TrackMan Exposes Golf Myths
May 28th, 2012 | 
Author: 
TrackMan
It has been an enlightening experience using TrackMan in almost every lesson for a year now. There are so many widespread ‘philosophies’ (see: fallacies) that we, as golfers, have heard so many times we simply accept them to be truth. TrackMan says – hold on a minute!
Here are a few examples that come to mind:
- You’ve got to “Release the Club through Impact”
The collision between club and ball lasts less than 1/2000th of a second and it simply is not possible to “release” or consciously alter the face angle during that very narrow time frame. The face is what it is by the time impact happens. For example – in 2012, by the time Bubba Watson teed it up in the Masters, his ball had not been on his clubface in competition for even one second! The only element that can alter the face during impact is an off center hit and that’s far from conscious.
- “Draws Must be Hit with a Closed Clubface”
Or vice versa, fades are hit with an open face. Draws are really good if they start to the right (for righties) – agreed? TrackMan shows that the clubface is primarily responsible for the launch direction of the ball and thus for a good draw the face should be to the right of the target with the clubpath (which primarily causes curve) being further to the right. When that, along with a centered hit occur, voila – we have a lovely push draw! This also dispels the myth that the ball launches in the direction of the swing/clubpath. Clubface (primarily) = launch.
- “That Drive Had Tons of Sidespin…”
The vast majority of balls that are hit in the air have backspin. If a golfball has backspin it cannot possibly also have sidespin. Think about it – two types of spin on one ball at the same time? So what makes it curve? TrackMan shows that all shots that curve do so due to backspin on an axis (spin axis) that is tilted either left or right. Curve is purely caused by backspin that is tilted to one side or another.
- “My Divots Point Left so I Must Be Over the Top”
Because divots ideally occur after the collision between face and ball, the clubpath has a window of opportunity to start arcing back inside the target line. I have seen anything from push fades, to hooks, to push draws from leftward pointing divots. Divots do not tell us as much as we think, because they do not (and should not) occur at the moment of impact.
- “That Ball Faded – I Must Have Cut Across It”
A very important factor in determining shot shape is not only the clubface relative to the clubpath, but also where the ball is struck on the face relative to the sweetspot. For regular golfers off center hits occur on the majority of shots hit. Balls hit off the toe of a club will always have a tendency to draw or fade/slice less and balls hit off the heel will always fade or draw/hook less. Even one dimple on either side of the sweetspot will make a difference. This means it is possible to swing for a draw and hit/strike for a fade.
- “My Instructor Showed Me My Club Path on Video”
Ehhh….no! Trust me on this one – what you see on video is a 2D version of a 3D event and the only way you can accurately know what your real clubpath is to be aware of your attack angle, which with video this is not possible either. On video you will see the direction you are swinging in relative to the target, but there is no way to know your clubpath (which is what creates a good portion of ball flight).
- “Hitting Down Always Leads to More Backspin”
Spin is created by many factors, but a steeply descending blow on its own will not alter spin. When a golfer hits down aggressively they often also reduce the loft on the clubface, and a lesser lofted face will do nothing to increase backspin.
- “Draws Are Much Longer and Spin Less Than Fades”
This is a good one! With everything else kept the same a ball that spins on a left leaning axis has no reason to go further than a ball with a right leaning spin axis. Now, keep in mind it’s very difficult to keep everything the same (thus draws tend to be longer), but in a controlled environment both shots go the same distance. Just be aware that a properly struck fade will most often go just as far as its draw side counterpart.
And while it’s not a myth, even though PGA Tour golfers average out with a downward attack angle on the driver, TrackMan has more than done it’s share to prove how maximum efficiency and distance can be achieved by hitting up with the driver.
Feel free to share your thoughts or questions…..
