Questions about hitting up on the ball

[James Marshall (Hogan1953)]

Trackman data and research from Tom Wishon seem to prove that a positive attack angle is a key factor for maximising distance (or at least carry) with the driver.

1.Does a positive attack angle pre-suppose a motion which allows the clubhead to have passed the hands at impact or are there ways of hitting up on the ball without having to do so?
2. If this is the case, what is the most reliable way of doing so without compromising accuracy? Or is there a trade-off between maximum distance and maximum accuracy?

Any thoughts much appreciated as always

 

[thefuture37]

1. No. Bubba Watson hits up on driver as much as anybody and he doesn't flip.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDR1EuclMvo

2. The advantage of hitting up is that it allows you to use a less lofted driver to get a high launch angle. This maximizes carry by minimizing backspin. Any time you minimize backspin, you are compromising accuracy. There is a tradeoff.

 

[starretj]

Any time you minimize backspin, you are compromising accuracy. There is a tradeoff.

Although I have heard this mentioned many times, I don't understand the reasoning behind this statement. Could you explain why and how this is true?

Thanks,
Jim S.

 

[multi]

The more backspin you have, the less the ball is affected by side spin and the more the ball holds its direction.

 

[flapro]

The ball can only spin in one direction at a time, left OR right OR back OR forward. If there is backspin on the ball, it can't spin left or right. In pool, we put left underspin on a ball or right underspin on the ball but in golf, it ain't usually goin to happen.
I try to keep my backspin below 3,000 rpm, say around 2,700 or 2,800.
I use a driver with no grooves, so when the ball hits the ground, it runs like crazy-also a stiffer shaft helps this.

Although I have heard this mentioned many times, I don't understand the reasoning behind this statement. Could you explain why and how this is true?

Thanks,
Jim S.

 

[thefuture37]

The ball can only spin in one direction at a time, left OR right OR back OR forward. If there is backspin on the ball, it can't spin left or right. In pool, we put left underspin on a ball or right underspin on the ball but in golf, it ain't usually goin to happen.
I try to keep my backspin below 3,000 rpm, say around 2,700 or 2,800.
I use a driver with no grooves, so when the ball hits the ground, it runs like crazy-also a stiffer shaft helps this.

LOL...so in your world there is no such thing as an upshoot slice? What you are saying is kind of correct though. A ball can spin in one direction at a time, but thats only half the story. On every golf shot(excluding putting) there is backspin. The term "sidespin" refers to the axis that the ball is "backspinning" on. This happens on virtually EVERY golf shot(how often have you hit one dead straight?) There are hardly any drivers on the market that have grooves on the sweetspot. The grooves that are there are just for show/alignment. So this isn't adding any roll to your drives that any other driver wouldn't. A stiffer shaft is just going to result in less dynamic loft at impact for a lower launch angle and more roll.

 

[starretj]

If someone is trying to hit up to decrease their spin rate, I would think that the sidespin would be decreased also. Since you can only spin a ball on one axis, if it is spinning less, it is spinning less "sideways" also isn't it. Doesn't this mean it will curve less?

Jim S.

 

[All4Golf]

Trackman data and research from Tom Wishon seem to prove that a positive attack angle is a key factor for maximising distance (or at least carry) with the driver.

1.Does a positive attack angle pre-suppose a motion which allows the clubhead to have passed the hands at impact or are there ways of hitting up on the ball without having to do so?
2. If this is the case, what is the most reliable way of doing so without compromising accuracy? Or is there a trade-off between maximum distance and maximum accuracy?

Any thoughts much appreciated as always

A thorough review of the Wishon & TrackMan optimal numbers are here .

It also contains some answers for question #2 with graphs illustrating what it takes to optimize carry and total distance.

Regards,
Todd

 

[James Marshall (Hogan1953)]

1. No. Bubba Watson hits up on driver as much as anybody and he doesn't flip.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDR1EuclMvo

2. The advantage of hitting up is that it allows you to use a less lofted driver to get a high launch angle. This maximizes carry by minimizing backspin. Any time you minimize backspin, you are compromising accuracy. There is a tradeoff.

Thanks for the replies but the Bubba Watson video, at least to me, seems inconclusive as the camera angle is all wrong.

I know that the tip of the shaft just before impact kicks fwd and could help you to hit the ball with a more positive angle of attack but I don't know if it is enough to be able to do it with the hands in front of the clubhead.

It would seem to me that if to hit down on the ball the hands have to be in front of the clubead to hit up on it the reverse would be true.

Any more thoughts appreciated