My launch monitor readings from 1/11/09

[dan360]

I'm not sure how to read the "good" in these things...

I haven't been on a real launch monitor in a few years, so I took advantage to a chance to hit on a Vector. Tried a few different drivers and according to the people at the shop, this was the best result of the driver best suited for me:

Ball Speed: 162.2
Swing Speed: 112.4
Launch Angle: 14.5
Backspin: 2557rpm
Carry Distance: 279.4
Total Distance: 300.8

Club Specs:

Head: Mizuno MP-600 9.5*...weights @ 2 and 5 (neutral mid spin)
Shaft: Fujikura Fit-On E360 stiff

Standard length, lie, and grip from Mizuno.

I hit 66 shots with a variety of clubs, and started doing back to back to back with this one and a couple others and this Mizuno was consistently the better performer. The shop has a full range to hit on to see ball flight, and this driver was the better looking of the bunch. Most of the shots were in the 280-285 range total, but I uncorked on a few with each club and the above result was, again according to the shop, the best one for me.

I really don't know much about what the readings are saying as far as launch angle, spin rate, etc go.

I'm a 5 hdcp but have been playing closer to a 10 lately because my driver is all over the map. Looking for more consistency. I hit pretty decent distance-wise and am (self considered) a pretty good iron player...just looking for a driver with a slightly lower ball flight than current and something more consistent.

My current HS9 10* YS-6 stiff is a VERY high & right combination for me.

Any thoughts and/or help is much appreciated. Thank you much,

Dan-

[BParis]

Ha ha... are you kidding? I think the numbers say, "Buy this driver!"

[taylormadegolfdude]

Those aren't bad numbers. If you want to hit more fairways hit your 3 wood or 5 wood with those numbers it wouldn't be bad. I am willing to sacrifice distance for fairways. Because lets face it more fairways help you score. Especially in years to come with golf technology changing dramatically. Also, high ball flight is good, look at Geoff Ogilivy.

[dan360]

Ha ha... are you kidding? I think the numbers say, "Buy this driver!"

I'm not disputing the distance, but keep in mind this was the BEST result, and the page they printed out for me. I don't hit everything that far or that hard, but for the most part the Mizuno was the best performer from a distance standpoint. Plus, the spin & angles are foreign to me as far as what is good or not.

 

 

 

Those aren't bad numbers. If you want to hit more fairways hit your 3 wood or 5 wood with those numbers it wouldn't be bad. I am willing to sacrifice distance for fairways. Because lets face it more fairways help you score. Especially in years to come with golf technology changing dramatically. Also, high ball flight is good, look at Geoff Ogilivy.

My shots have historically always been on the high side.

 

I guess I'm not looking at the distance so much as the spin rate and launch angle...is this considered ideal nowadays or am I looking down the wrong road?

 

 

Would I be better off with a higher loft and different shaft?

[taylormadegolfdude]

Calculate your smash factor. The idea smash factor is 1.5. Yours is 1.44 with this club. So it's not that bad. This club is a good fit. As far as being more consistent. It is just about pounding balls. Your numbers are good, so don't be so concerned. Launch is under 15 excellent, spin rates is under 3,000 rpm, ball speed is close to tour average. I think Jb Holmes is 181 ball speed and he is long. However, watching the Mercedes tournament Boos ball speed was lower than Jb and other guys, but Boo ranked 2nd in driving distance. On the other side Brian Gay lead fairways and was last in driving distance.

[MchSt805]

From one source, based on a purely mathematical calculations:

 

Optimal launch stats based on 160mph ball speed are 2750 - 3200 rpms of backspin and a 16* launch angle. That would leave you more towards the 288.5 yards of carry range granted you have a perfect smash factor of 1.5.

 

With that said, I don't know anyone who really tries to launch the ball at an angle like that. Other than that, you look to be almost spot on! Sounds like you've found your next driver :)

[Shaftology]

Optimum launch angle would be in the 12.5 to 13.5 range at 162 BS so you are just a little high. Spin is pretty good but would like you to get under 2500 at that ball speed. The E360 is a good, stiff tip shaft but you could do better with an upgrade to an OZIK CODE 6 or 7, or F7M2.