Posted in Long Game, Swing Philosophy | 
Tags: 1/2000th of a second, attack angle, closed face fade, clubface=launch, clubpath, collision between face and ball, curve, descending blow, distance, downward attack angle, draws, draws start right, fades, hitting up on the ball, impact, launch direction, left leaning axis, maximum efficiency, off center hit, off center hits, off the heel, off the toe, open face draw, path, push draw, reduce the loft, release the club, right leaning spin axis, right of target, spin axis, sweetspot, swing path, trackman
Fascinating stuff. Found a Trackman near me but have yet to go. Question regards the draw we all want and love. Is it safe to say the old advice of hitting the inside quadrant of the ball is being proven true. As long as our paths are to the right which they would have to be to hit that quadrant. And as long as our club face is less open than the path we will hit draws. Did I read your article correctly? Sounds like there is room for error and draws don’t have to be so elusive for the average player. I have been missing a lot left with hooks even. From reading your article I need to focus on more path to the right and that should correct my problem. It’s not a fault of face. Your thoughts?
Courtney,
The only way to hit the inside quadrant of the ball is to have the face open! No matter what your path is. Remember that draws require an open face, so yes, in a round about way you do want to hit the inside quadrant. It sounds like you read things correctly to me. If you’re missing left in a pull, hook fashion that would indicate a closed face. My experience shows most better players have a fairly consistent path, but it’s the clubface angle and point of contact that creates the inconsistency.
Hope this helps.
Andrew
I don’t quite understand how the myth about drawing the ball. If your face is going right….and then further right…how are you drawing the ball? Thanks.
Hi Tom,
The clubface points right of the target (eg. 1 degree) with the clubpath being further to the right (eg. 4 degrees). The clubpath being more to the right tilts the spin axis to the left causing a draw. The face launches the ball to the right while the path creates the leftward curve – curving the ball back to the target for an easy birdie…
I hope this makes sense and that you and the family are well.
Sincerely,
Andrew
I just wanted to correct your comment about sidespin. There is sidespin on the ball. You can think of it as a vector. The vector can point in any arbitrary direction. In order to achieve this direction, it is composed of an X & Y component. This is the same as the spin. You have the backspin, which points directly up and down. In order to tilt the axis left or right, it requires another component of spin pointed directly in the horizontal axis or left and right. This is sidespin. So the overall spin of the ball is a combination of backspin and sidespin.
Matt – a golf ball cannot have sidespin and backspin at the same time. It is backspin on a tilted axis. I understand all the vectors, but in defining what is really happening it can only be backspin on a tilted axis. Keep in mind that the people who created TrackMan are some of the smartest people on the planet. They understand impact and ball flight physics far better than you and I combined and would not have defined it as such were it not in actual fact so.
Andrew, what are your thoughts on the future of driver AoA? Do you think tour players will eventually start hitting up on it more, or do you think they have mastered some sort of optimal “distance + control” combination by hitting down on it like most of them do?
Hi Bryan,
I think more of the younger players are starting to work towards an ascending AoA, but when you swing at 118mph and can drive it 320 with a spin loft of 15 degrees (because you are hitting down a little) there is certainly a positive in keeping that spin loft at 15. A higher spin loft makes it more difficult to tilt the spin axis and that equals straighter shots!
Cheers,
Andrew
Hi Andrew
I have allways had probems with too much draw on my irons but hit the driver with only a little draw or stright. Is the best way to hit the ball stright to hit the irons with a slightly open stance and the driver with a slightly closed stance?
Spot on Richard!
I agree with Matt that a ball can have only one axis around which it is rotating. If the ball has pure under-spin, the axis of rotation will be horizontal, and the air pressure under the ball will be greater than above the ball and the ball would be pushed up, while if it has pure side spin (clockwise, as viewed from above the ball), the axis of rotation is vertical and the air pressure on the left side of the ball will be greater than on the right side, so the ball would be pushed to the right. In general, the force on the ball will always be perpendicular to the spin axis.
