Stepping up to our Trackman-powered golf simulators can be exciting, but seeing a screen full of numbers and unfamiliar terms might feel overwhelming, especially if you’re new to indoor golf. That’s where we come in! At Prime Golf, we’re here to help you decode your data and use it to improve your game.
Every shot you take in our simulator bays generates valuable insights, from club and ball speed to spin rate and club path angle. To help you make the most of your session, we’ve broken down 7 key metrics that will elevate your understanding and performance of the presented data.
1) Club Speed
Quite simply, club speed is the speed at which the club head is moving immediately prior to impact. Our simulators will track this and display the linear speed, in miles per hour, of the centre of the club head before impacting the golf ball. This metric is one of the more important ones when trying to influence a golfer’s distance. As little as a one mile per hour increase in club speed can equal up to three extra yards on one’s shot. That is why club speed is one that gets a lot of attention when you want to try and increase your shot distance.
It’s not always a given that simply increasing club speed will increase distance. Have you ever been told to slow down the swing when your shots are getting errant? It boils down to that. Just trying to swing harder and faster can be detrimental to the quality of your contact with the ball, leading to decreased accuracy and sometimes even decreased distance. There is a balance to find, one that would be easiest to find with one of our in-house instructors.
2) Ball Speed
Similar to club speed, ball speed is the speed at which the ball is moving shortly after being impacted by the club. The major significance of this metric is that it can be an indicator of swing problems if your club speed and ball speed are out of whack. Someone can have an extremely high club speed, but if they aren’t making good contact with the ball, ball speed will be lower than one might expect. This can tell us that solid contact is not being made, and a golfer is losing a ton of power in their swing as a result. This could be something off in the swing plane or hitting the ball off of the heel or toe of the club, for example.
3) Launch Angle
Launch angle is one of the major factors determining the distance and height of a shot. It is the angle, relative to the horizon, of the movement of the ball immediately after contact with the club. You might be familiar with the idea of launch angle, as it comes into play when determining which iron to hit and many drivers come with a listed, if not adjustable, club face angle which impacts launch angle.
Based on one’s club speed and ball speed, launch angle is another swing factor that should be monitored and adjusted, as it is crucial to maximizing distance on shots for one to find the ideal clubs and club face orientation.
Launch angle is also a skill for golfers to develop as they learn to shape their shots. It is something that can be manipulated to purposely shoot higher or lower, depending on what the situation calls for and what the course conditions are like. On a windy day, for example, it would be wise to play with a lower launch angle to avoid the impact of the wind on a high shot.
4) Spin Rate
The spin rate is the rate, counted in revolutions per minute, that the ball rotates immediately after leaving the club head. It is one of the more overlooked factors affecting one’s ball flight and flight path, but one of the most impactful. For some, spin rate will be a glimpse into why their shots stray off target, as a high spin rate off of a drive could be indicative of swing issues leading to a slice or hook. For others, spin rate can be tweaked and optimized as a tool to assist with shot shaping if they can manipulate an approach shot with backspin.
Ideally, spin rate and launch angle work together to lead to the optimal shot type for each golfer. A session with an instructor would help find what that looks like for you, and what could be tweaked to help you achieve that.
5) Club Path
Club path is the horizontal direction of the club head at the time of impact. It is measured relative to the target line, and the value is the angle to the right or left of the target that the club head is travelling. The significance of the club path is one of the crucial factors in determining the direction of a shot. A club path of zero typically indicates a straight shot, while a positive or negative value would be used to trigger a draw or fade.
Inconsistencies or extreme values in the club path category can be one of the biggest factors impacting the quality of one’s shots. Fine tuning it to one’s game is important to allow golfers to find a swing that works for them and the game they want to play.
6) Carry Distance
How often do you get to a situation on the course, whether it be a tee shot, lay-up, or approach shot, and you are stuck deciding which club to hit? This is where a session on our simulators to get data on your carry distance will come in handy.
It is one of the most invaluable tools to helping golfers understand their game, but it is often one that is given little attention. Knowing exactly how far you can expect your shot to carry, which is the distance in a straight line that the ball will travel from where it was hit to the point at which it crosses below the height it was hit from, helps optimize your game. If you know how far your clubs go, even better if you test them out under different wind conditions, you will not be coming up short or overshooting the green when you shouldn’t have. If you know how hard to hit your approach shot, your short game will prosper.
A full session just hitting the same clubs over and over under different conditions will help prime your game with the knowledge you need to boost your confidence.
7) Smash Factor
This is probably the most fun sounding metric on the list. Smash factor, simply, can be viewed as a metric to measure how hard the ball is hit. The higher the smash, the harder the shot. But, more specifically, it is a measure of how efficient and effective one’s swing is. It takes the club speed divided by the ball speed to provide a number indicating how much of the energy from the swing is transferred into the ball on impact. If the smash factor is lower than expected given the club speed, then an instructor can help you look into other factors to find where the inefficiency in your swing lies. It could be one of the other metrics on this list leading to poor contact or it could be the equipment itself that is not the right fit for you.
Elevate Your Game at Prime Golf
Understanding these key metrics is the first step to improving your game. Whether you’re here to fine-tune your swing, dial in your distances, or get professional coaching, our Trackman-powered simulators provide the insights you need to play better, smarter golf.
Ready to take your game to the next level? Book a session at Prime Golf today!