 

At the end of your testing, which driver/shaft combination gave you the best shot dispersion? After all, distance, spin and launch angle are worthless if you can't hit fairways 70-80% of the time.

[skinny99]

How accurate was the Mizuno? Do you sometimes swing harder on the course? I know on the range it is easy to keep it smooth and have great tempo,but can you always maintain that when you are playing,I know I can't. I think as hard as you swing you might benefit from a heavier shaft (70g-75g) if you are going to stay with a stiff flex.IMO Todd

[dan360]

Thanks everyone!

 

My mishits are usually high & right. I get pretty quick @ times and lag my hands behind me, which gets worse when I try to force a big hit.

 

I was swinging easier on the range---something I'm training myself to do on the course as well. Takes time.

 

 

The most accurate (straightest) shot dispersion was the MP-600 with a NV 75S. Spin was only around 2100 and the distance was off about 20-25 yards to the Fit-On 360.

 

The clubfitter said if I could get the spin up a bit higher it would be perfect, but I've heard more spin is not needed for higher ball speeds...

 

The launch is a little higher than I'd like to see, from a physical viewing of the shot standpoint, so I was thinking of a slightly lower launching shaft.

 

My swing speeds are up there, but I've swung those "test" clubs in the past with all the wires coming out the end of the shaft to measure load, and my charts don't peak & valley much at all. In fact, the clubfitter who built my irons said I swing smooth enough for a regular flex shaft, although he wouldn't put me in them, so the irons got S300's, which still go fairly high (IMHO) but not ballooning....so I don't know how to really factor in what the different driver shafts are going to do.

 

At this point, I'm hitting about 50% of my fairways with the majority of my misses in the right rough....

 

I really like the look and feel of the Mizuno head, and will probably get this one...just not sure on the shaft yet.

 

Thanks again, you folks have been very helpful so far! I'd love to try all the different combo's for shafts but don't have 5 grand to throw at buying them and fitting them up. lol

[BParis]

DL5treez, PM will be coming to you very soon... I may have the driver combo for you.

[MchSt805]

Sounds like if your miss tends to be high and right that you're also picking up a bit of side spin. Do you have a number for that as well? If you can get side spin down (which is a swing issue), that is going to decrease your backspin. Decrease backspin too much and you're going to lose significant distance. From what I read all the time, most people actually are launching the ball lower than optimal. Ego kicks in and you say you need a low runner, but height is not necessarily a bad thing as long as it's not ballooning.

[dan360]

Sounds like if your miss tends to be high and right that you're also picking up a bit of side spin. Do you have a number for that as well? If you can get side spin down (which is a swing issue), that is going to decrease your backspin. Decrease backspin too much and you're going to lose significant distance. From what I read all the time, most people actually are launching the ball lower than optimal. Ego kicks in and you say you need a low runner, but height is not necessarily a bad thing as long as it's not ballooning.

I do get a small bit of outside/in tendencies when I overswing.

 

The above numbers were a square/square face angle and swing path.

 

The same driver on a high & right mishit was a slightly closed face angle and slightly outside in, with about 3100rpm spin. It didn't veer offline substantially, just a aggravating push/fade....I think the numbers on face degree were in the 2-3 degree closed and the side spin varied from about 250 to about 1000 at times. Can't remember 100% though.

 

With my current Cobra/YS-6...it balloons. The Mizuno didn't balloon and didn't go anywhere near as high as the Cobra, it was actually about right, according to the fitter...just seemed kinda high. But, I'm not completely up on the new technology either, and the balls might've had something to do with it--not sure.

[LowPost42]

If that's your average strikes with the MP600, buy it. Not one like it - buy the one you were hitting.

 

If that was your best strike, you've got work to do - you completely missed the sweetspot which will increase ball speed.

 

FWIW, those launch numbers are pretty good (save the whole smash factor thing).

[dan360]

If that's your average strikes with the MP600, buy it. Not one like it - buy the one you were hitting.

 

If that was your best strike, you've got work to do - you completely missed the sweetspot which will increase ball speed.

 

FWIW, those launch numbers are pretty good (save the whole smash factor thing).

 

I don't believe it to be the complete average--pretty sure the fitter printed off one of the better shots, if not the best shot.

