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Launch angle SkyTrak vs Trackman

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  • Launch angle SkyTrak vs Trackman

    I have had my SkyTrak for over 2 years, and have not used it anywhere near as much as a should. During the winter months I have the unit indoors where I can only hit short irons. I have started to dig into some of my numbers that I get and compare them with what should be optimal.

    For example when I hit a well struck 8 iron I average around 112mph ball speed, and a launch angle of 26-27deg. I was looking at attached Trackman average chart, and it says that PGA tour players average a 18 deg launch angle with an 8 iron.

    My question is am I really launching the ball 8-9 deg higher than the average tour pro, or is Skytrak and Trackman calculating these numbers differently?
    TrackMan PGA Tour Average stats including Club speed, Attack Angle, Ball Speed, Smash Factor, Launch Angle, Spin Rate, Max Height, Land Angle and Carry.

  • #2
    Have you made sure your skytrak is perfectly level with your hitting surface? I had the same issue until I noticed my skytrak was slightly higher than my hitting mat

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    • Clevited
      Clevited commented
      Editing a comment
      I don't know that i ever had LA wrong regardless of height relationship to my mat, being level (horizontal) has had noticeable impact as one might expect it would.

  • #3
    As long as the unit is level, it should be very close to correct. Its very easy in my experience to have very high launch angles just with swing path being a little off ideal, the kick of your club shaft, the low point of your swing, weight on back foot etc. It shows what we need to work on. My 9 iron for instance launches upwards of 24 degrees. Also keep in mind the ball you are hitting. If warn or, dirty or if grooves in clubface are worn or full of dirt, the ball will tend to launch way higher and with very low spin. These are flyers.

    Some low compression balls can make this worse, ladies ball that is slippery from wear and full of residue from net impacts launches at 30 degees off my 43 degree 9 iron.

    Comment


    • SomaPLR
      SomaPLR commented
      Editing a comment
      Impact tape - the tool for box golf stores to make you hit the ball further with their clubs haha
      Last edited by SomaPLR; 03-21-2017, 06:18 PM.

    • Clevited
      Clevited commented
      Editing a comment
      Interesting, I always thought they launched higher too just because of lack of friction. I'll have to watch that this summer next time I have a flyer lie, probably catching higher on the face or something. Regardless, I still get rediculous launch angles with softer compression balls.

  • #4
    I am lauching my 8 iron around 20 degrees. I thought that was too low until I checked the pga tour trackman averages. My difference with them is that my peak height is around 24 yards, while they are 30. So initially they launch a tad lower than me but end up with a higher ball flight. I got all my numbers on my skytrak.

    for you, the only way to compare is to get on a trackman and check your launch numbers. But I would guess that your skytrak is pretty accurate. You are just getting a little scoopy at impact compared to the pros...so the pros have hands more foward at impact than you. Pro deloft the hell out of their irons at impact, but they got the speed/spin to elevate the ball later in flight. This is how they hit it so far.
    Last edited by bouncebackbogey; 03-21-2017, 05:40 PM. Reason: Typo

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    • #5
      You're launching it higher, yes. Most amateurs don't have near the amount of shaft lean that most pros or plus golfers do, which is going to be a direct representation of Vertical Launch Angle. The amount of shaft lean you have is going to represent Dynamic Loft you present at impact and is the #1 factor of determining VLA. Dynamic Loft is about 80% of LA and AoA is about 20%.

      The numbers aren't calculated on either machine, they are directly measured - and they will be VERY close on a head to head comparison. If you check out my ST vs TM comparison thread - I believe the difference of my LA between the machines was like 0.3*
      Last edited by SomaPLR; 03-21-2017, 06:16 PM.

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      • #6
        Interesting.... I guess I need to work on my impact shaft lean. If more shaft lean will improve my ball striking I'm all for it.

        Thanks for the replies

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        • #7
          Originally posted by SomaPLR View Post
          You're launching it higher, yes. Most amateurs don't have near the amount of shaft lean that most pros or plus golfers do, which is going to be a direct representation of Vertical Launch Angle. The amount of shaft lean you have is going to represent Dynamic Loft you present at impact and is the #1 factor of determining VLA. Dynamic Loft is about 80% of LA and AoA is about 20%.

          The numbers aren't calculated on either machine, they are directly measured - and they will be VERY close on a head to head comparison. If you check out my ST vs TM comparison thread - I believe the difference of my LA between the machines was like 0.3*
          Agreed. The mat you are hitting from can significantly affect launch angle and I have found non premium balls also launch higher, presumably because they roll up the face and launch above cg due to lower friction.

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          • #8
            Update.... I'm seeing a few different things that are affecting my launch angle. First with my swing I am just launching the ball higher... Over the last few days I have been working on that, and have seen the launch come down a few deg, but it needs a lot more work. Second is my mat IMO. I have one of the thick mats you can put a tee in. I put the ball on a tee that was just a hair above the top of the mat, and the launch angle came down another 3-4 deg. I saw quite a few well struck shots off a tee that were in the 20-21deg launch angle range with an 8 iron. Still not where I need to be, but its getting better.

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            • #9
              Post more info. What kind of spin rates and landing angles? High launch isn't necessarily a bad thing, spin might be a little low. If your around the 50 degree landing angle hat will have a good amount of stopping power. Also different balls can affect launch angles. I get a difference of about 1 degree going between a pro v1 and a pro v1x. But get similar landing angles. The x launches lower with more spin for me. The regular pro v1 launches higher with lower spin.
              Last edited by keithpbz; 03-23-2017, 10:46 PM.

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              • #10
                Originally posted by foggedz View Post
                Update.... I'm seeing a few different things that are affecting my launch angle. First with my swing I am just launching the ball higher... Over the last few days I have been working on that, and have seen the launch come down a few deg, but it needs a lot more work. Second is my mat IMO. I have one of the thick mats you can put a tee in. I put the ball on a tee that was just a hair above the top of the mat, and the launch angle came down another 3-4 deg. I saw quite a few well struck shots off a tee that were in the 20-21deg launch angle range with an 8 iron. Still not where I need to be, but its getting better.
                Mats can increase launch angles a bit if you're not hitting ball first. There are some of those little plastic tees that a ball can sit on that Breed uses on his show on the Golf Channel you can use as well

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                • #11
                  Balls make a difference as well. Premium balls will launch lower and spin more with an 8 iron then lousy balls or range balls.

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