Hi guys,
Allow me to shed some light on this. Many of you may recall that I played this game pretty well myself for a very long time and still have been known to tear it up now and then. The wind is very consistent and this is why your top players routinely shoot well. The issue with the wind not appearing consistent comes from your club's precision. Somewhat furthering my point is the fact that most of these types of complaints generally come from low precision club owners and rarely from high precision owners.
So, what does precision rating have to do with the wind? Well, a club's precision estimates how close to the aim point your ball will land (on average) when you hit an "Excellent" shot, aka a DING. The important thing to remember here is that you're not really aiming at a fixed point the size of your aim arrow. It's not realistic to hit the ball onto a point the size of a dime. So what I would do instead is try to imagine that my aim "point" is actually more like an aim circle that's a few yards wide. The lower the club's precision is the bigger the aim circle that your ball can land in on a dinged shot. However, with a higher precision rating usually comes less forgiveness meaning that your mishit shots will be penalized much more. That's the offset and the choice players will have to make while considering there own game and skill sets.
Some players will operate on the assumption that every ding goes exactly down your aim line like a tracer. It does not and that's what most folks forget to take that into account. In other words, they are judging wind based on two factors: a.) where they aimed and b.) where the ball landed. The problem with this approach is that the key third factor, low precision is not being considered into the final result.
When judging the wind's strength, be sure to note how far off the target line your ball started when you struck it. If you aim 15 degrees left to accommodate for a left to right wind and your ball actually starts 20 degrees left instead (because of low precision) then it will appear that the wind did not affect the ball as much. In reality, the ball started farther left than intended and the wind couldn't bring it all the way back. Remember that every shot that isn't a straight shot will have a mild sidespin effect imparted on it. That can cut into the wind (thereby diminishing the effect) or can work with the wind (thus amplifying the effect).
Also, it's important to keep in mind that club loft has an effect on the wind. The spin rate you put on the ball also has an effect on the wind. The general rule of thumb is that the higher the arc on the shot the more the wind will affect it, but you also must consider the amount of forward distance traveled as well. Clubs that maximize both arc height and distance (like your middle irons) will generally be affected more than clubs that only maximize either height or distance, not both.
After taking all of these factors into consideration I think a lot of players will find that the wind is quite consistent. What players are battling is actually low club precision. Once I figured this out as a player and began to really take notice of it things started making a lot more sense. I hope that helps to clear up some of the confusion.
Hit 'em well! =)