 

I can remember most of my swing speeds in the 107 range, ball speeds in mid to high 150's. The launch angles and back spin readings were consistent, unless I screwed up and came through slightly crooked.

 

How can I tell by the numbers that I missed the sweet spot? Is there a formula? Help!

 

I had major spine surgery a few years ago and haven't played golf like I did pre-op. Used to be 3-4 times/week, now it's 3/mth if I'm lucky...plus I can't swing like an animal anymore for an entire round without paying for it. haha

[geeza_1]

I haven't been on a real launch monitor in a few years, so I took advantage to a chance to hit on a Vector. Tried a few different drivers and according to the people at the shop, this was the best result of the driver best suited for me:

 

Ball Speed: 162.2

Swing Speed: 112.4

Launch Angle: 14.5

Backspin: 2557rpm

Carry Distance: 279.4

Total Distance: 300.8

 

Club Specs:

 

Head: Mizuno MP-600 9.5*...weights @ 2 and 5 (neutral mid spin)

Shaft: Fujikura Fit-On E360 stiff

 

Standard length, lie, and grip from Mizuno.

 

I hit 66 shots with a variety of clubs, and started doing back to back to back with this one and a couple others and this Mizuno was consistently the better performer. The shop has a full range to hit on to see ball flight, and this driver was the better looking of the bunch. Most of the shots were in the 280-285 range total, but I uncorked on a few with each club and the above result was, again according to the shop, the best one for me.

 

I really don't know much about what the readings are saying as far as launch angle, spin rate, etc go.

 

I'm a 5 hdcp but have been playing closer to a 10 lately because my driver is all over the map. Looking for more consistency. I hit pretty decent distance-wise and am (self considered) a pretty good iron player...just looking for a driver with a slightly lower ball flight than current and something more consistent.

 

My current HS9 10* YS-6 stiff is a VERY high & right combination for me.

 

Any thoughts and/or help is much appreciated. Thank you much,

 

Dan-

 

Those numbers are great! Buy the driver!

[Grum]

Divide your ball speed by your swing speed to see if you're hitting it well or not; you're looking for a number as close to 1.5 as possible.

[MchSt805]

Divide your ball speed by your swing speed to see if you're hitting it well or not; you're looking for a number as close to 1.5 as possible.

Great advice. Someone actually calculated that above already. 1.44 is pretty solid I'd say.

 

 

Calculate your smash factor. The idea smash factor is 1.5. Yours is 1.44 with this club. So it's not that bad.

[dan360]

Okay, that's what "smash factor" is....Cool, thanks!

 

I guess there's always something better out there, but I was really feeling good hitting the MP600/Fuji combo. Seems like a great club to bring my confidence back in the driver.

 

 

This site rocks because of the awesome members! Thanks again!

[3put]

WOW! Those #'s are great.

 

It's hard for me to believe a 5-capper has no idea of launch monitor #'s......

[Simp]

Not everyone gets caught up in the numbers game.

[Deadpool_25]

Not sure I'd say 1.44 smash factor is all that great. Really should be 1.48 - 1.50 IMO, but as someone said above, that could be due to not catching it quite solidly. Still, that's a distance thing, so if you're not as concerned with your distance you should be looking to narrow dispersion. Is the MP-600 doing that for you?

 

Occasionally a fitter may not realize (even if you tell them) that your primary concern is dispersion. Some can get a bit of distance-focused tunnel vision. In fairness, even on Trackman, sometimes dispersion seems a bit hard to predict. Thus, I think it might be best to pick the two or three clubs that you get the best dispersion with, and then get them out on the course/range for some extensive testing. Or pick the one head that gets you the best dispersion, then work hard to set it up so that the launch angle and spin rate are where you want them.

[MchSt805]

Not everyone gets caught up in the numbers game.

I agree. I would have never even thought about the numbers before I joined this site summer 2007. I wouldn't say that I am really any better of a player since then either. I look at all the numbers now, the fine details that are "supposed" to matter. In all reality though, I just have to tell myself that it's about me, not the equipment anyways. Sure there are things that help to a point, but I've realized I've nearly maxed out those posibilities. It's left to how much practice I put into it now. The new equipment is basically just for fun at this point. Getting launch monitor numbers is good knowledge to have now just to make sure I'm not going in reverse.

