How is distance really affected by cold weather?

[DrvFrShow]

This is non-reporting season for us until mid-March: Winter Rules. With temps in the 30s I would assume that nothing is carrying over 150 yds right now. It's probably also due to the amount of clothing as well. I've been to the driving range when it was 41 F and balls weren't carrying over 190. That's 25 to 35 yds shorter than normal. Most courses have been closed due to frost. If the greens are shaded the frost doesn't melt in the afternoon.

Now it's 39 and wet. I don't think we want to be hitting rocks off the tee. If you're willing to play in 30 degree weather, I say anything goes. You want to toss a hand warmer in your bag compartment to keep the balls warm go for it. Considering they make pants for girls without usable pockets we should be able to do this just to level the playing field a little. You won't see me until it gets in the 50s anyway.

[9wood]

You wait for the weather to get cold enough for the ground to become frozen. Your ball may not travel as far in the air, but you get a ton of roll on a frozen fairway which means more distance in such conditions

[natureboy]

11 hours ago, SavvySwede said:

Unfortunately the correlation between distance and temperature isn't linear either through the bag or across temperature ranges. Rough estimate is 2-3% loss for 10 degrees below 70F. I find a low compression ball like the Callaway SuperSoft to be ideal when temperatures drop below 45F.

It depends a bit on the temp when you do your club distances. If I benchmarked at 80* then 60* I'd estimate as ~ 4% loss.

[SavvySwede]

5 minutes ago, natureboy said:

It depends a bit on the temp when you do your club distances. If I benchmarked at 80* then 60* I'd estimate as ~ 4% loss.

Certainly. Like I said the whole temp-distance isn't exactly linear, not to mention all the other potential factors.

[natureboy]

2 hours ago, SavvySwede said:

Certainly. Like I said the whole temp-distance isn't exactly linear, not to mention all the other potential factors.

What I was trying to convey was that the distance change is relative to the conditions at which you benchmarked your distances. If you benchmark your distances at 80* then 60* will be a bigger loss than if you benchmarked at 70*.

Maybe the best way to deal with temp effect is simply know your gapping well and then hit several full shots with the shortest iron you hit full during your warm-up and then you have your distances for the day plus a rough % loss that you can apply to driver carries.

[kenstl]

I tend to get rounds in all year as well (Missouri) and when the temps drop under 50 degrees I feel like I use at least one club length, sometimes more.  I am not sure if it strictly from the temps or from me being stiff with less rotation from it being cold and wearing more clothes.  The ball however does not feel like it compresses like it does in warm weather, so I would assume the cold takes it toll.

[Yukari]

For me when it gets below 50 *F, I have to hit at least 1 longer club to get the same carry distance. Around 40 *F it seems closer to 2 longer club is needed. 

[paininthenuts]

On 1/5/2016 at 2:31 PM, chspeed said:

I play year round. As long as there's no snow on the ground, we'll play if it's above 30 degrees or so.

My question is, how much is ball carry distance really affected by the cold? The other day was  in the high 30's/low 40's, and the ball seemed to carry pretty close to normal. I wasn't measuring, but I didn't notice a significant change in distance. Also, are there better balls than others to play on cold days?

The main difference is the run. The ball will NOT travel as well in cold air, but the big difference is how far it will roll when it lands. The average difference from a drive can be up to 100 yards from winter to summer. 

[dkolo]

On 1/6/2016 at 1:05 PM, paininthenuts said:

The main difference is the run. The ball will NOT travel as well in cold air, but the big difference is how far it will roll when it lands. The average difference from a drive can be up to 100 yards from winter to summer. 

100 yards? Only if you suddenly hit all of your drives off the hosel in the winter.

 

[Lihu]

Cold and soaked fairways ==> much shorter distances. You get almost no roll, compounded with higher air density. Air density at 6%-9% loss in carry is more or less what I think is the difference between 45F and 70F playing temperatures. If no roll you could see 2 clubs difference on the drives plus one more up because the approach is also shorter? So, up to 3 clubs more is needed for a par 4 hole approach shot?

