"Ideal" Driver Spin

9-Iron Man

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There's been a lot of talk lately about spin in regards to the R11 and how it is a lot less "spinny" compared to the R9 SuperTri. This has got me thinking and out of curiosity, I'm wondering about "ideal" spin. Is there such a thing? Or is it purely in regards to the individual player? Are there instances where 4000+ rpms of backspin is good or desired?
 
100% unique per golfer. Just like every other thing equipment related, there is no universal truth.
 
Probably something that lets the ball climb to a reasonable height, and then hit the ground with enough momentum to continue rolling forward.
My driver hits a ball like a wedge does.. my balls tend to hop and stop.
 
100% unique per golfer. Just like every other thing equipment related, there is no universal truth.

That's what I thought, but there must be some sort of acceptable range, otherwise how would you know to lower or raise it?
 
That's what I thought, but there must be some sort of acceptable range, otherwise how would you know to lower or raise it?

If you want more carry, less height, more shape, less shape. All kinds of things.
 
It varies by swing speed. More swing speed would need lower launch angle and spin whereas a slower swing speed needs more spin and launch to create more carry distance. I've seen a chart somewhere I'll see if I can find it
 
There is no ideal number. I'm sure there is an acceptable range out there (ie nobody needs 8000rpm most likely), but it all depends on swing speed, angle of attack, launch angle, etc. I need spin and lots of it to get my ball in the air to carry further. Really, I mainly need a better driver swing.
 
Moved to club fitting.

Spin is like any other characteristic. It is about creating proper launch conditions for the individual golfers. Getting fit is the best solution to this. However keep in mind that at certain skill levels, this is simply overthinking the equipment. Work on proper technique and repeatable swings and then make sure that launch conditions are ideal.
 
Moved to club fitting.

Spin is like any other characteristic. It is about creating proper launch conditions for the individual golfers. Getting fit is the best solution to this. However keep in mind that at certain skill levels, this is simply overthinking the equipment. Work on proper technique and repeatable swings and then make sure that launch conditions are ideal.

Absolutely. I'm just curious about it more than anything. Trying to load up on knowledge for when I get up on the THP Vector in May.
 
When I did my Golf tec fitting they did list ideal numbers to aspire to if you disregard your swing. Then it was about altering your swing to get those ideal numbers
 
I'm excited to see what my numbers are after some hard work this offseason. I really want to work on getting my launch angle and swing speed a bit better and reduce side spin dramatically. I'm really inefficient with my driver swing and am looking forward to having somebody look at it. I think it should be a pretty easy fix once I can learn the positions to get my body in.
 
It doesn't depend from golfer to golfer, it depends based on launch angle and swing speed/ball speed.

Bear with me this gets complex and long winded......

The faster the ball speed/swing speed the lower you will want to launch and lowest spin you will want, reason being that the sheer speed of the ball will launch it to a respectable height.

Conversely the lower the ball/swing speed the higher you will want to launch the ball and higher spin you will want for a little more carry distance.

A high swing speed player might want a launch angle of 10 degrees or so and a spin rate of about 2300 where as a slower swing speed player might want a launch of about 14 degrees and a spin rate of around 2800.

Both would want a landing angle of about 35 degrees for maximum roll out as well.
 
It doesn't depend from golfer to golfer, it depends based on launch angle and swing speed/ball speed.

Bear with me this gets complex and long winded......

The faster the ball speed/swing speed the lower you will want to launch and lowest spin you will want, reason being that the sheer speed of the ball will launch it to a respectable height.

Conversely the lower the ball/swing speed the higher you will want to launch the ball and higher spin you will want for a little more carry distance.

A high swing speed player might want a launch angle of 10 degrees or so and a spin rate of about 2300 where as a slower swing speed player might want a launch of about 14 degrees and a spin rate of around 2800.

Both would want a landing angle of about 35 degrees for maximum roll out as well.

I guess to me this sounds very much like it depends golfer to golfer. Completely based on an individuals launch conditions.
 
Is there a chart out there, that tells you the optimal spin rate and launch angel for a certain SS?
 
Is there a chart out there, that tells you the optimal spin rate and launch angel for a certain SS?

Every Golf Galaxy I've been in has a chart based on SS, Spin, and Launch Angle. Funny, I know it's there and I look at it almost everytime, but for the life of me I can't remember the numbers on it right now
 
I guess to me this sounds very much like it depends golfer to golfer. Completely based on an individuals launch conditions.

