Sky Trak DRASTIC Distance Issue with 3 wood, especially Driver

[David DeWitt]

Hi Guys this is my first post. I have read every post on this issue and have tried just about everything. But my driver is reading unbearably inaccurately. I am not sure what my swing speed or ball speed should be but I do know that I carry my drives 250+, I have verified with Trackman and with my rangefinder at the driving range. The picture is of a session yesterday. Every single one of these drives carried at least 240 yards with some bombs (for me they are bombs) that carried about 270. As you can see Sky Trak is not even in the ballpark. I hit this morning with my 3 hybrid and was carrying it 215 on skytrak with ease. This was outside at the range so it surely not indoor swing. Definitely was level with mat and bubble on top was centered.

At the end of the day, I can just barely deal with this because my indoor set up has low ceilings so I can only hit 3 hybrid and higher. But I have an outdoor set up that I use too.

What things should I try to improve this? I have tried using dark tees, putting the ball in front and behind the dot, and going to range in the evening when the sun is not shining, I have sacrificed nice non-range balls (variety of brands and types), and making sure logo is facing the camera. What else should I try? This makes playing TGC...frankly not fun at all.

My personal theory is that it just can't keep up with whatever my ball speed really is because otherwise it makes no logical sense that it would be so spot on for irons.

Thanks. SkyTrak_Seth I would love you input.

PS: I do have a call into SkyTrak commercial team.

[Clevited]

Mats also can make a huge difference in ball flight, and power. Slightly fat on my mat for instance takes away a ton of speed yet I don't really feel like I contacted it poorly. Numbers from ST showed me I was when I compared to a tee'd up ball. Spin and therefore launch angle can also change vs grass when hitting off a mat.

[AndyF]

Also with those numbers, you have a 22mph dispersion in ball speed, 40 yard dispersion front/back and a 120 yard dispersion left/right and peak height varies from 9 yards to 33 yards. This would suggest to me that you are not making a consistent enough strike pattern to get consistent results which also points to the indoor swing theory I would suggest.

[Stackchaser]

If I hit my typical draw the ST ball flight shows mostly a hard right shot. I have to really close my stance, and club face and hook it to get it to read anything to the left. I don't have the problem on irons. Hybrids read correctly most of the time. 3w is iffy and driver is not reading anything close to real time. This is not just for me as I have tested with some absolute gorillas that crush the ball and only one hit registered 250+. My golf coach is going to put me on a GC2 and trackman and compare on my next lesson in two weeks.

[Stackchaser]

The driver ball flight is way off unless I hook and that it reads corretly. I play a draw and ST is reading a cut shot. 4i and 6i on same night within 15min apart. Attached is the 4 and 6. Driver is not reading close to accurate. I have run the test on ST from the menu and the unit has zero tilt either way.

[Stackchaser]

I plan to take to the range Thursday and test. I just cannot see an 8mph difference in ball speed from 4i to driver. I have plenty of room and am not worried about hitting anything (ceiling) with driver. I have added more lighting around the ST to help it capture the driver but no avail. The mat is not the issue as I am using a tomahawk tee and don't see how a mat could distort a teed up ball. If you google ST driver issues and ST short driver, there is a lot of info on lighting, tee selection, placement, etc. and I have read a ton and tried everything to date. With all the problems others have had, I just don't believe that ST is accurate measuring high speed balls on some units.

[Clevited]

Believe it or not, a lot of the problems you read about end up being indoor swing or something else. I don't know about you, but many of us are not pro golfers and have a lot of variability ourselves making trouble shooting any launch monitor difficult. I assure you, my ST is more than accurate for the price point but it does have its limitations. For me its ball speeds above 150 mph. Skytraks just tend to read low more often and by more at those speeds. At speeds below that, most STs are nuts on ball speed wise with trackman and gc2. Vertical LA is usually very good as is spin (its in the right ball park), and it gets shot shape right most every time. Those combined tend to get carry distance very close. Spin decay is something ST doesn't model very well so if you are a high spin, high ball speed player , carry tends to be 5 to 10 yards short I have noticed. If you play a sim though, they use their own models so it will change there too.

ST is a budget LM but with way above typical capabilities. Its not perfect but it is worth every dollar to me. ST also continue to support and improve things which is uncommon these days.

Anyways, I hope you get to test ST at the range. Keep in mind the weather and altitude when comparing carry numbers and shot shape. The range is the only way to know for sure if your unit is bad or your swing just changes indoors.

Good luck.

[G4zzel]

If you do test on the range, remember that range-balls also has significant effect on the ST.

