SkyTrak questions--using it at outside range 1st time

[dmoore9003]

I took my unit to the range at my club today. I was getting some weird numbers...one drive would be 111 mph SS, the next was 50??? Any chance it would pick up the guy hitting behind me?

I was hitting off real grass--level lie--but it was a little windy.

Sometimes the iPad would not pick up the swing...but when I tapped the Skytak logo, it showed it.

[DirtyGarry24]

In my experience getting any reading off of real grass would be a shocker. I thought it was damn near impossible? Too much going on at impact to trust any of the numbers. The best you can do outside is a hitting mat and get lucky with the lighting.

[jrz]

The spectrum of light from the sun causes issues with the ST. It uses infrared cameras and the sun puts out plenty of infrared light, which makes it nearly impossible to get good readings in the sun. Even if you are outside in the shade you will still have these problems if the sun is your light source.

[AndyF]

The spectrum of light from the sun causes issues with the ST. It uses infrared cameras and the sun puts out plenty of infrared light, which makes it nearly impossible to get good readings in the sun. Even if you are outside in the shade you will still have these problems if the sun is your light source.

Really...as I use mine exclusively outside pretty much every day and have never experienced problems getting perfect readings. I've played with it in every set of lighting conditions from full sunshine to complete darkness and i get consistent results and virtually no mis reads

Andy

[doublebogey]

Yeah like AndyF, I use my ST exclusively outdoors (hitting off mat) with no problems reading shots. I've even taken my ST to range and hit off grass before and it was ok (not a complete failure). I think sunlights are fine, just make sure sun is shining from behind the ST (i.e., not directly into the ST and its lens).

[jrz]

That's the first time I have read about success using it outdoors. I stand corrected.

[Dave Lee]

I took my unit to the range at my club today. I was getting some weird numbers...one drive would be 111 mph SS, the next was 50??? Any chance it would pick up the guy hitting behind me?

I was hitting off real grass--level lie--but it was a little windy.

Sometimes the iPad would not pick up the swing...but when I tapped the Skytak logo, it showed it.

It's also worth mentioning that skytrak measures ballspeed and not swing speed. It does some math to get swing speed. For example, when I use Qolf balls vs foam vs real..the swing speed estimates are all very different.

[Justin General]

The only time I have issues with sunlight is when the sun itself has a direct line of sight to the skytrak camera (with no shadows or overcast in between).
For example, late afternoon and skytrak camera is facing west.

Other than that, I have no issues in sunlight with or without shade. Hope that helps.

[ladfromaus]

I'm looking to try mine outside here soon. I was wondering how you all deal with the divot issue? I can't see being able to take more than a shot or two before i need to move the unit. Or does everyone just use mats on the range?

[Morini]

I plan to hit off fairway as soon as weather allows. Hopefully it will read properly. It will have to be moved every shot because of divots. But I am only hitting a few because I want data on how VLA, spin and ball speed compares to when hitting off a mat. I am certain that identical swing off mat will launch higher and with less spin.

As a matter of fact, for those of us using ST for game improvement, I wonder if it would be possible/feasible to include a "normalize" option to account for hitting off mat. The ball launch data would be adjusted by taking a customizable factor for hitting off mat so that carry distances more closely match on course results. Right now, I have very accurate ST carry numbers for my wedges, but I assume those will be different once I get on the course.

Anyhow, with the small ball placement zone, I don't think practicing off grass is practical.

[davidgolfer]

I was never able to get a reading hitting off a tee box on real grass. Only tried it one day. I was under the impression that it would not work on real grass.

[trumb1mj]

I use mine exclusively outdoors. Night time use is best but once the sun drops low enough, it works fine. With the sun overhead it really doesn't work great.

[penrose]

I think in general the ST is not great outdoors. Now, I have used mine outdoors in my backyard before - both times it was really nice out. However, I hit off a mat, and was in the shade. This where the skytrak app and WGT working off the iPAD is useful.