Interpreting Trackman Numbers

[xrayvizhen]

I’ve been fortunate to have some access to a simulator and a Trackman recently and have been looking at my numbers – mostly trying different swing techniques and feels in order to improve lag, reduce the angle of attack on the ball and just create a more efficient swing.  And I’m a bit perplexed.  For one thing I’ve discovered my numbers are pretty close to LPGA tour players (which oddly doesn’t make me feel all that terrible, considering I'm 70 and they're not) at least as far as clubhead and ball speed goes but it’s the attack and launch angles where I’m falling short. Frankly, I would be thrilled beyond belief if I could hit the ball like the LPGA ladies.

My 7-iron has a loft of 30.5° so with a launch angle of 23.6 doesn’t that mean that I’m getting at least some lag? If so, how is it my attack angle is zero? And they get greater ball speed with a slower swing speed. So all-in-all I’m a bit puzzled by the numbers. With Trackman there are tons of numbers to look at and I’m wondering if I should focus on some others. Any Trackman experts out there?

[ncates00]

  On 12/3/2019 at 12:03 AM, xrayvizhen said:

My 7-iron has a loft of 30.5° so with a launch angle of 23.6 doesn’t that mean that I’m getting at least some lag?

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Very likely, but for best results, check dynamic loft of your 7i.  If dynamic loft is less than 30.5*, then you for sure are delofting the iron through the shot.

 

  On 12/3/2019 at 12:03 AM, xrayvizhen said:

how is it my attack angle is zero?

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AoA has nothing to do with lag.  You can deloft a club and hit up or down.  Many tour pros deloft a driver and hit up to reduce spin and maximize ball speed.  Many players, however, will add loft and hit up.  The same goes for an iron--just because you are delofting the club, that doesn't mean you must hit down on the ball.  An attack angle of 0* is good; at your age of 70, I would say it is very good for you so you can still hit the ball plenty high as you age.  Most older folks have trouble getting the ball airborne due to the lack of speed.  A more shallow angle of attack (0 to a few degrees downward) helps with that.  The ladies have a pretty shallow AoA for the same reason.

 

  On 12/3/2019 at 12:03 AM, xrayvizhen said:

And they get greater ball speed with a slower swing speed.

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The ladies likely: a) hit the ball better and have a higher smash factor (look at your smash factor of 1.31 vs. their 1.38--they're hitting it better than you do), b) have lower static lofted irons, c) deloft the club more, or d) all the above.  Each one of those could explain why they have higher ballspeed than you, especially a).

FYI, smash factor is ball speed divided by clubhead speed.  Essentially, this measures your efficiency in hitting a ball.  The higher the number, generally speaking as loft has a lot to do with it, the better.  

[phillyk]

Ladies are hitting the 7iron "purer" than you are.  Center hits produce higher ball speeds.
Lag and attack angle are not directly related. Think driver, pros have lag yet are trying to have a positive attack angle.

  On 12/3/2019 at 12:40 AM, ncates00 said:

An attack angle of 0* is good; at your age of 70, I would say it is very good for you so you can still hit the ball plenty high as you age.  Most older folks have trouble getting the ball airborne due to the lack of speed.  A more shallow angle of attack (0 to a few degrees downward) helps with that.

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I agree with this, in that you want to retain your launch and spin, with your age.  Height will be your friend as the swing slows down a bit.  I would watch smash factor, as it directly relates to how contact on the face was.  I also watch angle of attack and spin.  Playing around with their relationship will give you optimal ball flights.  The tough part is how do you play with these? What do you change to produce different numbers? Trial and error works, pros work faster and better.  I also like to look at path angle vs face angle at impact. You want those two numbers to be close to one another.

EDIT: at the end of it, some numbers are only good for confirming things (like smash factor, distance) while other numbers help you decide what needs to be adjusted (path angle vs face angle, angle of attack)

Edited December 5, 2019 by phillyk