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Does Spin effect the ball flight?

• TheWhiteBuffalo 12 Posts

  Mon, Mar 5 2018 3:28 PM

  Am i imagining things, or does imparting spin on the ball effect the distance and direction of the ball?  Seems more so with significant wind and/or longer clubs.  

  If so, how best to factor spin into my shot?

  I'm playing with

  R11 3W spin-1,
  Ping Hybrid Spin 0.5,
  Starter Irons spin 0.5
  ATV Wedges 60 & 64 degree Spin 3.5

  My balls (pun intended) G12-S have spin-1.
  I occasionally sludge for the 180 credit Srixon with 2.5 spin  

  THANK YOU!

• K7JBQ 1,468 Posts

  Mon, Mar 5 2018 7:16 PM

  It certainly does, and the effects are highly dependent on the club/ball combination. Best way to figure it out is to play practice rounds where you can take mulligans and try different combinations. There is no "easy formula."

• 9,041 Posts

  Mon, Mar 5 2018 11:38 PM

  Start with your drives.....

  Hit one with full back spin and a tail wind, then when you get a similar wind strength/direction, hit it with no spin and see the difference for yourself...

  Too many variables to type here..

  When to use TS / no spin 98% hit for a bounce n run / 3/4 spin to get under \ over a tree...etc etc etc..

  Play around with different spins, a useful tool when you know what spin will do what to the ball flight.

  gl

  Andy

• kavvz 2,195 Posts

  Tue, Mar 6 2018 4:50 AM

  A general rule of thumb I use with success is.

  When hitting into a headwind with full BS; you'll need to add yards to your distance to get there.  How many depends on the strength of the wind.

  The inverse applies with tailwinds as well where you'll need to take yards off depending on strength of wind.

  Strong side winds will kick the ball in the direction of the wind when landing on green so usually you'll need give a little bit more aim to compensate for that.

  Then factor in elevation.  Another general rule of thumb here is 1 yard for every 3 feet of elevation.

• 1,866 Posts

  Tue, Mar 6 2018 11:09 AM

  kavvz:

  Strong side winds will kick the ball in the direction of the wind when landing on green so usually you'll need give a little bit more aim to compensate for that.

  You'll also need more power. The ball will travel in a curve, which will make it's path longer before it reaches the finish line. Same principal as with big breaking putt. The distance to the hole may say 15 feet, but the ball will travel at least 3 more, therefore it needs to be played with more strength ;-)

• TheWhiteBuffalo 12 Posts

  Tue, Mar 6 2018 2:16 PM

  Thank you all, you've confirmed my suspicions