How far do you really hit that driver?

First topic message reminder :

There was some discussion (again) on this sort of topic the other week with Mysti and Mac to the fore. Saw this and thought it might be of interest:

http://www.golfwrx.com/303248/how-far-you-can-actually-hit-your-driver/

So when it comes to a drive that's somewhere between 2 and 5 yards out. So there you go. Point proven.

What point is that?

That it's innacurate.
5 yards is a reasonable difference on a drive when it comes to carry.

Super

Don't be a tool, clearly Davie can't measure from the same points as the person who measured the hole. Showing that there is error in the choice of points measured and not in googles system.

The examples I gave were 1-2 yards out over ~150 yards .. less that 1% error. 2 yards over (say) 250? I'd say that's pretty accurate for what we are talking about here

Davie, my thoughts exactly.  Super just wanted to carry out some intellectual masturbation in public.

navyblueshorts wrote:

incontinentia wrote:I have decent distance with my driver but am quite short with the irons. In addressing this I have identified a number of components that influence one's power with any club: (assume variables such as weather, altitude etc remain constant)
- strength (namely core strength)
- flexibility/mobility
- technique
- equipment

Where would you put these factors in a hierarchy of importance?

I am slightly confused as someone can be very flexible and physically weak, and bomb the ball a mile. Someone can also be physically strong and take a half a backswing bomb it too. I'd guess technique is the most import (effortless power), followed by equipment, then flexibility, then strength.

What do you think?

Technique.
Flexibility/mobility.
Strength.
Equipment.

Have you ranked technique first because it will determine whether or not the ball comes off the sweet spot?

Mac - this has been a masterful exhibition of a wind up artist in full flow. Starting from a reasonably straight forward comment from super that "you need to take into account certain things when using Google maps," you've have teased out a huge amount of complex responses. This is your true raison d'etre.

navyblueshorts wrote:

incontinentia wrote:I have decent distance with my driver but am quite short with the irons. In addressing this I have identified a number of components that influence one's power with any club: (assume variables such as weather, altitude etc remain constant)
- strength (namely core strength)
- flexibility/mobility
- technique
- equipment

Where would you put these factors in a hierarchy of importance?

I am slightly confused as someone can be very flexible and physically weak, and bomb the ball a mile. Someone can also be physically strong and take a half a backswing bomb it too. I'd guess technique is the most import (effortless power), followed by equipment, then flexibility, then strength.

What do you think?

Technique.
Flexibility/mobility.
Strength.
Equipment.

Definitely this order.

McIlroy would probably still out-drive everyone on this forum with an old hickory club.

Davie - those par 3's look really easy. Maybe its an optical illusion caused by the mercator.

McLaren wrote:Davie, my thoughts exactly.  Super just wanted to carry out some intellectual masturbation in public.

Not really WIkiMac, you present a graph as if it's the definitive measure of what a person can hit with a given swing speed, then you mention something which isn't 100% accurate as a measure for your own drives. You can't see the irony in that?

raycastleunited wrote:Davie - those par 3's look really easy. Maybe its an optical illusion caused by the mercator.

Ah nice one Ray you do always like to stir the pot and try to wind people up as much as Mac, Super (and yes, I guess me)

You are right on this one though - they ARE the two easiest holes on the course - I picked them because they were easiest on maps to pick out the tee markers and middle of the greens - though in fact the 12th isn't quite as easy as it looks. A slightly elevated green which mercator obviously doesn't pick up on .. and a huge green for such a short par 3 but with a massive slope from back to front.

Good try on the wind up though

McLaren wrote:Exactly Mustputt.  


Super

If you really understood the problem you mentioned you would be able to describe it to laymans like the rest of us on here.  All you have provided are muddled posts with no clarity.

I think I understood it....

McLaren wrote:

navyblueshorts wrote:

incontinentia wrote:I have decent distance with my driver but am quite short with the irons. In addressing this I have identified a number of components that influence one's power with any club: (assume variables such as weather, altitude etc remain constant)
- strength (namely core strength)
- flexibility/mobility
- technique
- equipment

Where would you put these factors in a hierarchy of importance?

