Mevo+ shot shape and numbers

[Awalk36]

Hi guys.
I've had a mevo + for about a week now and have found this site very helpful. I have a gaming laptop arriving today as I’m currently running it on an iPhone and don’t feel I’m getting the most out of it, now to just decide on E6 or tgc, which I’ve been reading both views on here.
There are 2 main things I’m not sure of data wise I’m getting from the mevo. I hit my 7 iron around 170, which is the reading I get currently get (I’ve had lessons on gc quad so I know this to be a good bench mark) but I can’t hit my driver any more than 220 regardless of how hard I try. I know I’m not as efficient with my driver as 7 iron and can handle being slightly humbled but I’m achieving an average of about 140 mph ball speed so think the distance is a bit low. I’ve read about inside swing syndrome but I honestly don’t think it’s that and the ball speed is reasonable. My setup is 10-12ft to screen and 7ft mevo to ball ( I do have about 21ft to play with if I’m setup wrong ) secondly does anyone find it to maybe be a bit generous on lateral dispersion ? When I hit a driver wrong (slice) I can sometimes be 2 fairways across where as I’ve never really seen this, this leads me to think the mevo isn’t reading too accurate that way and worries me that a lot of my almost straight shots might not actually be quite so straight.
sorry for the long winded first post and thanks very much in advance for any help, also keep up the good work this sight really has been invaluable.
Thanks again
Adam

[Shankz]

Adam there are a lot of very knowledgeable people here when it comes to analyzing “the numbers”. It would be best if you could give a run down of all of them.
Even better if you can post a few screen shots of them.

[tonybrown32]

Few questions that might help myself and others provide some advice...

Is your 170 yard 7i distance carry or total distance?
Is your 220 driver distance carry or total distance?
What's your spin and vertical launch angle for your driver numbers? Excessive spin will affect your distance, as will sub optimal launch

I will say, my ball speed hovers around 138-140.. with optimal spin and launch angles and a well struck shot, you are gonna max out around 225-230 carry... however I would concur that my experience with my Mevo+ and many others here, is that driver distances do tend to be low by about 10-15 yards.. I will safely say my carry on course is right around that 225-235 with driver, but on Mevo+ closer to 215.. many times I think because Mevo+ estimates my spin in the mid 3000s, which isn't accurate.. when Mevo+ MEASURES my spin its closer to 2000... when ESTIMATED (denoted by italicized spin number) it's usually around 3500-ish.

If you aren't already, always focus on carry numbers only.. don't put any faith in total distance, it is a variable depending on the course conditions and what that course will give you on the day and can be different from 1 day to the next.. each launch monitor and piece of software will also be different in how it estimates roll for total distances..

[Awalk36]

Thanks guys. All the figures I’ve given are carry. Typically I’ve just had a go on it again and didn’t realise I had replied or I would have taken some screen shots. I managed a couple of drives up to 150 mph ball speed but still only 221 furthest carry. I understand maybe my trajectory and efficiency may not be amazing if I’m trying too hard but still I would expect more carry. I’ll get some screen shots next time and see what you guys think.
Any thoughts on the dispersion accuracy? Do you also think mevo may be a bit generous when it comes to hooks and slices ? I’d like to try it on the range ( when they open again) and see how it correlates to real time.
thanks again guys

[tonybrown32]

Thanks guys. All the figures I’ve given are carry. Typically I’ve just had a go on it again and didn’t realise I had replied or I would have taken some screen shots. I managed a couple of drives up to 150 mph ball speed but still only 221 furthest carry. I understand maybe my trajectory and efficiency may not be amazing if I’m trying too hard but still I would expect more carry. I’ll get some screen shots next time and see what you guys think.
Any thoughts on the dispersion accuracy? Do you also think mevo may be a bit generous when it comes to hooks and slices ? I’d like to try it on the range ( when they open again) and see how it correlates to real time.
thanks again guys

Well, I can just give you my experience so far..

When I first got my Mevo+ back in March 2020, I had a similar experience with excessive right spin axis, when my normal shot shape was a draw the prior season, and had to send it back to Flightscope for recalibration. When I got it back it was a little better.. then some firmware updates fixed things a little further, but I was still having really big slices with driver mainly.. and baby fades with irons... but since I'm used to a draw shape, it was disconcerning... of course this was still winter here, so I had zero opportunity to get to the range and try it out for weeks!

