effect of weather conditions on driving distance

[RandyBobbitt]

Just played a round with a new driver yesterday. More accurate than my older driver, but a loss of distance of about 20 yards. But the weather conditions were quite different.

Old driver: September, 90 degrees with just a little humidity. New driver: November, 72 degrees with damp, muggy air.

How much of this is because of the different driver and how much can I blame on the weather? Maybe 10 yards because of the weather and 10 yards because of the club?

I know what you're thinking -- why don't I just take my old driver to the course and hit it under similar conditions? First, because of my odd working schedule and the end of daylight savings time, I might not play again until March. And even if I did, I'm not sure I would play under the exact same conditions.

Your thoughts?

[natureboy]

Just played a round with a new driver yesterday. More accurate than my older driver, but a loss of distance of about 20 yards. But the weather conditions were quite different.

Old driver: September, 90 degrees with just a little humidity. New driver: November, 72 degrees with damp, muggy air.

How much of this is because of the different driver and how much can I blame on the weather? Maybe 10 yards because of the weather and 10 yards because of the club?

I know what you're thinking -- why don't I just take my old driver to the course and hit it under similar conditions? First, because of my odd working schedule and the end of daylight savings time, I might not play again until March. And even if I did, I'm not sure I would play under the exact same conditions.

Your thoughts?

My calculator has 90* at +4% and 72* at -2% so about a net 6% carry difference due to air temp with constant air pressure and humidity (which is really negligible).

So the answer to your question depends on distance of your average drive and maybe the fairway characteristics. Cool and humid makes me think of moist / soggy fairways versus 90* and dry.

You could have carried the ball the same amount and gotten much better roll-out on the dry day, especially if the new driver (used on the cool moist day) was higher launching / more loft.

[boogielicious]

Humid air is less dense than dry air, so you will have some effect from high humidity increasing distance a bit.  It is less dense because a water vapor molecule has less mass than O2 and N2 molecules.

[Yukari]

High humidity is different from damp air. In damp air the moisture has condensed forming water droplets which has MORE friction than water molecules in gas phase. So the ball will travel less in damp air but will travel more in high humid air.

[boogielicious]

High humidity is different from damp air. In damp air the moisture has condensed forming water droplets which has MORE friction than water molecules in gas phase. So the ball will travel less in damp air but will travel more in high humid air.

Disagree.  In order to have damp air, the humidity will have to be 100%, so the air is less dense.   The OP did not say it was foggy or misting.

[natureboy]

Humid air is less dense than dry air, so you will have some effect from high humidity increasing distance a bit.  It is less dense because a water vapor molecule has less mass than O2 and N2 molecules.

While I don't dispute that fact, the info I've looked at indicate that humidity is almost negligible in it's effects on carry distance. Air temp it the dominant factor, ball temp is significant but far less.

With equal air temps, humidity / dampness as a factor in fairway conditions would be more significant in total distance due to a softer landing and less run-out.

[iacas]

With equal air temps, humidity / dampness as a factor in fairway conditions would be more significant in total distance due to a softer landing and less run-out.

Humidity and "dampness" are very different things. I've played some rock-hard golf courses in very high humidity.

Most people don't seem to be able to separate "humidity" from "dampness" - water vapor from water droplets .

It isn't a large contributor, though - a few yards.

[boogielicious]

Quote:

Originally Posted by natureboy

With equal air temps, humidity / dampness as a factor in fairway conditions would be more significant in total distance due to a softer landing and less run-out.

Humidity and "dampness" are very different things. I've played some rock-hard golf courses in very high humidity.

Most people don't seem to be able to separate "humidity" from "dampness" - water vapor from water droplets.

It isn't a large contributor, though - a few yards.

Agree.  As I stated in my first post, it would contribute a bit (as in a small amount).

[natureboy]

Humidity and "dampness" are very different things. I've played some rock-hard golf courses in very high humidity.

Most people don't seem to be able to separate "humidity" from "dampness" - water vapor from water droplets.

It isn't a large contributor, though - a few yards.

I wasn't referring to water droplets. It was more of a 'morning conditions' vs. 'afternoon conditions' comparison.

More precisely my post should have read "cool, humid, & therefore damp (due to ground condensation)" as affecting fairway softness.

Agreed a hot humid day with well-baked fairways would be a good day for total distance.

[natureboy]

Just played a round with a new driver yesterday. More accurate than my older driver, but a loss of distance of about 20 yards. But the weather conditions were quite different.

Old driver: September, 90 degrees with just a little humidity. New driver: November, 72 degrees with damp, muggy air.

How much of this is because of the different driver and how much can I blame on the weather? Maybe 10 yards because of the weather and 10 yards because of the club?

I know what you're thinking -- why don't I just take my old driver to the course and hit it under similar conditions? First, because of my odd working schedule and the end of daylight savings time, I might not play again until March. And even if I did, I'm not sure I would play under the exact same conditions.

Your thoughts?

My calculator has 90* at +4% and 72* at -2% so about a net 6% carry difference due to air temp with constant air pressure and humidity (which is really negligible).

So the answer to your question depends on distance of your average drive and maybe the fairway characteristics. Cool and humid makes me think of moist / soggy fairways versus 90* and dry.

You could have carried the ball the same amount and gotten much better roll-out on the dry day, especially if the new driver (used on the cool moist day) was higher launching / more loft.

Updated my distance calculator to be a bit more conservative in the estimates.

To some extent it depends how far you hit your drives too. Higher swing speeds compress colder golf balls better and lose less there.

90* is now +2% and 72* is -.8% for a net ~ 2.8% difference in carry distance. As said in other posts, differing fairway conditions on the two days could be a significant factor in the total distance.

Personally, I would expect differences in roll-out and launch angle / landing angle from conditions and (different?) driver lofts to outweigh the temperature effects. What about getting on a simulator / launch monitor for an additional comparison on just carry and total distance holding the other factors constant?