Having something to hit the golf ball into is an integral part of any home driving range set up.
Although the humble net will do the trick most of the time, with the improved affordability of Personal Launch Monitors, more and more people are looking for something that would give them a more immersive golfing experience.
This has certainly been true in my case - I've tried them all, from cheap ebay nets, to DIY nets and golf impact screens and now I've finally found a product that ticks all my boxes (see how my 'Kaizen HQ' has evolved here), and I'm excited to introduce our Kaizen Golf Archery Baffle Impact Screen to our product line up.
Archery Baffle?!
Yes Archery Baffle.
The product does have it's origins in the sport of archery. Essentially it's a fine meshed net which is designed to stop arrows at archery ranges.
It is a product that's also been very successfully repurposed for golf facilities and due to its availability in white colour, you can actually project an image onto it and get a pretty decent result. Let's go through the features of this product in more detail to explain why this is a great option as a Golf Impact Screen.
Strength
This should be one of the most important considerations for anyone who's looking for a net or an impact screen as you want to make your home driving range as safe as possible.
This is where this product really shines - it is TOUGH! Made from super tough and durable material with a much finer mesh size than a traditional golf net, this product will perform on par if not better than the most premium of impact screens.
Oh did I mention it was made to stop an arrow at full speed?
Suitable for both Indoors and Outdoors
Again given the product was made for archery, it was manufactured to withstand the elements in an outdoor environment.
Whereas the fabric based golf simulator impact screens are exclusively made for indoor settings, the archery baffle is a lot more versatile and can be hung outside as part of an backyard facility if indoor space is not viable.
Here's one of the videos which shows a really good example by 'The Average Golfer' of a outdoor set up using a similar product.
Here's another great example from 'The Backyard Golfer' who's actually turned his outdoor set up into a simulator set up.
You Can Use a Projector on it
Given it's white colour and fine mesh, you can actually project onto it and get a pretty decent image quality. Here' are some photos of how it looks in my own set up using a very budget projector (on the list to upgrade).
However, given it does have tiny meshes when compared to a more 'smooth' surface of fabric based impact screen, there is some 'light bleeding' with the projector. Having a sheet hung directly behind the baffle will significantly reduce this. For me, a used bedsheet does the job just fine. Here's how the back of my set up looks.
Quietness
Due to the thickness of the material and the type of material used, the archery baffle is one of the quietest products when it comes to golf impact screens.
Although it's not as quiet as a golf net, but the difference in sound deadening when compared to the average golf impact screens which may actually cost more is night and day, and I'm talking from experience.
I originally had a fabric golf impact screen (pic below), and when you hit into it it would sound like a gun had gone off. When the only time you have to work on your game is when you've tucked the kids into bed, keeping the decibels down is extremely important. It was so noisy I had to put a net in front of the screen when I hit balls at night, which kind of defeated the purpose of an impact screen.
Having switched to the archery baffle, I can honestly say that the sound of the club impacting with the ball is now far louder than the noise coming from the screen itself.
To me, this was one of the biggest reasons why I'm really happy to keep using this product. To achieve similar level of noise deadening with a more premium fabric based product would cost multiples of what the archery baffle costs.
Easy To Hang
Our product comes with reinforced edges and eyelets on all 4 sides which makes hanging and tensioning easy. We recommend using bungee cords rather than cable tied as the elasticity of bungee cords will offer more 'give'.
Cost Effective
Although this product offers the same level of performance as a premium golf impact screen in terms of strength and noise dampening (if not better) it comes in at a fraction of the cost.
Whilst our 3m x 3m product costs just over $200, a good quality impact screen can cost the same as a brand new Garmin R10 launch monitor (ouch!).
The Drawbacks
There are a couple of drawbacks of this product though:
- Although the picture quality is good, but given the mesh design, you will not get super high definition/4k image quality. If you are looking for ultra sharp picture quality, and your projector costs more than your launch monitor, then this product may not be for you.
- There will be some puckering / wrinkling due to repeated hits into the same spot. This will be more obvious if you don't have a lot of tension in the screen. It's not as obvious if the impact screen is a bit more 'stretched'. A fabric based impact screen will perform better in this aspect.
- If you intend to use it for golf simulation, it will be preferable to use clean clubs and clean/unmarked balls so you don't leave marks on your screen.
To Sum Up
After months of testing, we are very confident that our Kaizen Golf Archery Baffle Impact Screen offers great performance at a 'no frills' price point.
It is ideal for any golfer who's looking to set up an entry level immersive home golf simulator.
It is also a great option as a super strong golf netting material for an indoor or outdoor home golf driving range.
We hope you will consider our product as part of your home set up.
Finally, don't just take our word for it, here's another video by 'Hyrbridme' who's also done an in depth comparison between a archery baffle vs. a premium golf impact screen.