Anyway, once the snow cleared and I could get to the range, I noticed my Mevo was way more accurate than I thought... but still felt it was mildly biased to right spin axis so kept playing with it.. I found the "roll" value in my Mevo+ was still off by 1.2 degrees on a level surface... Mevo+ totally level, but roll value still off by 1.2 degrees. Once I shimmed up my Mevo+ on one side to get the roll value to zero... the right spin axis bias all but went away! I confirmed it in several sessions hitting at -1.2 or more and hitting again at zero roll.... I'd check that, and see where yours is at as a possible consideration... I contacted flightscope about it, and they remoted into my laptop, connected to the Mevo+ and fixed the roll calibration remotely which was nice...

Since then, my shot shapes appear really really accurate compared to what I see on course.. so in the end, I think it was a little bit my swing, and a little bit my Mevo+... the more I played over the summer, and practiced with Mevo+ indoors and used Mevo+ for my warmup indoors before heading to the course... the more confidence I had in the Mevo+ so maybe give it some time to trust what you are seeing. I found I was so eager to see the numbers practicing indoors, I wasn't focusing on my swing or my impact, and keep looking at the dang projector screen early waiting to "analyze" the data... the more I use Mevo+ indoors though, the better that got and really have to focus more on my swing and feels than on the results on the screen.

Having said all that, driver distances are still seemingly a bit lower than my on course carry distances, or distances I get on GCQuad at lessons... but that's a common theme in many forums and Facebook groups with Mevo+ and I also read Flightscope is aware so hoping we see a fix at some point. For now, all my other clubs are super accurate, and I have more confidence in my Mevo than I had in my Skytrak overall through the bag.. and driver shot shapes seem accurate to me, just not the carry distance and I can live with that since i'm not trying to dial in my driver numbers to stick it close to pins on greens

Check your roll value and get it close to zero if you can, and see if that helps your shot shapes... be VERY meticulous on your Mevo+ alignment too using the FS Golf alignment screen, putting the red line through the ball to the impact point on your net or screen... those were the 2 things that helped my Mevo+ consistancy the most.

[jamieholo]

You can try go on the flightscope trajectory optimizer and input the values and see what it comes out with. Elevation/Environment can affect the numbers a bunch so rule that out. I have a higher ball speed (180 plus or minus) and indoors get probably about 10mph ball speed less then when I use it on the range (7ft to ball and 10ft ball to screen). Could be environment settings but I haven't bothered to worry about it.
I have the same suspicion on dispersion. I can hit the ball a long ways in the wrong direction and it seems to be less. I'd have to step it out but it was the same on the range. A ball that I thought was probably 80 yards offline showed up as 40 yards offline. I'm not sure if its an issue with reading spin and spin axis or horizontal launch angle. Haven't saw others with the same issue.. or everybody thinks they hit it much straighter then they actually do.

[tinker812]

as i understand it, spin reading will always be the achilles heel of radar units with relatively short distances from ball to screen (vast majority of indoor setups). This is particularly evident at high ball speeds such as with driver, since there is the least amount of time and fewest rotations to read before the ball hits the screen. so, i am fairly certain that side spin is under read on driver (at least with well struck shots 160 mph+), especially when ball starts close to being on line (seems easier to hit a pull draw or push fade - perhaps mevo is crudely taking club head or path data into account in their flight algorithm/spin readings to accentuate pull draw/push fade, but have no confirmation on that).

i think as you continue to learn about the meaning of launch monitor data and your own numbers, you'll figure it out. like others, best guess is high backspin and/or poor smash/effiencecy. 170 y 7 iron (unless it is lofted like a 4 iron!) seems like you could generate a bit more ball speed off driver...

[Awalk36]

Thanks for the help guys.
in setup I always use shims to get the roll to within 0.1 of 0 as I believe setup is key. I think you guys are right that it may struggle with driver side spin. My error would usually be a straight starting drive that turns to a fade/slice so I will probably have to accept the limitations of the machine at the cost compared to say gc quad. I think I will just treat it that if it’s showing a fade probably allow an extra percentage on top of that. I know it does read well with the irons because when I know I’ve hit left or right the mevo shows this so that fills me with more confidence.
i will continue to work with it until I fall into a pile of money and can justify buying a gc quad
Thanks again for your help guys, now I’m onto my next questions regarding graphics in another section.

[tonybrown32]

Ha! Agree.. not worth another 10-15k for Quad unless I make a living playing golf... As long as the Mevo+ is consistent in any shortcomings you can account for that in practice... 80-90% of my practice is irons and dialing in carry distances and consistency, and Mevo+ is awesome for that...