I suppose if you want to look at it that way but at the same time it isn't a subjective thing.

For example what golf club looks better will depend from golfer to golfer. Some may prefer a larger headed black burner 2.0 iron, others might prefer a smaller blade look.

Proper launch, spin, and landing angle numbers are not subjective though. A tall skinny guy swinging the club 100 mph will have the exact same ideal numbers as a short fat guy swining the club 100 mph.
 
I suppose if you want to look at it that way but at the same time it isn't a subjective thing.

For example what golf club looks better will depend from golfer to golfer. Some may prefer a larger headed black burner 2.0 iron, others might prefer a smaller blade look.

Proper launch, spin, and landing angle numbers are not subjective though. A tall skinny guy swinging the club 100 mph will have the exact same ideal numbers as a short fat guy swining the club 100 mph.

Except both will have very different tempos and may need different shafts because of that. You are correct in that launch perimeters should be similar.
 
Absolutely, the same swing speed on the two guys with different releases, different angles of attack, and different club paths will produce drastically different results.

That is why it is so important to be properly fit.

Most people would hit a 5 year old driver that they are properly fit for better than the latest and greatest club that just doesn't match their swing.
 
I'm excited to see what my numbers are after some hard work this offseason. I really want to work on getting my launch angle and swing speed a bit better and reduce side spin dramatically. I'm really inefficient with my driver swing and am looking forward to having somebody look at it. I think it should be a pretty easy fix once I can learn the positions to get my body in.

You and I are in a very similar situation! I'm very much looking forward to getting on the THP Vector and finally getting some of my stuff properly worked out. Probably the thing I'm looking forward to most at Demo Day.
 
Oh, I'm planning on having that done before I get to WPB via some lessons. It won't do me much good to just get on the Vector. I already know my current driver swing sucks hehe.
 
You and I are in a very similar situation! I'm very much looking forward to getting on the THP Vector and finally getting some of my stuff properly worked out. Probably the thing I'm looking forward to most at Demo Day.

Im glad you are excited. We will have someone there to assist in getting you the info. Please do keep in mind though that without the repeatable swing aspect of it, the numbers mean very little. Once your swing is similar each time (especially with the driver) then I would dive into the spin and launch characteristics. Without that repeatable swing, a proper fitting will do no justice as it will change with each turn.
 
Im glad you are excited. We will have someone there to assist in getting you the info. Please do keep in mind though that without the repeatable swing aspect of it, the numbers mean very little. Once your swing is similar each time (especially with the driver) then I would dive into the spin and launch characteristics. Without that repeatable swing, a proper fitting will do no justice as it will change with each turn.

Now when you say "repeatable" are you strictly meaning consistent, or a proper swing, in which the ball launches straight with minimal slice or hook? Or both?
 
Now when you say "repeatable" are you strictly meaning consistent, or a proper swing, in which the ball launches straight with minimal slice or hook? Or both?

Consistent, but proper helps as well of course. But in reality you must have a consistent swing to get proper measurements.
 
It doesn't depend from golfer to golfer, it depends based on launch angle and swing speed/ball speed.

Bear with me this gets complex and long winded......

The faster the ball speed/swing speed the lower you will want to launch and lowest spin you will want, reason being that the sheer speed of the ball will launch it to a respectable height.

Conversely the lower the ball/swing speed the higher you will want to launch the ball and higher spin you will want for a little more carry distance.

A high swing speed player might want a launch angle of 10 degrees or so and a spin rate of about 2300 where as a slower swing speed player might want a launch of about 14 degrees and a spin rate of around 2800.

Both would want a landing angle of about 35 degrees for maximum roll out as well.

That wasn't too complex or long-winded. (To me, at least) This sounds like what I was told during my driver fitting. For my swing speed of ~96 mph, he wanted my launch angle around 15º and a spin rate around 3000 rpm. That would produce a ball flight that has a landing angle around the 35º you mentioned, which was also brought up by the club-fitter. He mentioned how many people forget about the importance of landing angle.
 
Consistent, but proper helps as well of course. But in reality you must have a consistent swing to get proper measurements.

At the moment, my "consistent" swing is a pretty bad slice. I am trying to work on it, but due the weather up here and minimal places to work on it, there's not too much I can do about it at the moment. Assuming that come Outing time, my swing is still more or less unchanged, will I be able to look at club and shaft options to help me?
 
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