KEEPING IT SWEET: THE IMPORTANCE OF STRIKE
Every golfer knows instinctively the value of a solid, centred iron strike. Not only does it send that wonderful feeling from your hands directly into your heart; it also delivers a di erent sound and glorious feeling of e ortless power. But what di erence does it actually make to your shot? To find out, we enlisted the help of a state-of-the-art ball-tracker in the form of Foresight’s GC Quad. Launched in early 2017, GC Quad uses four high-speed cameras to capture, with indecent accuracy, every possible detail of the collision between clubface and ball. GC Quad expert Justin Sandler captured two impacts – similar in every aspect other than strike point. Here, he explains the key di erences.
SIX MPH, SEVEN YARDS
Both of the above graphics show an 8-iron impact from a decent single-figure handicapper. In both cases, the clubhead speed was 85mph. Attack angle and path are similar. The biggest di erence is the strike point. On the left we have a reasonably solid shot, just slightly into the heel of the face; on the right we have a clear toe strike, the impact point (red dot) 17mm away from the middle of the face. You can see the di erence this made in ball speed – 100mph as opposed to 106mph. That equated to a loss of seven yards, 134 against 141 – easily enough to find the bunker short of the green instead of the putting surface itself.
SPIN RISES AS THE STRIKE POINT LOWERS
The ideal spin rate for an 8-iron at this swing speed is around 6,500rpm. The toe strike produced 7,224rpm of spin, with the better strike at 6,814. We can put this down to the fact the toe strike was also slightly lower in the face. As the strike moves lower, the ball tends to spin more – indeed just one groove lower can add around 400rpm of spin. Getting your strike closer to the height of the crosshair on the clubface will give you a more optimal spin for distance. This explains why you can sometimes experience a distance jump on par-3s, where you can tee the ball up.
ATTACK ANGLE – SLIGHTLY DOWN
It is impossible to prescribe a perfect attack angle for all golfers; it depends on an individual’s physiology and their method of delivering the club. However, it is key to avoid two extremes:
1. Too steep. Upwards of 6-7º down typically produces excessive spin and problems with path. If your tendency is to chop down, change your terminology from ‘downswing’ to ‘forwardswing’ or ‘throughswing’. After all, these terms are the opposite of ‘backswing’.
2. Too shallow. If your attack is level to upward, you will encounter heavy contact, impact low in the face and poor energy transfer.
Anything that splits those two extremes can work. This golfer’s attack angle – typically just 2-3º down – may be only a subtle descending strike, but is all you need to compress the ball.
CONCLUSION: A QUALITY STRIKE GETS YOU PIN HIGH
A solid strike hits the ball almost a club further than a miscue. Work on strike point to get the ball back to the hole more often.