I am slightly confused as someone can be very flexible and physically weak, and bomb the ball a mile. Someone can also be physically strong and take a half a backswing bomb it too. I'd guess technique is the most import (effortless power), followed by equipment, then flexibility, then strength.

What do you think?

Technique.
Flexibility/mobility.
Strength.
Equipment.

Have you ranked technique first because it will determine whether or not the ball comes off the sweet spot?

Yes, but also as it will influence swing speed a huge amount.

Edit: Look at McIlroy cf. Woods. McIlroy isn't huge (OK, he's bulked up a bit recently but he's what? 5' 10"?) but he never looks like he's thrashing at the ball (cf. Woods), his balance is absurdly good, his lag is great, weight transfer brilliant etc etc. All adds up to a silly driver swing speed, great smash factor and huge distance. I suppose Dustin Johnson is built like a linebacker but I don't think his technique is quite as good as McIlroy - which of those two averages longer with a driver?

Davie wrote:So super is saying he has no evidence to his claim that the measuring tool is going to be inaccurate

OK I'm sure it's not accurate to perhaps a foot - but as I stated, I measured par3s that I knew the scorecards yards for - and it is quite easy on the maps to work out where the white stones are and the centre of the green.

Spoiler:

But how do you know your club didn't just lift yardages off google earth for the scorecard, could be miles out for all we know

Surely a players average distance you hit the ball is also affected by whether your course plays to or away from the equator.

One way your always hitting uphill.

McLaren wrote: I was being serious about learning more about Web Mercator, as I use google to measure distances on courses all the time.

Oh the irony - "I use google all the time".."I can't be @rsed to google Web Mercator"

As usual this topic brings out some interesting points. It's some what the wrong questions though, or should be qualified with "when you hit it well and how often do you hit it well". We've a short (310) opening par 4 at our place and when I hit it really well (about 1 in 10) I'm about 10 yards off the front edge (Darren Clarke drove it with a 3 wood with a very light breeze behind him), so about 280. More normally I'm about 40 yards off the front so 250.

I've also used my GPS watch (it has a measure shot function) to measure a few drives, but the variance for wind, temperature, ground conditions and the like made it seem fairly pointless to know. I play for fun, not for figures other than those on the scorecard.

Being realistic, when in reasonable form I'll crack a driver 260-280 with a carry around 235/240, of course throw in the extremes of ground conditions, elevation & wind and the deviation can go 180-350. I have had 2 or 3 freakish ones over that.

Speaking of freakish ones, I guy I know in an amateur comp at the Grove, gets to the longest drive hole, hits a huge block right and it's going OOB, hits a tiled roof and bounces back into play another bounce on cart path and ends up miles (well about 400 yards) down the fairway.

JAS wrote:Speaking of freakish ones, I guy I know in an amateur comp at the Grove, gets to the longest drive hole, hits a huge block right and it's going OOB, hits a tiled roof and bounces back into play another bounce on cart path and ends up miles (well about 400 yards) down the fairway.

Was his name McLaren?

Is that the 6th at the Grove JAS.

I once hit a belter along that one over the bunkers right and must have landed on the downslope as I took that day's longest drive by about 120. Left a 6 iron "in" (I say in, I think I slapped it into cabbage right).

I have also tried the bounce off the house approach (OK blocked one catastrophically), but missed the house and watched it sail away into the doom to the right.

That was indeed what is now the 6th but I believe it used to be the 15th. Bloody long way to the roof!! Knowing my luck, were I ever to do that I'd be sure to find the skylight window :-p

I once played with a guy who hit a moving VW golf that was on a county road that flanked a portion of the course. His drive landed on the bonnet and you could hear the bang from the tee. The person in the car just kept on driving as if they were oblivious to what had happened. when you consider the dents stationary cars get in car parks, I imagine that car had pretty significant damage.