[Supraracer]

Are you using a case? Is it square in the case. Try without it if you are and use alignment mode make sure both laser dots are on your target path.

[jut111]

I've got 5 bucks that says you come back from the range reporting ball flight closely mirrored real life...

[Stackchaser]

You would have lost that five bucks. ST at range showed completely different ball flight, distance, etc.

[Clevited]

Then unfortunately you have a Skytrak that needs to be returned and replaced.

[JB3]

I found that My biggest issue on the sky track was alignment. I still do not get my total distance on the driver but its very minor so I have added 4% to my driver on TGC and I am right on par. I dont play online leagues or anything so its just what we do. I do however play with my pals 4 to 5 times a week and one of those guys is lefty and we dont even mind that issue. I have a few threads on here with tons of complaining when I first bought the unit but it does take some getting used to on the inside swing, but like I said with me it was slicing and spin numbers. What I found is because of space and set up I hit far over to the right side of a 10x10 screen and I didn't realize I was naturally aligning to the center where the picture takes my site and pulling/slicing. Once this was corrected the entire game changed for me. I now get behind the ball before my shot and align on the screen where I should be hitting down the line. This was a good change because its my normal shot routine on the coarse. I do still believe two things with the Sky track that I dont like but dont really bother me anymore, 1- super small chips right off the fringe like 3 to 5 yards. The device simply does not like these but I have just started putting them. 2- I think it will exaggerate your flaws a little, like slices. This is just a theory but I just make it a tool on being better. I use the Sky track religiously and can not imagine life with out it now, (probably get more done on that honey due list). I also play twice a week so I stay in tune with the indoor and out door. I dont really use the skytrack software any more, mostly just use the TGC, I can just enter a course and find a shot to work on and hit 50 or 60 times and move on, what better practice.

[dg_1983]

What's the official response with this?

That they are investigating and will improve where possible or that there is no issue?

[Stackchaser]

I took my unit to the range last week and results were much better with a truer ball flight and distance. Although I did have a lot more misreads as the range balls were in decent to poor condition and some were very dirty. I had purchased four dozen logo Titleist balls as I had read everywhere that ST sees the logos balls better. I played in a tournament last Sunday and needed some balls so I grabbed some I had been using for practice with the ST. Yesterday, I grabbed some more logo balls out of the bag I had ordered and started warming up as I had a buddy coming over for a round on TGC. I had been using 3w off the tee as I was getting better distance from 3w (210-225) than driver (195-220). Pulled out the 3w to hit a few and first one was 256yds. Wow, how did that happen. Grabbed another ball and really caught it clean, pure and hard...217yds. WTH??? After a few more balls in the 210-220 range, hit one 244. Grabbed that ball and the logo was different on it than the others. Teed up again and another long ball with a draw. Tried it with driver and total was 283. It was the logo color and/or pattern that ST can read at higher ball speeds. Below is a pic of the different logo balls I was using. The black and orange red with Simpson strong was the one ST consistently read correctly. I had been using primarily the large blue Connecticut sinus institute ball and ST did not read it well at all. The blue Uline was a loser as well. Went through the entire four dozen of logo balls and anything with black on the logo the ST read best. The lighter orange logo was pretty good with a few misreads. The 811 logo did not do well and performed about the same as the blue logo balls.

I am going to do more trials today and put up some results based on the ST app and post. But based on yesterdays results I think I have found my answer for driver and 3w issues with my unit. Hope this helps others and maybe we can find a reliable supply of logo balls that work.

[Clevited]

Not to be mean Stack but this all sounds quite silly. To me, it sounds like you are super inconsistent. You also seem to focus on total distance way too much. You really need to only compare carry distances.

i know where my ST stands accuracy wise because I know the ball speeds I can achieve on Trackman. I also monitor my swing speed with a radar device just so i know if I am swinging my usual speed or not any given day. I also regularly check my ball contact with foot spray on my clubs.

ST has been out for 5 years now? Lots of people have been through exactly what you describe. Almost all find it is them not ST. Or they have unrealistic expectations, or didn't understand what they are buying. For instance some people thought ST measures swing speed. It does not, and will never. It just estimates it much like GC2 without hmt.

It is important first to be true to yourself as far as your golfing capabilities. ST is an eye opener for most. It shows they they aren't nearly as powerful or good as they think they are.

