Open/shut faced players and trackman

[Tball88]

I think it would be interesting to see how trackman would measure the accuracy of shut faced players (duval, Inkster,Trevino,Weekley, Olazabal, Parrnevik) versus more open faced players.

It seems historically shut/or less opened faced players have been very good iron strikers, I wonder if trackman would show those players consistently deliver a more square face than those who open and then shut the face.

Just my thought for the day.

 

[GPM1985]

It seems historically shut/or less opened faced players have been very good iron strikers, I wonder if trackman would show those players consistently deliver a more square face than those who open and then shut the face.

Every golfer opens the face. Some just open it less.

There are some very good ballstrikers who opened the face more than the less-open players you listed. Hogan and Miller come to mind as being pretty open, and then there's a laundry list of great iron players with neutral faces.

I guess my speculation is that Trackman wouldn't deliver very conclusive evidence about the improved accuracy of less-open players.

 

[Tball88]

GPM, I completely agree, there have been great golfers who play with open, square, or as you stated less open faces. That's one of the great things about this game, lots of ways to get it done.

I was just wondering if there was a correlation between any particular style and "on the average" better ball striking.

I know for myself, my best ball striking comes when I close the face, or twistaway slightly and then just hold and drive through the ball. It's typically more consistent for me than when I open and then shut.

 

[SJO]

Every golfer opens the face. Some just open it less.

There are some very good ballstrikers who opened the face more than the less-open players you listed. Hogan and Miller come to mind as being pretty open, and then there's a laundry list of great iron players with neutral faces.

I guess my speculation is that Trackman wouldn't deliver very conclusive evidence about the improved accuracy of less-open players.

Trackman is there so you don't have to speculate. I agree that it would be interesting to discover what the best iron players have in common compared to the best drivers of the ball.

 

[Kevin Shields]

I would bet that the best iron players control their attack angle and the amount of loft they deliver better than lesser iron players. Pin high baby!

 

[Bigwill]

I would bet that the best iron players control their attack angle and the amount of loft they deliver better than lesser iron players. Pin high baby!

This relates to one of the reasons Johnny Miller felt he was so accurate. He felt that with a weaker grip, you could only get your hands so far ahead and still square the ball; the range of possible delivered lofts was smaller. With a stronger grip, there are more loft/forward lean possibilities with a square face, which means more possible variations in distance with a given club.

 

[GPM1985]

Trackman is there so you don't have to speculate.

So, uh, we don't need to hypothesize anymore? Trackman will just give us answers to questions we didn't ask? That's awesome. I guess I'll stop speculating.

I also agree that Trackman is a useful tool for determining commonalities between good ball strikers (and crappy ones). However, if you were to do a comparative study between "more-open" and "less-open" players, it would have to be in the context of a specific shot. If I wanted to make an all-inclusive statement like "Golfer X is the most accurate golfer," I would have to prove that he produces the most consistent numbers with each club, and for a wide variety of shots. That would be tough. Parameters have to be set. It would be easier, and more feasible, to hypothesize and test something like "Golfer X hits the straightest straight ball," or something' like that.

Left alone, terms like "accuracy" and "consistency" are too ambiguous for any kind of conclusive study. Gotta nail down the terms.

 

[SJO]

So, uh, we don't need to hypothesize anymore? Trackman will just give us answers to questions we didn't ask? That's awesome. I guess I'll stop speculating.

You didn't ask the question, you speculated that Trackman wouldn't be helpful in this circumstance which is pointless and irrelevant to the thread.