Is a Urethane Ball Hurting Me?

[North Butte]

OK. If we're talking "chunk and run" where you just drag the club into the sand behind the ball and the ball comes out with a shovel full of sand and rolls a long way on purpose, any effect of the type of ball will be very little.

 

My comments were more about the more usual modern technique of accelerating the clubhead past your hands as it passes under the ball. Even taking a fair bit of sand there's a certain amount of spin on that shot. And if it's a longish bunker shot they can actually spin a good bit.

[NoTalentLefty]

I’ve used surlyn covered balls most times than not for 44 years. I’ve never had a problem stopping them from any type of shot on any golf course. Maybe I don’t play the best golf courses with the fastest hardest greens, but to say you can’t play surlyn or urethane on any course is to an individual’s game.

[Titleist_PT23]

> @"North Butte" said:

> OK. If we're talking "chunk and run" where you just drag the club into the sand behind the ball and the ball comes out with a shovel full of sand and rolls a long way on purpose, any effect of the type of ball will be very little.

>

> My comments were more about the more usual modern technique of accelerating the clubhead past your hands as it passes under the ball. Even taking a fair bit of sand there's a certain amount of spin on that shot. And if it's a longish bunker shot they can actually spin a good bit.

I've backed up a 20 yard bunker shot with surlyn ball when you swing hard and take very little sand. Probably half of my bunker shots are trying to carry it less than 10 yards and unless I'm on a downslope or the ball is sitting down, very few shots roll more than 15 feet. Some stop quicker although I'd guess most of these are off of favorable slopes in the bunker (the other figure were meant to be flat lie / flat green. Obviously there's also some shots I can't stop within 50 feet). And I'm not saying I'm a great bunker player. Just if you catch it well it doesn't roll much.

[Titleist_PT23]

> @NoTalentLefty said:

> I’ve used surlyn covered balls most times than not for 44 years. I’ve never had a problem stopping them from any type of shot on any golf course. Maybe I don’t play the best golf courses with the fastest hardest greens, but to say you can’t play surlyn or urethane on any course is to an individual’s game.

Too many people here think they have a Phil/Spieth/Tiger like short game. There is a difference, and if our rationale is "I play what's gives me the best chance to shoot the best scores, however much lower that is" then fine. But many of the comments on how unplayable surlyn balls are or how the urethane is "game changing" are laughable - especially since these people supposedly have such short-game skills.

[Red4282]

yea contact is king in the bunkers. If you nip it obviously ball will matter. Scooping it out, as done usually with fluffy bunkers, or bad lies, ball will not matter.

[drumdude96]

> @trackcoach13 said:

> > @Twism86 said:

> > > @"North Butte" said:

> > > > @Twism86 said:

> > > > > @"North Butte" said:

> > > > > I guess after a while I have to concede that millions of golfers apparently hit shots with so much sidespin that a Surlyn ball will end up between the tree lines more often than a urethane one would. I've read that on every Internet golf forum I've ever seen and it's just accepted as something obvious by a lot of people.

> > > > >

> > > > > But I just don't see it with the guys I play golf with. The guys who hang the ball out to the right tend not to be slicers, they tend to hit **blocks, pushes** and **block-fades**. The cover of the ball is no use for that kind of path issues. And the guys who hook it...well, in my experience when a hooker hits a hook with the driver he might as well go ahead and tee up another one because it won't be anywhere on the property.

> > > >

> > > > Unfortunately the words in bold mean nothing to me.... if it goes right its a slice (by accident)? Fade on purpose? I apparently have a lot to learn about my swing.

> > > >

> > >

> > > A block or push is a straight ball that goes straight right (for a righty golfer). There are many ways for it to occur but the classic example (I do this far too often) is to swing way far from the inside while failing to release the club. So the path is maybe 5-6 degrees in-to-out but the clubface is also 5-6 degrees open to the target line. The result is a high, straight, very solid shot that goes as far as a perfect strike except it's on a line that carries it into the trees instead of fairway.

> > >

> > > If you hit shots that start where you're aiming, then curve right so much that they end up 40 yards offline that's a slice. If you hit shots that never curve but still end up 40 yards to the right, that's a block or push. Or maybe it's an in-between that starts out as if it's going to be 20 yards right then curves another 20 yards. that's a block-fade.

> > >

> > > There's also the opposite problem where you come over the top but have the clubface closed to the target line. That's a pull and again, they can be absolutely straight but go straight into the woods 40 yards left of where you tried to aim.