Mac, in your many trips to marvel at the TOC green complex have you noticed how many cars get hit adjacent to the 18th?
I was parked there once for a moment about to hand in my card to the club and a ball smashed the windscreen of the car in front of me, another guy I know had his windscreen smashed by his playing partner.
There was also a car there, presumably a chef or something whose 206 had about half a dozen dents in it, some so bad you could see the dimples.

I'd never park there now, but I presume you don't have such problems with the bus eh?

super

I have seen quite a few balls bouncing down the road but never witnesses one make contact with a car.

Why are you dissing chefs, did you not once claim to have been a chef at one point?

I'm certainly not "dissing" the chef, just can't think of anyone else in that street who would be parked there sufficiently frequently to have their car hit so often.

Several clubhouses in that street and only a few residential properties. You'd think they'd learn not to park there after the first time, I'm assuming they stopped caring after about the third.

I've only veered OB once at that hole trying to smash it, missed every car but unfortunately missed a crowd of Hugo and Jemima type stoodents, bounced off the road and about 6 inches back in play.

Good fun launching one over the oblivious tourists walking unobservantly over the bridge and road too.

Were you a chef in st andrews? I often find the quality of restaurant in st Andrews is pretty poor. Do you have any recommendations?

No, I wasn't a Chef in St.Andrews Mac, I'm also down on the St.Andrews scene. A friend of mine has worked in most and doesn't rate any of them. Much like the course, over-hyped.

People used to rave about The Dolls House but on the one occasion I went I thought it was terrible. Never been back. I prefer the seafood restaurants down on the East Neuk.

Are we talking Anstruther fish bar.

No, although that's good. I'm thinking about a little spartan but modern fish place in St Monans.

What is it called, I am always on the look out for places to eat?

Food might be a bigger passion for me than golf. I am sure the knowledge that I am a foodie further enforces your respect for me?

Can't remember the name Mac, but sure you can find it. It's small, quirky and unpretentious.

Was it east pier smokehouse?

Sounds like it Mac. Very small menu, but very fresh. Went on a work geology trip there for lunch.

super_realist wrote:Mac, in your many trips to marvel at the TOC green complex have you noticed how many cars get hit adjacent to the 18th?
I was parked there once for a moment about to hand in my card to the club  and a ball smashed the windscreen of the car in front of me, another guy I know had his windscreen smashed by his playing partner.
There was also a car there, presumably a chef or something whose 206 had about half a dozen dents in it, some so bad you could see the dimples.

I'd never park there now, but I presume you don't have such problems with the bus eh?

I thought the same when there. Also 18th at north berwick - there was no way i was parking alongside 18th fairway when we played there, and sure enough when we got to the 18th tee, 2 of our 4-ball sliced their drives oob and bounced back into play off cars.

raycastleunited wrote:

super_realist wrote:Mac, in your many trips to marvel at the TOC green complex have you noticed how many cars get hit adjacent to the 18th?
I was parked there once for a moment about to hand in my card to the club  and a ball smashed the windscreen of the car in front of me, another guy I know had his windscreen smashed by his playing partner.
There was also a car there, presumably a chef or something whose 206 had about half a dozen dents in it, some so bad you could see the dimples.

I'd never park there now, but I presume you don't have such problems with the bus eh?

I thought the same when there. Also 18th at north berwick - there was no way i was parking alongside 18th fairway when we played there, and sure enough when we got to the 18th tee, 2 of our 4-ball sliced their drives oob and bounced back into play off cars.

There was a row of coaches parked there when we played. Handily formed a nice barrier to the oob!

Years ago, my opponent in the Scottish Boys' Championship pushed his drive off the 18th tee at NB. The ball landed on the roof of a car, ricochetted off the wall on the other side of the road, hit another car's bonnet and trickled up just short of the green about a foot in bounds. People were diving for cover all over the place.

Suitably embarrassed, he three putted.