about educating the consumer on what their biggest priority is. If it’s to have a gathering place for friends and family, that’s one thing. If it’s to practice on the truest rolling surface possible, that’s quite another. The pros and cons will direct you toward what you have to do.”
But for the dedicated, lifelong cynic, it’s impossible not to ask the obvious question: So the ball wobbles a little bit. Big whoop. Who cares?
“Well, there is a ‘Big Whoop’ quotient,” admits Breaker. “Some people don’t care as much as other people so it comes down to how picky are you?”
“You’re spending time practicing on a surface that’s not a real putting green so why wouldn’t you choose the most accurate surface?” adds Katie Breaker, John’s daughter and BirdieBall’s marketing director. “Big whoop? Maybe, but you do have the option to be very true in what you’re practicing.”
Your “Big Whoop” quotient will depend on what you want to use your putting mat for. If you simply want to keep rust from setting in during the offseason or to have some fun, it’s an easy choice. But it’s also an easy choice if you’re trying to sharpen your flatstick skills all year round.
“Putting is really the line and the speed,” says John Breaker. “If you’re getting the wrong feedback on the line, there’s a problem. If you’re getting the wrong feedback on the speed, that’s another problem. Put those things together and that’s a bigger problem.”
Celebrating Two Decades of BirdieBall
We’ve written before about BirdieBall’s origins and how it’s very much a Breaker family enterprise. And just this past spring, the family enterprise celebrated its 20th anniversary.
“I don’t remember any of the people we competed against for Best New Product back then at the PGA Show because none of them are still in business,” says Breaker. “Products come and go and it’s unusual for one to have the kind of staying power that we’ve had.”
The original BirdieBall remains a huge part of the company’s business as is its commitment to growing the game at the youth level through physical education programs in schools.
“We’re in about 7,000 schools with BirdieBall,” says Breaker. “And we’ve given away or sold millions and millions of BirdieBalls over the years.”
And if BirdieBall was so inclined, it could also add a major champion to its list of accomplishments. Coloradan and 2022 Chevron champion Jennifer Kupcho started out by hitting BirdieBalls when she was just learning to walk. And Breaker says a recent European Tour winner kept telling himself down the stretch to hit his shots like it’s a BirdieBall.
But when it comes to choosing the right putting mat, Breaker says that when you’re living in a material world, there’s a lot of work to do to get the message through.
“What we’d like is to educate the customer that there’s not really a wrong choice but there is a clear choice.”
For more information on BirdieBall putting mats, visit www.birdieball.com.
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