Really recommend taking it to the range with you one day if you can too... I've found that it gives a really good perspective of what 30 yards offline looks like on the iPad app vs in real life... and although at times the shot shape in the app doesn't look bad, in real life it it's worse than I anticipated or vice versa... the more I used it on the range, the more I could trust it indoors when I see similar results too... took a few months to get really comfortable and trust it honestly.

I also learned a great deal hitting off grass at my local range... they don't cut the tee areas much, and so did a little experimenting on how much spin really gets taken off iron shots in slightly longer grass and it was eye opening... normal 8i spin off a short tee was my usual 5500rpm or so... with just a smidge of grass behind the ball when hitting off the ground, killed the spin to the 3000s... no wonder I had a hard time holding greens at that course!! Their fairways are quite long there compared to most courses I play..

Have fun experimenting!

[Obedt]

My experience, 12’ to net, indoor mode, a dot on the ball and more than 7’ ball to Mevo+ (I used 7’8” last time and worked well) helped. My ball speed #s were pretty accurate before, but launch angle and spin weren’t giving me numbers I could trust.

I still feel I’m a little bit shorter than on course, but after taking the Mevo+ to the course it’s clear my swing speed and ball speed numbers aren’t as high when hitting into the net. With the above mentioned settings I got it close enough for my liking. Spin wasn’t in italics and below 3k consistently.

All that said, my setup is different and I’m almost 2 clubs shorter than you, so ymmv. Just wanted to let you know what I feel has worked for me.

[Awalk36]

Cheers guys. All inputs are welcome as they can all bring something to light something otherwise missed. I’ve got the unit about 7ft away but kept it at 8 on the settings as I’ve seen in a video that being recommended. There are so many different possibilities for setup it’s trying to get one we are happy with. Atm as long as the benchmark is set for around 170/175 with a 7 I’m happy with that. I will just consider the driver and 3w numbers as something to work on. I do think lateral accuracy is believable with the irons. I’m in the uk so we are currently on full lockdown (not sure about you guys) so when it’s over I’ll get up the range and have a go
cheers

[xfactor989]

Have you tried your setting at 7ft? It seems like the engineers have that input in the software for a reason.

I use indoor mode at 7ft/13ft and have readings which I believe and launch conditions very similar to Skytrak when compared simultaneously.

I believe the Skytrak over simulates draws/hooks. I typically play a push/draw with about 10-15 yds of right to left movement on driver. When I borrowed a Skytrak for a few weeks in the spring (before I purchased Mevo+) it was showing a big push/Hook. I was able to get back to a draw on the Skytrak. To my surprise on the course I pretty much had a straight push, with little to know right to left movement. I find the Mevo+ correlates well to what I see on the course. My misses are either a straight push or a hook, and the Mevo+ picks it up. Maybe it should be more, not sure but it has shown me being 50+ yds offline, figure that is OB regardless.

When I do get estimated spin with the driver it is typically higher than the readings.

[tonybrown32]

xfactor989 I agree about Skytrak over simulating curvature. I played a little push draw all year, and it always looked more like a hook.. my 5 yard draw on course was more like 15-20 yards on Skytrak... so when switching to the Mevo+ indoors over winter, without a way to validate outdoors, it took me a while to believe I was hitting them with less curvature on the Mevo+.

Once spring rolled around and I could compare to my outdoor shots, I feel like the Mevo+ for me has been more realistic in terms of overall shot shapes and distances... compared to Skytrak at least. Not that Skytrak was way off or unhelpful... I just think Mevo+ shows my shot shapes more consistently like I see outdoors.

[Bubba22]

Thanks guys. All the figures I’ve given are carry. Typically I’ve just had a go on it again and didn’t realise I had replied or I would have taken some screen shots. I managed a couple of drives up to 150 mph ball speed but still only 221 furthest carry. I understand maybe my trajectory and efficiency may not be amazing if I’m trying too hard but still I would expect more carry. I’ll get some screen shots next time and see what you guys think.
Any thoughts on the dispersion accuracy? Do you also think mevo may be a bit generous when it comes to hooks and slices ? I’d like to try it on the range ( when they open again) and see how it correlates to real time.
thanks again guys

I agree with you that the dispersion accuracy and spin axis measurement is somewhat lower with the Mevo plus at times. I have tested the Mevo plus directly against the GC2 and all ball data numbers are bang on except the spin axis. Most times the spin axis is close or at least the same shot shape but sometimes it’s different.

