The Green Fee When I go to the PGA Show one of my favorite areas to check out is the inventor spotlight area. You can find some crazy stuff but you can also find some really cool and useful products. This year as I was walking through I saw an interesting product called Keep It in the Black. I thought enough of it to review it.
What the hell is it?
It is a mat that goes down on the green to help you knock it closer with chips or 1st putts. The product has a white regulation “hole” in the middle and it is surrounded by a 3ft black circle. The goal is to knock your first putts or your chips into the black hole. This is a tap in distance for most people. If the golfer can consistently put it in the black hole the theory is scores will lower. Often you will see someone using a hula hoop or something like the Eyeline Golf Targets. Those items can alter the roll of the ball. The KIITB is supposed to let the ball roll freely.
The Good
When I pulled it out of the package my first though was how nice it felt. You could really tell that they had taken this through a few test runs to get the fabric right. I can appreciate the time and effort that went into that. Getting it out on the putting green was awesome too. Getting it on the green was super easy. Put the tees in the grommets and the tees into the ground.
One of the biggest issues for me heading into 2023 is lag putting. I had a round of 76 with 38 putts. I was hitting greens but wasnt getting my first putts very close. That lead to tough 2nd putts and higher scores. Getting my lag putting down is super important for me to lower my scores. Using the KIITB raises a lot of confidence. That bigger 3 ft target is super useful to my eye. It also helps me see if that “good” putt is actually good. The ball also rolls over the mat smoothly. With hula hoops or the eyeline targets the ball can be thrown a little off target since it is a raised surface.
The Bad
I typically practice at a pretty windy spot. When I was reviewing this product the wind was steady and it was getting under the matt and whipping around a little. I tried to make it as tight as possible to limit this but there were some times where it would throw a ball off that was already on it. If youre in a windy area it may not be perfect for you.
Another complaint is the fact you cant use this with a regular hole. I wish it had a little velcro tab that I could undo to put it over an actual cup. If I am aiming at the big circle thats great but there is something to seeing the ball go in the cup.
The final problem is the biggest one. The issue is the price. The product is high quality and I have enjoyed using it but at $50 it feels a bit steep. I think it is better than the hula hoop and the Eyeline Target rings. That being said the Eyeline rings are $25 for the 3ft ring. I can buy the 3 and 6 ft rings for the price of the KIITB.
Final Thoughts
Its a really good product overall. Its well built and it does exactly what it says it does. The thing has some fundamental flaws though. Do I think its worth $50? Probably not. Do I feel I got ripped off? Also a no. If they can add the velcro to allow me to use it with an actual hole, I think its probably worth it. They made a better mouse trap but are charging too much for that new mouse trap. If the price of this can get down to 35 Id recommended 100%