Help With my Golf Swing

[adwilk]

Ok, there are certain launch charachteristics that optimize performance... Swing Speed, Ball speed, Back Spin, Side Spin, Launch Angle, Blah Blah Blah. There is that one factor that cannot be changed by ball, or loft. I'm looking to create more swing speed. If the clubhead travels 128 mph on a shaft of 45 inches, the shaft has 3.4 degrees of tourqe, the shaft completley loads up at 14.6 inches before impact and... i dunno, i'm in way over my head. I know that shafts are measured in flexes using Cycles per minute, or frequency. IS there an optimum frequency range for any given swing speed that woud result in speed gains... what other effects would there be???

 

[adwilk]

or maybe perhaps somebody could explain exactly what happens at impact. the USGA limits the Coefitient of Restitution (COR) or trampoline effect to .830.. not sure exactly what thats about either....

 

[MobiusPizza]

Coefficient of restitution is a measure of how bouncy a ball is.
1 is perfectly bouncy. Such ball would be forever bouncing given no air resistance.
If a ball's dropping velocity is say 5m/s, if the COR is 0.5, the rebounded velocity is going to be 2.5m/s

 

[Geniere]

Originally posted by: adwilk
Ok, there are certain launch charachteristics that optimize performance... Swing Speed, Ball speed, Back Spin, Side Spin, Launch Angle, Blah Blah Blah. There is that one factor that cannot be changed by ball, or loft. I'm looking to create more swing speed. If the clubhead travels 128 mph on a shaft of 45 inches, the shaft has 3.4 degrees of tourqe, the shaft completley loads up at 14.6 inches before impact and... i dunno, i'm in way over my head. I know that shafts are measured in flexes using Cycles per minute, or frequency. IS there an optimum frequency range for any given swing speed that woud result in speed gains... what other effects would there be???

My favorite physics game.

If you can generate a club head speed of 128mph your up there with the pro?s, I think Tiger?s around the 140mph mark. Your 3.4 torque figure is too wishy-washy for that kind of speed. The club head must be absolutely perpendicular to the target line when the ball is struck. A wishy-washy club doesn?t help. I?m more of a golf technocrat than I am a golfer shooting in the mid-eighties. I do build my own clubs and sometimes build for friends. It is easy to do and thus easy to experiment and get the best shaft and club head combination. I do not like a graphite shaft on a driver because even the best torque (twist) more than the steel shaft. I?m a long ball hitter so I use a 45 1/2 inch stiff shaft with the least torque thus use titanium for the driver shaft and a 200 cc., 8 degree, maraging-steel faced, club head. I use mid flex, graphite for my field woods with titanium club heads to get the ball moving with a higher trajectory. Distance is not my goal on the field woods. I hit irons too high so I use stiff, high flex, steel, shafts on my forged bladed irons. I always 3 putt so I don?t have a putter; I just kick the ball around the green.

Accelerating a club head to 130 mph takes about 40 pounds of muscle mass. Much of that mass is in the lower torso and legs. Only exercise can help in that aspect. The only other choice is to reduce club weight or increase length but that compromises other factors. With your speed, you have to be careful in selecting a large club head (350cc.+) because it may (not noticeably) be deformed. I put a shallow dent in a titanium faced driver head and spent a lot of time in the woods before I noticed it. To generalize, the long ball hitter should use a low spin rate ball, and a stiff shafted, low torque, low angle club head. I trim my titanium driver shaft (incorrectly) at the club head end to increase stiffness. To me, frequency matching is only a marketing myth.

I?ve read a few golf physics books, but the best (non-math) one is ?The Search for a Perfect Swing?, an oldie but goodie. If you want to discuss ball flight, gear effect, etc. let me know.

 

[adwilk]

Okay, thats a decent explanation i suppose. I dont want to argue the small, unimportant stuff, but i have a very extensive knoweledge of how clubs are built. I am a master club builder and fitter, but, i was hoping to take my launch monitor measurements and maybe come up with a formula of sorts for an optimum frequency range to maximize club head speed without compromising other factors. I would like to know, if i move down in loft, say from a 8.5 to a 9.5 will my ball spin increase, or decrease??? there seems to be a contradiction between launch monitors... i guess this has something to do with vertical gear effect???

 

[Geniere]

Originally posted by: adwilk?I would like to know, if i move down in loft, say from a 8.5 to a 9.5 will my ball spin increase, or decrease??? there seems to be a contradiction between launch monitors... i guess this has something to do with vertical gear effect???

Good point. The ball will roll up the face of the club due to the gear effect, but will remain in contact with the club for less than ¼ revolution. Club head angle is the critical factor in the ball?s rotational acceleration. But, the angle of a club head sitting on a shelf is a static situation and is changed considerably at the moment of impact. I think there would be four main factors involved to determine the dynamic, not static, club head angle at impact:

- face angle
- club head roll radius
- the vertical (not horizontal) closing of the club head at impact
- the club head?s center of gravity.

- decrease face angle to lower spin rate
- larger roll radius to lower spin rate
- the vertical closing at impact would be less with a stiff, high flex point shaft and thus result in greater ball spin rate.
- a lower club head center of gravity would retard vertical closing and increase spin rate.

You've made me start thinking about making a new set since mine are about 5 years old. What is your take on the liquid metal heads?

..

 

[Gibsons]

hm. Something I never thought about: "If a shaft has too much flex (for a given swing), it will result in higher shots."

Seems to be a truism, but I don't understand why. Anyone?

 

[adwilk]

from what i understand, as the shaft flexes more, the release is delayed... it releases faster causing a "flipping" effect. I know that is certainly not a real technical explanation, but... also, weaker shafts generally have a lower kick point...

 

[adwilk]

Originally posted by: Geniere

Originally posted by: adwilk?I would like to know, if i move down in loft, say from a 8.5 to a 9.5 will my ball spin increase, or decrease??? there seems to be a contradiction between launch monitors... i guess this has something to do with vertical gear effect???

Good point. The ball will roll up the face of the club due to the gear effect, but will remain in contact with the club for less than ¼ revolution. Club head angle is the critical factor in the ball?s rotational acceleration. But, the angle of a club head sitting on a shelf is a static situation and is changed considerably at the moment of impact. I think there would be four main factors involved to determine the dynamic, not static, club head angle at impact:

- face angle
- club head roll radius
- the vertical (not horizontal) closing of the club head at impact
- the club head?s center of gravity.

- decrease face angle to lower spin rate
- larger roll radius to lower spin rate
- the vertical closing at impact would be less with a stiff, high flex point shaft and thus result in greater ball spin rate.
- a lower club head center of gravity would retard vertical closing and increase spin rate.

You've made me start thinking about making a new set since mine are about 5 years old. What is your take on the liquid metal heads?

..

I generally stick to what works and when i fit a customer i try to appease their hunger for whats marketed well and what they think will work, this due to golf being mostly mental. great concept, but a wasted one in my book. if the best golfers in the world aren't using them, i'm not so sure that they are all that. a 460cc titanium driver with .830 cor is all that is allowed by the USGA. I would use something of those specs for a driver. No significant advancements in tech. have been made in irons in quite some time. find something that looks good to and have the proper adjustments made (Flex, Lie angle..etc...