How weather affects distance?

[TonyT]

I've been playing all winter long and it seems like I have to take an extra 1-2 clubs to get the same carry distance as summer time. Is the loss in distance due to:

- Cold dense air.

- Shaft not unloading correctly due to cold weather.

- cold golf ball. ie. not compressing enough.

 

I've also heard that if you shot a golf ball out of a cannon in different temperatures lets say 32 degrees F and 90 degrees F, they will go the exact same distance. so what's really causing the loss in distance?

[pjammer13]

Would love to know the answer to these questions aswell.

[GregMarc5280]

I would like a legit answer too, but I think those are all factors. The density of the air being the most effective, then ball compresion, then shaft flex. Thats just what seems to make sence to me. I hear the announcers talk about warm and and cool air effecting distance quite a bit on TV actually.

[kjvieira]

Don't quote me on this because I can't remember where I heard/read this.

 

For every 10 degrees below 70, the ball travels approximately 7 yards less.

[SCameron009]

To tell you the truth, I think you hit it right on the nose. I too play in colder climates, and get frustrated with the distance loss in the late fall season. During the summer I hit 8-iron 155 yards with a 85% full swing. During the late fall months this same swing with an 8-iron will struggle to get 140. The biggest difference I notice is in the ballflight, especially with driver. In the summer I play a high draw, and in the fall the ball comes off the clubhead much lower normally with a fade. The only thing I can attribute this to, is the ball not spinning as much, and the fade being my arms not moving through the ball as fast.

 

From all the common knowledge in the golfswing/physics of it, as I said, I think you hit it spot on.

 

- Cold dense air.

- Stiffer shafts due to the cold.

- Lack of golfball compression.

 

There may be a more technical explination to this, which I would like to know, but I definitely feel your frustration of distance loss in the seasons around the winter.

[Barnsygolf]

I play in the UK so i'm more than use to the changes in weather, on a daily basis usually!! but i never really see a change in the amount of carry i get.

 

I personally think alot of distance loss in the winter/cold is not warming your muscles up enough before play. I make sure i do a good warmup routine before i play in the cold to make sure they can work as they would in the warm weather.

[bloodredsun]

Ernie Els mentions on his website that in Europe his distance is about 10% down due to different conditions

 

I think that the main issues are the density of the air, humidity and the cold affecting the ball. As the ball becomes colder, it loses some of its elasticity. This means that it doesn't jump of the face as fast as the coefficient of restitution is that much lower. That's an instant loss of distance.

 

As for the cannon story, it would remove the elasticity of the ball from the distance so the distance would be dependent on the density of the air. A quick google came up with a 9% difference in air density between 25C/77F and 0C/32F which would surely cause a difference in distance travelled, so I don't believe that that story is true.

 

I'm in the UK too and I see a large difference in distances, anything up to 2 clubs between hot days and cold ones. Last summer was a scorcher so 9 irons were going 150+ yards for me. I played last week and had to lash a 7 iron to get the same distance, and there was was no wind either time.

[TonyT]

I think Bloodredsun is correct on all accounts.

 

But I think the number 1 contributing factor to the loss in distance is that a very cold golf ball doesn't squish (compress) upon impact nearly as easily as a ball that is warm. Just like if you teed up an actual rock and hit it, it wouldn't go very far.

[DaveyH]

Living in wales sucks its always freezing and windy in winter.In summer its fairly hot around 23 degrees celcius on average.With no wind. In the summer regardless of the run on fairways people always seem to bomb it out there.

[mcbush25]

Another factor to throw into the mix is that in cold weather your muscles will tighten up quicker than they will in warm weather. Youc an loosen up, but in the cold you run the risk of tightening up quicker than normal.

[artfulgolfer]

All the reasons stated above are factors, but increased air density is a bigger factor than loss of ball compression. You'll even notice a difference on how far you can throw a ball in colder, denser (higher pressure) air. Wedge distances go down too, shots which don't compress a ball much anyway.

 

Found an explanation online about baseball flight which describes the issue well...

 

A baseball flying freely through the air is affected by two major forces: gravity and friction.

 

Gravity pulls the ball downward and affects every ball the same. The friction component, the drag force, depends on the properties of the air through which the ball flies, namely its air temperature, pressure and humidity.

 

These all act to alter the local density of the air. The less dense the air, the fewer air molecules are present to exert drag on the ball. Therefore, the less the air density, the greater the distance of flight.

 

In dry air, we can express the density of air with the following simple formula.

 

Density = (pressure)/(temperature*constant)

 

At a constant temperature, the lower the pressure, the lower the density and the further a ball's flight (all other factors being equal). For example, in the thin Denver air, a baseball travels nine percent further than one hit at sea level, say at New York's Yankee Stadium. Thus, a 400-ft (120-metre) home run at Yankee Stadium would fly about 436 ft (133 metres) at Coors Field.

 

If pressure remains constant, the density decreases with increasing temperature, so balls fly further on a hot summer day than during a cool spring day. Again, with all other factors constant, a ball hit on a hot, 95 oF (35 oC) day will travel a further 20 feet (6 m) than the same hit on a cool, 45 oF (7.2 oC) day.

 

http://www.islandnet.com/~see/weather/alma...04/alm04apr.htm

[The Big Pinch]

All the reasons stated above are factors, but increased air density is a bigger factor than loss of ball compression. You'll even notice a difference on how far you can throw a ball in colder, denser (higher pressure) air. Wedge distances go down too, shots which don't compress a ball much anyway.

 

Found an explanation online about baseball flight which describes the issue well...

 

A baseball flying freely through the air is affected by two major forces: gravity and friction.

 

Gravity pulls the ball downward and affects every ball the same. The friction component, the drag force, depends on the properties of the air through which the ball flies, namely its air temperature, pressure and humidity.

 

These all act to alter the local density of the air. The less dense the air, the fewer air molecules are present to exert drag on the ball. Therefore, the less the air density, the greater the distance of flight.

 

In dry air, we can express the density of air with the following simple formula.

 

Density = (pressure)/(temperature*constant)

 

At a constant temperature, the lower the pressure, the lower the density and the further a ball's flight (all other factors being equal). For example, in the thin Denver air, a baseball travels nine percent further than one hit at sea level, say at New York's Yankee Stadium. Thus, a 400-ft (120-metre) home run at Yankee Stadium would fly about 436 ft (133 metres) at Coors Field.

 

If pressure remains constant, the density decreases with increasing temperature, so balls fly further on a hot summer day than during a cool spring day. Again, with all other factors constant, a ball hit on a hot, 95 oF (35 oC) day will travel a further 20 feet (6 m) than the same hit on a cool, 45 oF (7.2 oC) day.

 

http://www.islandnet.com/~see/weather/alma...04/alm04apr.htm

 

 

Great...now my head hurts!. I'm a cop so either explain this in terms I can understand or give me a donut and I'll leave.