In summary, if the spin axis as viewed by the golfer is tilted left to right, at an angle somewhere between horizontal and vertical, the ball will be pushed up and to the right. Another way to understand this is to recognize that the air pressure will be higher on one side of the spin axis, and lower on the opposite side, irrespective of the orientation of the spin axis, so the force on the ball points from the higher-pressure side to the lower-pressure side. In this case, the force will point up and to the right.
The ball does, indeed, effectively have two “components” of spin–one which is under-spin, and the other side spin.
Nice job — the new breed of instructors such as yourself are fast bears but remember to continually vet your hypothesis no matter how sure you are. This is the difference between a method and a model — one is in stone, the other is in flux. Always be a flux kind of guy!
best,
tj tomasi Ph.D.
Director, GM Top 100 Teachers Organization
Thanks for your advice and for reading TJ! Your input is sincerely appreciated.
I read your “myths” and was disappointed than none of them were unknown to me in the 1970s. A careful read of any good source beginning in 1969 would have yielded the same information
Wow Bill – if I’d have known you knew all this stuff in the ’70′s I’d have had no reason to write it! Sorry for disappointing you…
Nice stuff on the true ball flight laws that you’ve got covered here.
What’s crazy is that a vast majority of teachers will tell you the other way because they’ve been told it was the truth without questioning that.
But today’s slow mo and ball flight tools such as the Trackman prove the true laws of ball flight:
The ball will indeed always leave the clubface at right angles and the ball trajectory, curving right or left is impaired by the clubhead path relative to that angle.
A very simple way to prove that to the skeptics is to go to the putting green to perform a small test:
Align on the hole, open the clubface 45 degrees and putt in the straight line towards the target…
According to the “well established ball flight laws”, your ball should start straight towards the hole and drift to the right at the end due to the spin given by the open clubface.
But I thing that the true result will be very different
Could you guess what will happen?
Best regards,
John.
Does anyone know if there are trackman range devices available in Georgia or north Florida?
So, just to make sure I have this right in my head. If I were to hit a shot that launched straight at my target, and then faded off line, that would likely indicate a square clubface and an out to in downswing?
Correct Brian!
Actually a golf ball struck with an out to in swing (righty) and a square clubface should start slightly to the left. The exact path is determined by conservation of momentum including the effects of the coefficients of restitution of the golf ball and club. Adding the spin caused by striking off center to the momentum equation gets far too complicated for me. Do the putter experiment with a 45 degree out to in path and a square face (easier said than done) and see what happens. I’m guessing the angle will be less than 45 degrees but it will not leave perpendicular to the club face. Let me know if I’m wrong (it wouldn’t be the first time) but only if you’ve done the experiment.
Hi Mike,
If you read the post carefully you will notice that I stated face is “primarily” responsible for launch direction…not perfect, but a handy nugget to remember IMO.
Thanks for reading,
AR
If the backspin is the same and the sidespin (or tilt axis) are the same but opposite for a draw and for a fade then they are going to go the same distance.
The question is when looking at the historical data from trackman do people actually hit their draws and fades with the same but opposite spin or is there a tendency to hit the fades with more backspin (less tilt) or perhaps just have a higher launch angle for fades? I find it easier to hit fades over high obstacles but perhaps that is just me.
I did notice the “primarily” a bit after I’d written it.
Many tour players can hit fades and draws the same distance Mike. Most often however, the spin loft for draws cause them to go a little further…..
I have a tendency to hit pull draws with my irons when swinging ‘poorly’. The ball stars a small fraction left and draws . Is this simply down to my clubface at impact. e.g. Say my path is positive 1-2 degrees with a completely square clubface to target (not path) or 1 degree shut to target line? Is this the cause?
Also for a driver they say hit up on it from the inside out but this looks way under plane on video. Whats correct? I dont want to gain clubhead sped and distance but start hitting it all over the place.
1 more question: What is the maximum face/path differential to hit an acceptable curvature of shot (assuming solid contact). When does the differential start to create hooks/slices? 5 degrees?
Thanks