What is mat "tracking" and why it matters.
When a tee leaves a groove in the synthetic grass, it is called tracking. Most range mats look worn out by year three because of it.
How tracking happens
Repeated weight on the same spot of synthetic grass crushes the fibers in that area. They lose their spring. The result is a visible flat circle, eventually a permanent groove.
What makes it worse
- Heavy tees (steel-pin range tees are the worst)
- Spike-based tees that penetrate the grass
- Always teeing up in exactly the same spot
What helps
Lighter tees, wider footprints, occasional repositioning. Better Golf Tee's 50mm splayed footprint spreads load across roughly 8x more surface area than a typical rubber range tee.