Introduction
In April 2023 I bought the SwingPrint® golf trainer aid after seeing the advertisement coming by 50 times a day on Instagram – proof IG advertisements are working. I could have blocked the ad but a voice in my head kept telling me – Hey man you need this!. And yes I really wanted to find out if the SwingPrint® could help me improving my compression.
SwingPrint® was founded by two golf enthusiasts, John and David. They have been playing golf for years and have always been interested in finding ways to improve their game. One day, while out on the course, they noticed that many golfers were struggling with the same swing issues. They realized that there was a need for a training aid that could provide instant feedback on a golfer’s swing. That’s how SwingPrint® was born.
What the SwingPrint® basically does is that is gives an analysis about your contact of the club head with the ground. When swinging, the mat will give you instant visual feedback if you hit the ground first and then the ball or hitting the ball first and then the ground – which creates that beautiful divot we all know watching the pro’s on television.
First impression
I wanted to make an unboxing video but there wasn’t much to unbox. The package fitted in my mailbox – I still need to ask the mailing company how much effort it took to squeeze in the package – and came in a bubble mailer envelope. The SwingPrint® wasn’t shipped in an official company box and no logo for identification, just a white envelope. To be honest I was a bit disappointed as I was pretty excited to do an unboxing video
Inside the package there was the SwingPrint® hitting surface, the non-slip rubber bottom, screws to fix the hitting surface on to the rubber bottom and a stake to secure the swing print on grass. However, no instruction guide was included. Despite the setup being very straight forward to add some instructions is a nice to have. Also how to read your swings to understand if you are hitting the ball solid or not.
It took me about 5 minutes to work it out and have the SwingPrint® ready for use.
Ease of use
The SwingPrint® website promotes the swing print can be used as a golf training aid in your backyard, living room and on the driving range. The non-slip rubber bottom should take care of preventing the swing print flying away after hitting the surface. Imagine the enormous force of a club hitting a surface when down swinging on to the golf ball you want the swing print to stay in place.
Backyard & Living Room
My backyard has a stone tile non-smooth surface and after testing different clubs and swings the non-slip rubber bottom is working very well. The swing print slides a bit to the front but stays in place. I would recommend to place the swing print on a smooth surface as after a while the rubber bottom was pretty bruised up with cuts because of the irregular surface.
In my living room I have a hard wooden floor and tried some clubs and swings with the same result as using it on a stone tile surface but without the bruises and cuts. Though to not damage my floor I put the swing print on a carpet and that worked best. No movement at all and enough friction between the rubber mat and the carpet, or at the least very minimal because the non-slip rubber bottom really bites into the carpet.
Driving Range
I took the SwingPrint® with me to the driving range for testing it on the practice mat and grass. Though I didn’t test it on grass because the grass itself gives you all the feedback needed if hitting the ball well. Most of the practice mats have some stickiness to it and expected the swing print to perform well, but on the first try and hitting a pretty good shot, the swing print flew a few meters away and that wasn’t what I was hoping for. After a few more tries I stopped, it just didn’t work out for me.
Swing analyses, Feedback & durability
Does SwingPrint® do what is supposes to do and that is giving the player an analysis about club head contact with the ground?
Yes it does! The swing path guides help first of all with setting up your go to position for your swing. You can practice with and without ball – for indoor use I suggest using foam balls.
Pro’s
When making contact with the surface the ‘fish’ scales – lack of a better word, will immediately provide you with the information where the club head made contact, the direction of the swing and if you hit the surface after or before the ball.
SwingPrint® also claims the durability of the hitting surface is very sturdy and can take up to 5.000 swings. I haven’t made it to 5.000 yet, but I can testify the scales are very tight nit and very strong.
Con’s
The hitting area is very sturdy but the outside border is very delicate. After two days the bottom far left and right teared apart and this is mainly due to the screws are not locking in completely. The upper and middle screw points are still intact. Also the lock-in parts for the screws are not locked into the rubber bottom, which could cause scratches on your floor.
On the front of the swing print you can add a stake to secure it when using it on grass, but because the secure point is in the swing direction to me this is failure and can cause you to hit the stake. A better positioning would be at the back of the swing print.
Conclusion
Would I recommend buying the SwingPrint® or is it just a nice gadget?
I would recommend buying the swing print because it really gives you an analyses about your swing and how solid you strike the ball. The improvements are mainly about the product itself than the mean of what it must do. I would love to see the SwingPrint® shipped in the official company packaging and that is comes with a description how to install it and what the analysis tell you.
Where to buy?
The SwingPrint® can be bought via their website SwingPrint (myswingprint.com). I have seen the swing print on Amazon as well, but I do not know if that is the official product, so I would recommend to buy the SwingPrint® directly from their website. Also check out the package deal which includes a Chipping net and free balls.
