First of all, we are very proud of the quality of our Kaizen 3m Portable Golf Net. We have tested it extensively for durability and strength and we can confidently say that it is one of the best quality golf nets in it's category. We are very confident on the quality of the product, we have a 6 month warranty for this product.
But nothing will last forever and there are things which may eventually cause your net not to last as long as they should.
In this article, we'll go through a few of the things which can go wrong with our golf net and more importantly, what you can do to get more life out of it.
Hole in the Net
This is obviously the biggest concern with any golf net, we don't want a golf ball to go straight through the net at full speed.
We know that from our own testing and feedback from our customers - although this is not likely to happen in the first 6 months - 12 months of using the net, this may happen eventually at some stage. But here's how you can prevent it as well as "fix" it when it does happen.
Prevention
There are a number of things you can do to extend the life of your golf netting:
- Get rid off scuffed up balls! Believe it or not, high spinning wedge shots with scuffed up balls is the number 1 killer of golf nets. It is much more damaging than full blooded drives (unless of course your name is Bryson or you picked up a net for $30 on eBay). Use newer balls which don't have visible signs of scuffing and your golf net will love you for it. Some balls with 'soft' covers tend to scuff up much quicker than others.
- Concrete Floors? Similar to the last point, hard surfaces for balls to bounce off will tend to roughen up the outer cover of your golf balls and therefore damage your netting quicker.
- Beware of the elements. Our nets are designed for outdoor use and I've had the same net in my own backyard for more than 12 months and it's still going strong with frequent use. However, rain and UV will will eventually make the netting age quicker. So if it's possible, set the net up in an indoor environment or pack it up after outdoor use.
- Use a Target Cloth. You can hang a secondary net or a target cloth in front of the net so that the impact on the netting itself is greatly reduced. You will probably never have to buy another golf net with this set up. Note that some target sheets can be quite noisy. See our product test on a target sheet article for more details.
Too late...there's already a hole
Here are some things you can do when you've already got a hole.
- Has it been 6 months? If not, please get in touch with us and we'll fix you up.
- You can still hang a target cloth in front and keep going, assuming the hole is just in 1 spot.
- You can try and patch the net - here's a video from the Backyard Golfer on how you can do this. There are other videos on YouTube that show you how to do this.
The Back Bar
Do you suffer from the occasional worm burner? If so, the back bar of the net may come into play.
Although most of the impact will be absorbed by the netting in front, you may still get a "ping" sound which can be off-putting.
This is an "issue" which is common in this style of nets.
To overcome this issue, you can simply get 2 x 1.5m pool noodles from Kmart or Bunnings (~$2 each) and do a wrap around. Works a treat! (see photo above)
The Hosel Rocket
Even the tour players occasionally send them sideways off the hosel.
At 3m wide, our net will catch pretty much all hosel rockets - I'm talking from experience! But if you want more protection, you can consider the following:
- Hit off centre, e.g. if you are a right hander, maybe give yourself 2m on the right side. 1m is usually enough for any pulled shots.
- Side nets - have some protective netting on the side for those serious sideways hits.
- Stand closer to the net to ensure a larger margin for error.
The Weakest Link
The frame of the net is made from strong and sturdy material and we've not heard of poles breaking.
However, we have seen cases (rare) where the hinges at the bottom can cause issues.
As the frame is collapsible, there is a spring loaded mechanism which allows the legs to be folded up and be clipped into place. Sometimes the spring can get stuck or get out of place. This is probably the 'weakest link' in the whole structure.
In those instances, you can simply undo the bolt with a spanner and a screw driver and that should give you clear access to the clip to fix the issue.
To prevent issues related to this hinge, try not to drag the net along the ground which will put unnecessary force through this hinge. This can sometimes either force the spring clip out of place or cause it to break. Lift the net up where possible if you want to move it around.
Final Thoughts
Although we rarely get feedback from our customers with regards to issues with our Kaizen Golf 3M Portable Golf Net, we've summarised some of the issues we've seen from our customers as well as through our own product testing. We hope this will help you in making an informed buying decision.
Through this article we also want to provide some information on how you can take better care of your golf net.
At Kaizen Golf, we are working hard to improve our whole range of products so if you have any feedback or suggestions on how we can make our products better, please don't hesitate to get in touch!