 

 

Not sure I'd say 1.44 smash factor is all that great. Really should be 1.48 - 1.50 IMO

At 112 mph swing speed, a smash factor of 1.5 leads to a 168 mph ball speed. That's really that far off from the 162 the original poster is getting. Yes, there is always room for improvement, but 6 mph isn't going to lead to noticable distance differences...at least I wouldn't be able to see it I don't think. I suppose maybe 5 yards or something, but at 280+ do you see that? Anyways, you're saying that it should be at an absolute perfect 1.5. Well, sure that's optimal, but that's asking a lot for most of us to be able to achieve absolute perfect contact.

[VegasShark]

Based on Fujikura stats here are the results from the average PGA Tour player:

 

Ball Speed: 167 mph

Launch: 9-10*

Spin: 2,300-2,500 rpm

 

See Link:

 

http://www.fujikuragolf.com/pdfs/optimaldata.pdf

[BILL12x]

Your numbers are very good. You could maybe get a little more by bringing the ball flight down slightly, but you will carry the ball less in the air and more on the ground. The slightly higher ball flight would be more forgiving.

 

The 3 drivers I use the most are:

FT5 - Long, but misses tend to be a hook.

MacTech 435 - Longest and lowest flight, but misses go waay right.

R7-425TP - 5-10 yards shorter than the others above, but my misses are still very playable.

 

Weigh what is important to you and decide what to do. Only you can make that decision. I generally play the R7 in stroke play events, and one of the others in match play.

[deepblue]

Your numbers on the launch monitors are really good. Did you do the test indoors? What sort of balls did you use during the test? I had a quick look and did not see any mention of ball type. Using the same ball that you would normally play with will give you a more accurate picture of you ball speed, smash factor as well as spin numbers. Also, remember to observe the impact position on the club face and correspond that with the data of that particular shot, it will affect launch angles, smash factors as well as spin numbers.

[pdaero]

I completely agree with DeepBlue's post, it seems that you have very good numbers. I have heard raving reviews about this club, and I am glad that you hit it well. The only thing that I can think of would be to go to the same place and bring the balls you play with, whatever they may be. This will give you a much more accurate picture of how it will feel on the course. Please do get it, and if you do eventually think about changing the shaft, I highly recommend the Matrix Ozik Code 6 or Code 7. The Code 6 will feel similar to the E360 you tried, but with better feel. The Code 7 will hit it slightly lower with slightly lower spin (but not much) and be 5-9 grams heavier. Hope this helps!

[BurritoJimmyFan]

I personally think the numbers say "do NOT by this driver".

 

IMO, the numbers are good but not great. If you like the club head stick with it, but try some other shafts. The launch and spin are close, but a little high. If I had your swing speed, i would want to be closer to 12* of launch. I'm sure others can give you suggestions on additional shafts to try.

[taylormadegolfdude]

Average meaning some lower and some higher. So makes no sense.

[MchSt805]

I just want to raise a point though, isn't it through the laws of physics proven that with his current ball speed and back spin rate, that the absolute maximum carry distance of a golf ball with a perfect smash factor actually has a launch angle of more than 14.5 ?

 

I know that 99% of people would say 14.5 is too high at that swing speed. I know that different people like different shot trajectories. I've seen all of that, I just wondered the basis...when mathematics states other wise.

[dan360]

We're still searching, and yes I don't know much about launch monitor numbers as I have rarely been on one.

 

The range is outdoor, the balls were Titleist range balls..off a mat with a rubber tee.

 

I've narrowed down my choices on drivers to a more traditional club head. No topline, no dents/bumps/cavities in the crown, black in color. Anal retentive maybe but the "look" (mental) helps me focus.

 

The Mizuno was the tighest dispersion, most consistent out of the box. With the huge amount of shaft choices I'm getting frustrated searching for the 'holy grail' combination.

 

The ball flight seems a bit high to me, too.....going by what the fitter said (he claims it's optimum) but my eye prefers to see it a little lower. Been reading about the new materials, ball construction, and the benefits to higher flight...trying to get used to it.

 

I've heard a lot of buzz about the Matrix shafts. Going to try a couple next weekend, just to see.

 

Thanks everyone!