> > >

> > > The relative spin of different balls ONLY affect curvature. Not pushes or pulls. So that's why I asked about curvature. When you hit a ball that ends up 40 yards offline, does it curve at all while in the air? Does it curve enough to cause the 40-yard miss (uncommon in my experience) or does it start out offline from the very beginning and then curve some more on top of that?

> >

> > Thanks! I would say my misses sound more like blocks or pushes most of the time with some slicing thrown in there. I also have no clue the angle of my club face on my impacts or misses.

>

> Here is some insight to help:

>

> The ball's initial starting direction is a reflection of the direction of the face at impact (about 85% of starting direction is based on face direction).

>

> The direction the ball curves is based on the difference between the clubhead path and face direction. A face pointing right of the path will curve to the right. A face that is pointing to the left of the path will curve left.

>

> So every time you hit observe the starting direction as that is your face direction. Then watch the curvature to determine path direction.

>

> Also, a block-fade is also known as a blice.

>

 

So is a pull hook a phook? Lol.

[North Butte]

> @drumdude96 said:

> So is a pull hook a phook? Lol.

 

Sounds about right. That's how I say it, anyway. Often.

[trackcoach13]

> @drumdude96 said:

> > @trackcoach13 said:

> > > @Twism86 said:

> > > > @"North Butte" said:

> > > > > @Twism86 said:

> > > > > > @"North Butte" said:

> > > > > > I guess after a while I have to concede that millions of golfers apparently hit shots with so much sidespin that a Surlyn ball will end up between the tree lines more often than a urethane one would. I've read that on every Internet golf forum I've ever seen and it's just accepted as something obvious by a lot of people.

> > > > > >

> > > > > > But I just don't see it with the guys I play golf with. The guys who hang the ball out to the right tend not to be slicers, they tend to hit **blocks, pushes** and **block-fades**. The cover of the ball is no use for that kind of path issues. And the guys who hook it...well, in my experience when a hooker hits a hook with the driver he might as well go ahead and tee up another one because it won't be anywhere on the property.

> > > > >

> > > > > Unfortunately the words in bold mean nothing to me.... if it goes right its a slice (by accident)? Fade on purpose? I apparently have a lot to learn about my swing.

> > > > >

> > > >

> > > > A block or push is a straight ball that goes straight right (for a righty golfer). There are many ways for it to occur but the classic example (I do this far too often) is to swing way far from the inside while failing to release the club. So the path is maybe 5-6 degrees in-to-out but the clubface is also 5-6 degrees open to the target line. The result is a high, straight, very solid shot that goes as far as a perfect strike except it's on a line that carries it into the trees instead of fairway.

> > > >

> > > > If you hit shots that start where you're aiming, then curve right so much that they end up 40 yards offline that's a slice. If you hit shots that never curve but still end up 40 yards to the right, that's a block or push. Or maybe it's an in-between that starts out as if it's going to be 20 yards right then curves another 20 yards. that's a block-fade.

> > > >

> > > > There's also the opposite problem where you come over the top but have the clubface closed to the target line. That's a pull and again, they can be absolutely straight but go straight into the woods 40 yards left of where you tried to aim.

> > > >

> > > > The relative spin of different balls ONLY affect curvature. Not pushes or pulls. So that's why I asked about curvature. When you hit a ball that ends up 40 yards offline, does it curve at all while in the air? Does it curve enough to cause the 40-yard miss (uncommon in my experience) or does it start out offline from the very beginning and then curve some more on top of that?

> > >

> > > Thanks! I would say my misses sound more like blocks or pushes most of the time with some slicing thrown in there. I also have no clue the angle of my club face on my impacts or misses.

> >

> > Here is some insight to help:

> >

> > The ball's initial starting direction is a reflection of the direction of the face at impact (about 85% of starting direction is based on face direction).

> >

> > The direction the ball curves is based on the difference between the clubhead path and face direction. A face pointing right of the path will curve to the right. A face that is pointing to the left of the path will curve left.

> >

> > So every time you hit observe the starting direction as that is your face direction. Then watch the curvature to determine path direction.

> >

> > Also, a block-fade is also known as a blice.

> >

>

> So is a pull hook a phook? Lol.

Yes, and every time I hit one I say phook you!!!!!!!!!

 

[North Butte]

I say it in my best imitation-Aussie accent, "Phook me SIDEWAYS".