Weather affecting carry

[onkey]

I played this morning in dense fog and 100% humidity and found that I was losing significant distance on all my shots (1 club to about a club and a half).  It took about 8 holes before I was finally able to come to grips with it but by that point I had already dug a bit of a hole for myself.  I've played in all sorts of bad weather and have never had that kind of effect except for playing when the temperature drops down below near freezing.  Is there any sort of formula you can apply to weather conditions that can help you anticipate days when your carry is going to be significantly affected?

[MS256]

I'm not sure about fog. I would assume the presence of liquid water would create drag but don't know how much. Anybody know? Humidity is another story. The ball goes farther when it's humid.

[vangator]

I'm not sure about fog. I would assume the presence of liquid water would create drag but don't know how much. Anybody know? Humidity is another story. The ball goes farther when it's humid.

I would think humidity would hamper a ball. I would think you'd hit the ball farther in Vegas than in Florida (discounting elevation). That's been my assumption anyway.

[David in FL]

I would think humidity would hamper a ball. I would think you'd hit the ball farther in Vegas than in Florida (discounting elevation). That's been my assumption anyway.

Sorry , you'd be wrong .... As any pilot will tell you, humid air is less dense than dry air. As such, the ball flies further in humid conditions than in dry. Fog, like clouds, is simply visible water vapor and doesn't affect the ball any differently than normal humidity. Doesn't seem logical, but true nonetheless.

[iacas]

Too many people picture humidity as "water as a liquid" when it's technically "water as a gas."

The air "feels thicker" because your sweat doesn't evaporate as quickly.

[onkey]

I have to admit that I found the effect to be unusual.  I've played in lots of different environments over the years and never once thought today's condition should have any effect--which is why I found it so difficult to make an adjustments.  But everyone in my group said they had to make similar adjustments so I accepted that the effect was real.

[jamo]

Sorry , you'd be wrong .... As any pilot will tell you, humid air is less dense than dry air. As such, the ball flies further in humid conditions than in dry. Fog, like clouds, is simply visible water vapor and doesn't affect the ball any differently than normal humidity. Doesn't seem logical, but true nonetheless.

Yup. Announces get this wrong a lot (in baseball as well as golf), which I think is where a lot of people get it from.

[MS256]

Good to know about the fog. I wasn't sure about that. I've played in fog so thick I couldn't see more than around 50 yards but was usually happy enough to find my ball in the fairway that I didn't pay much attention to how far it went. Normal for me varies a good bit anyway. There was a guy playing in the fog last week and I was mowing around the 9th green. When I saw him approaching I stopped mowing so he could hit his approach shot. When he continued on past I asked him if he was playing this hole. He said "No I ran out of golf balls on the last hole."

[vangator]

Well, you learn something new everyday. :-)