The one thing you need to understand is that simulated golf is exactly that - “ a simulated guess of ball flight based on inputed ball data”. The one thing that is hard to emulate with real golf is ones alignment. Alignment in the simulator is easy. You set the target line in the software that’s in the CENTER on the screen and you setup parallel to this target and swing away. In real golf it is hard to appreciate your target line which is one of the most important flaws that we amateurs have. How many times have you hit it way off line and your buddy says, “ you know, that’s where you were aimed”. Throw on top off that a wicked slice, wind etc. and you can be 2 fairways over. That’s less likely to happen in a perfectly lined up sim world.

[Gresh12]

The alignment piece is super true and I think hitting balls on a sim can make outdoor alignment worse. I video myself indoors a lot and as Bubba said I'm always square. But on the course when I'm having an off day one of my buddies always ends up saying "you realize you're aimed for a 50 yard hook right?".

[tonybrown32]

Gresh12 100% hitting indoors can mess with your outdoor aligment... and vice versa! Outdoors targets are actually 100-200 yards away, so aligning to that target vs the screen which is only 10ft away can be very different... perspective of objects at longer distances is very different outdoors.

[Gresh12]

I moved from Skytrak to Mevo+ almost a year ago (hard to believe it's been that long) and I didn't have the units for an overlapping period (I was worried Mevo+ was going to crush SkyTrak value so wanted to sell but obviously I didn't see a pandemic coming where a used SkyTrak would have sold for more than I paid for it new) but I do have access to a Trackman 4 once or twice a week indoors.

A few comments:
- The testing I've done has M+ and TM4 very close across my bag on all data except on spin axis (total spin close but axis was less consistent) when both measure everything spin (even TM4 has some clear misreads on occasion). When TM4 estimates spin I find it a much better estimate than M+ which defaults super high on driver for me.
- Spin axis hasn't been as consistent (~20 ft of flight) between the two units and from memory M+ was generally less tilted (but occasionally direction differed on ones close to zero). To get both units to read well I had to put them side by side so the M+ was at a disadvantage being off centered to add that note. Anecdotally I believe my SkyTrak over estimated curve and my M+ underestimates it. I can argue both cases why each is better (obviously ideal would be neither).
- Driver is finicky even if you're getting good data. By that I mean until I got in to the launch monitors seriously I would never of guessed just how much strike/delivery could mess with driver distance. The distance between a low launch high spin driver versus a high launch low spin driver is shocking. Every other club in the bag is meant for you to strike with a downward blow but driver is meant to be hit up so in a sense "all goes wrong when you hit down on driver". I used to be consistently 2-3* down with driver swinging just under 110 mph and hitting it 30 yards short of most of my buddies who swing slower because the launch conditions were so poor (my 3 wood went further than my driver because I hit it basically as hard but it was built to be hit down on). I've been working through some pretty major swing changes and one product is I now hit up on driver (sometimes too much) and even though my swing speed is down to barely over 100 as I regain confidence I'm flying the ball as far or farther than I did before with driver even though I'm shorter with every other club through the bag (my 7 iron used to fly 175 at sea level as I delofted the heck out of it). This doesn't really solve your concern but I think I'm trying to say work on getting your launch angle and spin to optimal (when measured spin not estimated) and your distance should align with what you see on the course (give or take a very small amount as others noted).

[Bubba22]

Completely agree with you Gresh.

[Awalk36]

I agree with what your saying about striking with the driver. I too in the past hit more down than up with it and suffered the same issue with 3 wood going as far as my ball geometry was all wrong. I have definitely got better in that respect but far from perfect and like I mentioned earlier when I really go for it my club face delivery will suffer.
You are right that at the end of the day simulation and that ball direction for the mevo is an estimate with the data it can gather. I will keep practising and see what happens on the course when they finally re open.
thanks again

[Bubba22]

I agree with what your saying about striking with the driver. I too in the past hit more down than up with it and suffered the same issue with 3 wood going as far as my ball geometry was all wrong. I have definitely got better in that respect but far from perfect and like I mentioned earlier when I really go for it my club face delivery will suffer.
You are right that at the end of the day simulation and that ball direction for the mevo is an estimate with the data it can gather. I will keep practising and see what happens on the course when they finally re open.
thanks again

Make sure you pay attention to your alignment as the simulator may make one sloppy in that regard when they get outdoors.

[Awalk36]

Thanks for the advice bubba.
The sim has already awoken me to my iron fault. I’ve always considered my miss to be a fade so normally aim slightly left of target. On my sim my miss is a slight pull which now I think about it my last round I can go through the holes in my head and everything was left side miss. This is due to me slightly over rotating on the back swing. The sim is showing me to reduce this and have confidence to aim for target. Now to take your advice when the courses here are finally open again and really take care on alignment when on the course
cheers