backspin Archives • GolfStinks

Ok, so we have five laws here that, according to instructors and good golfers, are the base for diagnosing swing problems…I’ll be the judge of that.

The Laws

#1. The speed of the clubhead at impact greatly affects the distance the golf ball will travel. A faster club head speed will cause the ball to travel further; a slower club head speed will lead to less distance.

Whoa, whoa whoa…malarkey! I’ve seen someone, Tom (co-founder of Golfstinks), smash a drive off of an elevated tee and the ball had this ridiculous sinking ability it would have made Brandon Webb* proud!

#2. The degree to which the ball is struck in relation to the club’s “sweet spot” affects both the distance and direction of the ball. The closer to the sweet spot the ball is struck, the further and straighter the ball will travel.

Sweet spot?!?! Where the hell is that? I mean, I’ve got a sweet spot for…wait…Do you mean the “center of persussion”? Why didn’t you say so! Now I get it. Geez, I could have been on the tour by now if I knew that!

#3. The direction the clubface is pointed at impact greatly affects the direction of the flight of the ball. The more the toe or the heel of the club is in front at impact, the more side spin will be imparted to the ball which will influence the curvature of the ball’s flight.

Look here chief…if I can see where the clubface is pointing at impact then call me Col. Steve Austin because I would also be able to see through the clubhouse walls and into the ladies locker…ok, moving on!

#4. The initial direction the ball flies after impact is greatly influenced by the path of the clubhead. The faster the clubhead speed at impact, the greater this influence will be.

Infuence? Influence…hmmm…I get it! The more I’m under the influence the better a player I will be! That is genius, now I know why the Scottish and Irish don’t export the good stuff!

#5. The steepness of the club’s path at impact affects both distance and curvature. A steeper angle of attack will cause the ball to go higher and less far because of the degree of backspin generated. A ball struck above its center of gravity will go lower than a ball struck below its center of gravity.

Yeah…and if you take pi and divide it by the colpanarity sum of the pythagorean theory, divide it by last year’s tax returns, add it to your last scorecard score, subtract what your last scorecard’s score really was and, voila! I think that just gave me a headache.

*Brandon Webb is a MLB pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks who has a friggin awesome sinker.

Now that I have traded in my 3 wood for a snow shovel, I have more time to read about golf than actually play it. Recently, I decided to look into the physics of golf and find out why after 12 years I still stink at it. So, I figured if I learn the science I can learn the art. And man was that a strain on the cabeza. Now I know why Wheel of Fortune used to follow Jeopardy on T.V…so you don’t think you’re a complete idiot and salvage whatever pride you have left.

In my perusing, I came across some interesting stuff that I thought was pretty cool. The following are some physics/scientifical explanations about different facets of the game. And for those smarty-pants’ out there that already know this stuff please feel free to add in the comments.

Ball Flight

After being struck the more backspin put on a golf ball the more loft and airtime it will have.

“As the ball spins, it forces air over the top of it and then behind it. This means that the air above the ball is moving faster than the air below the ball, and because of the pressure difference, the ball has additional force pushing it up, which helps it stay in the air for a longer period of time. This spin also helps golfers produce more accurate shots because with a backspin imparted on the ball, it drops quicker toward the end of the shot. And after hitting the ground, the backspin helps slow the ball more quickly.”*

Also, Dimples play a big role in keeping that ball in the air.

“Dimpled golf balls fly much further than smooth balls. The reason dimpled balls travel further than smooth balls is because the dimples on a golf ball create turbulence in the boundary layer. This actually helps because the dimples then scoop air back towards the rear of the ball. By moving more air to the rear, this helps keep the air pressure behind the ball from dropping. And by doing this, the amount of air pressure pulling backwards on the ball is decreased.” **

So, let’s get this straight, backspin and dimples are a major part of ball flight. Hmmmm…well I’ll tell you where else backspin and dimples are good…pickin’ up the ladies! That’s right, before I packed on the pounds I would flash a dimpled-cheek smile to the girls and bust out a pretty mean backspin on the dancefloor. Well, it wasn’t that easy. A man can dream can’t he? Oh well, back to the shovelin’!

**- http://ffden-2.phys.uaf.edu/211_fall2002.web.dir/josh_fritts/flight.html

The Laws of Golf Ball Flight

Golf Physics 101

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