Winter distance = How much summer distance?

[bossfrog]

I got me a handy dandy Cobra Bio Cell for Christmas from my wonderfully thoughtful wife and I was finally able to get out for a few minutes to hit some balls today with my brother-in-law's little portable launch monitor.  I hit about 8 or 9 balls which ranged from 224 - 240 carry distance with an average of 233.2.  It was about 30 degrees out and I was hitting Bridgestone B300s.  Can anyone with more experience than I give a rough idea what those numbers might translate to on a nice 80 degree day?

EDIT: I also took my old TM Tour Burner out and hit 5 balls with it averaging 224.5 carry.

[SavvySwede]

If the balls, clubs, and yourself were still warm from being inside it might not be that much of a difference. If you or your gear was out long enough it could be a huge difference. Too many factors other than just air resistance to make any meaningful estimation.

[bossfrog]

The balls were out in my truck for a couple days and cold enough to only leave a ball mark about the size of a dime.  In the summer my ball marks on the face are a bit bigger than a nickel.

[dkolo]

I got me a handy dandy Cobra Bio Cell for Christmas from my wonderfully thoughtful wife and I was finally able to get out for a few minutes to hit some balls today with my brother-in-law's little portable launch monitor.  I hit about 8 or 9 balls which ranged from 224 - 240 carry distance with an average of 233.2.  It was about 30 degrees out and I was hitting Bridgestone B300s.  Can anyone with more experience than I give a rough idea what those numbers might translate to on a nice 80 degree day?

EDIT: I also took my old TM Tour Burner out and hit 5 balls with it averaging 224.5 carry.

For what it's worth, I've gone to the range this year about 5 times in weather that was sub 40°, not too long after nights that were much colder than that, and I've found absolutely no loss of distance off of my short irons; with longer clubs it's difficult to tell past 150, but I've carried occasional drives past the 250 marker, which is what my best drives seem to be on the golfsmith launch monitor. This range uses a mix of reclaimed real golf balls, so it's relatively true to reality. I won't say there's absolutely no effect on distances, but I wouldn't chalk up too much of a difference to the temperatures. If you feel really unsure about the effect, pocket 5 balls and come back the next day to hit them when they're warm / car temperature to see if you see a significant difference. Be mindful of the wind direction, since, in my experience, the wind tends to be more significant in the winter months, at least here on Long Island at my range that overlooks the Sound. That, in my experience over 3 years of winter golf, tends to make the biggest difference in length during the winter.

[bkuehn1952]

It was about 30 degrees out and I was hitting Bridgestone B300s.  Can anyone with more experience than I give a rough idea what those numbers might translate to on a nice 80 degree day?

Cold air is denser than warm air.  I have heard that one will lose about 1 foot for every degree under 70 degrees.  One will see less fall off from wedges and with driver you may lose 13 yards or so. I typically play 1 or 2 clubs more when playing in significantly cold weather (40 degrees and under).

[Pretzel]

I personally find that the biggest difference in distance comes not from the club, but from the clothing I wear. Heavy jackets on cold days will lead to much shorter shots than a polo or t-shirt, but a sweatshirt will affect me much less (though I still prefer to take one off when I swing and wear it only between shots). That said, temperature affects how far my ball flies. My club that, during the season, I hit and fly 145 yards will only fly 135 yards, but it still goes 145 when you take into account bounce and roll on flat, frozen ground. Tee shots travel shorter for me by around 10-15 yards depending on how cold it gets. The biggest distance killer is snow! You don't get much roll on your shots even when there's merely a thin coating on the grass since I've found golf balls have a tendency to gather snow and turn into little snowballs as they roll, especially on putts.

[bossfrog]

Cold air is denser than warm air.  I have heard that one will lose about 1 foot for every degree under 70 degrees.  One will see less fall off from wedges and with driver you may lose 13 yards or so. I typically play 1 or 2 clubs more when playing in significantly cold weather (40 degrees and under).

That would make sense.  The 224 average on my Tour Burner is 17 yards less than my 241 average of 7 or 8 balls back in September with the same balls and same club.  I think temp was in the mid-70s that day.  Crossing my fingers that the 233 I got with my BiO Cell will translate to 250+ this summer.  That said, whether the distance ends up much different or not, the main thing is that my shot dispersion is much tighter with the BiO Cell than it ever was with the TB!

[flopster]

I don't feel distance gets sacrificed very much until you start getting below 40*, just for instance today I lazered a flag at 130 so I took my 9 iron which is right at 133 club when struck cleanly, I wounded up air mailing the flag by at least 8 yards and the contact felt a bit chunky out on the toe, I think temperature was in the low 40's with zero wind aid. Ball was a titleist NXT so not a real distance ball by any means maybe a little longer than a prov or Zstar but not 5-10 yards longer.

[InTheRough]

I have played on a few days this winter in the low to mid 30s.  On those days i expect to lose around a half a club with irons and about 10 yards on a driver and don't expect any roll out because the ground is usually wet(its actually a good way to measure carry distance with the longer clubs since the ball ends up within a yard of where it lands).  I also found that a slightly softer ball helps in the winter.