Quoting @SavvySwede above where he mentioned 2% to 3% per 10F change below 70F.

Funny that on the range tonight, it seemed like I only lost 1 club per flight, so 2 clubs more is needed for the approach?

 

[BuckeyeNut]

On 1/5/2016 at 8:31 AM, chspeed said:

I play year round. As long as there's no snow on the ground, we'll play if it's above 30 degrees or so.

My question is, how much is ball carry distance really affected by the cold? The other day was  in the high 30's/low 40's, and the ball seemed to carry pretty close to normal. I wasn't measuring, but I didn't notice a significant change in distance. Also, are there better balls than others to play on cold days?

I have a lot of experience in all kinds of weather and it really matters.  It's not just the air density and air temperature, but the ball temperature too!  Temp really does matter!  If you cant tell the difference in length while playing in different climates, your golf game is probably pretty erratic to say the least!  I don't mean this as a put-down....... it is what it is.  

[JonMA1]

Was out hitting in the yard this afternoon. Temps were in the teens (18°) and the balls had been outside in the cold for several days.

A clean 4i shot for me travels around 170 yds on average (total carry and roll). I measured a couple today at just over 150 yds. I'm working on a priority and not swinging out of my shoes, but the full shots I measured felt good and had what I consider good flight.

I was just wondering if those temps might have a 20 yard impact on distance.

I should mention that even though the ground was frozen, these shots landed in pretty thick grass so there wasn't much roll out.

[Buckeyebowman]

There's no doubt that temp affects distance. When you put it all together, cold dry air, cold golf balls, and cold damp fairways the effect is cumulative.

We got to play 3 rounds in February, and 2 of those days the air temp was decently warm. But, it wasn't "Summer" warm! There's just not enough heat energy in the sunlight yet to dry anything out. Heck, a couple days of strong wind will do more to dry things out than dawn to dusk sunshine. We're still shy of the Vernal Equinox, so it's still dark for a majority of the day.

A few years back I discovered the Precept Laddie. It seems to go pretty well when it's cold. At the other end of the spectrum is the Pro V1. Above 85 it's great. Below 80, it feels like I'm hitting a rock!

[Denny Bang Bang]

According to a comment by Dean Snell on his web page, he stated multi layer balls will perform better in cold weather, and the key to good performance is keeping the balls warm (he suggests rotating balls hole to hole, while keeping the ones not in use warm).

@Buckeyebowman So at 75 degrees you're saying a ProV feels like a rock? Doesn't make sense to me

Edited March 12, 2017 by Denny Bang Bang

[Buckeyebowman]

All I'm saying is that's how it feels "to me". I can't speak for anyone else. Way back in the day I liked Titleist Tour Balatas in black. The 100 compression jobs! Well, as long as it was hot. The hotter it was the better that ball flew! Once it got below 85 the performance and the feel fell way off!

[Lihu]

Not that simple, I guess.

[Denny Bang Bang]

34 minutes ago, Lihu said:

Not that simple, I guess.

The ProV performed better both at 75 and 29 degrees.

Seems to support Dean Snell's statements... multi layer balls perform better in the cold, and, keep your balls warm.

 

1 hour ago, Buckeyebowman said:

All I'm saying is that's how it feels "to me". I can't speak for anyone else. Way back in the day I liked Titleist Tour Balatas in black. The 100 compression jobs! Well, as long as it was hot. The hotter it was the better that ball flew! Once it got below 85 the performance and the feel fell way off!

I think (could be off a little) that tour balls are designed for optimal performance between 70-90 degrees, so it makes me think 75 vs 85 would be pretty unnoticeable.

[Shooting29]

I notice a distance drop when the temperature is normal for winter/spring. With my short irons it's about half a club all things being equal, no wind, fairway lie. 

My long clubs show a more significant difference but I believe that is a direct correlation to the number of layers I have on. I just can't swing as fast with a compression base layer, a golf shirt, and a performance outer layer as I can with just a golf shirt. That swing restriction affects the longer clubs much more than short irons.