Now, ST definitely isn't perfect. It has issues with high ball speed (only above roughly 150 mph, so unless you hit this speed with 3 wood and driver you aren't effected by it). It has issues with horizontal launch angle accuracy. It doesn't measure that very precisely but in fairness its hard to do. Spin, VLA, ball speed and shot shape are all generally very well measured in my experience. Its algorithm isn't perfect for calculating carry. As i have said before, it doesn't model spin decay which can make accuracy a little more off with high spinning shots. It also is a tad generous with low spin drives but not quite to the extent of gc2 for instance. There are also atmospheric conditions it uses to calculate ball flight which every lm seems to model a little differently.

If you are honest with yourself yet you still feel you are a consistent golfer and its the ST then send it in for repair. Most don't find their STs to be nearly as off as you feel yours is.

[halekala]

I really think SkyTrak ought to encourage buyers to join this forum as part of "ReadMe First" manual inside the box/unit. When I got my ST I was also blaming it for giving bad reading and not looking at my inabilities. My eyes opened up when I took my unit to a local golf shop and tested it twice. The numbers were stunningly accurate. At that point I realized that ST is deadly accurate and that my setup at home had something wrong or I had indoor swing syndrome. First time users should also take the unit to a local indoor golf shop or hitting area and try it out before giving up.

[wbond]

I would agree. People don't realize that you swing differently when you are in your own home vs somewhere else, even if that other place is indoors as well. There has to be some subconscious thoughts about what can go wrong in your own setup that may hold you back from swinging normally.

[Clevited]

Stackchaser did you ever come to a definitive conclusion? You shouldn't have to use logo balls to get results you expected. The only things those might help with is spin and spin axis as far as I understand. And that is really only when lighting or ball condition is not great. Either you got a bad ST or you need to consider that it is you. Please don't take that as a jab at you, we all have gone through this. Its sort of like a right of passage you have to go through when you buy your first decently accurate launch monitor. Its especially true if you are like me and your swing is inconsistent day to day.

[Stackchaser]

Happy,

Apologies for my snarky remark. Was just frustrated after the putting episode. I understand the sim software decides the final outcome, but I'm sure the mfg works with the software developer. I did do my homework before, during and after my purchase. I use only new logo balls as this was suggested by many on this site as it helps ST track the shot. I use a laser to align each time we use, and I believe this is crucial in getting accurate information. Use tomahawk tees, have synlawn precision putt over a gel insert for hitting that is level with surrounding green and ST unit. Overall, I think ST is a fantastic unit for practicing irons and hybrids. The ST bag mapping and practice software are user friendly and work well. Having Seth regularly on this site and his input shows a commitment to customer service. I believe there are issues with lower loft clubs as there are posts here, and on other sites. I'm glad you don't have any issues as it can be frustrating. I am keeping ST for now as I'm in the middle of selling multiple houses and trying to find a new home that will allow a golf sim has been a struggle. I am going to try a gc2 in a neighbors sim after Christmas. As you mentioned in your post, he has issues with putting as well. Cheers and happy holidays.

[HappyGilmore102]

Hi Stack

No worries,

you are a new user and it takes a little time to figure everything out. I've had my skytrak 2 years and at first I had all the same issues, thought i had a bad unit etc etc etc..........i discovered over the period of about a year what i was doing wrong.

Sometimes i discovered things by accident - like i was using the standard brownish mat tee and then a white tee holder that takes any tee and then by accident i used a black tee and my driver readings were suddenly much better.

I slowly learned just how very very sensitive and accurate this machine is.

My father had a go on it and we discovered that due to his age, most of his irons were carrying the exact same distance. He had a full set of clubs, now he only uses half a set of irons and a driver. He plays his best golf now IRL and has become a 7 iron specialist, i could never pull off the type of shots he does with that club.

If you can't send the skytrak back, just give it a little more time while you try to sell it, you won't regret getting GC2 its the best, but try before you buy!

Regards
HappyG

[Stackchaser]

Happy to say that finally figured out the driver, 3w and hybrid location in regards to laser dot where it will read much longer and closer to IRL drives. Also, putting is much better with ball directly behind the dot a few inches away from the screen. We are still having issues playing a draw. I usually play a draw IRL but have moved to a fade on ST. Several buddies that are better golfers than I cannot draw any wood either. It just shows a hard hook if the unit reads it, and most of the time not at all. We have tried every conceivable location and cannot work out the bugs. We also have issues on large right to left putts as the unit will either misread, or give some really wacky results. I putted an 11ft putt with 4" downhill that went eight foot on my putting surface and went 60ft on ST. It will also read short on these putts. Frankly its weird and we keep trying to figure the quirks out. Irons read draws correctly for all of us, but woods and putting are strange. Any suggestions would be welcome. Have 4-6 more months with ST before upgrading and want to work out the kinks before giving to a buddy. Thanks.