how do golf driver heel weights affect ball flight

They have a weight port in the sole of the club near the rear for swingweight purposes that they say doesn't affect the ball flight. I guess technically the CoG would get shifted slightly back if you go heavier so you might get a few more RPMs, but it's probably not enough of a difference to be noticeable.

Full Answer

How much does weight affect ball flight?

Moving around weights can favor more of a fade (left to right) or draw (right to left) ball flight. While I know how much influence loft can have based on plenty of testing, this is an area I have not experimented with much.

Why does a golf ball face shift when hitting it?

Since he was hitting the ball severely off the toe, the impact was causing the face to shift during impact. As it shifted, imagine the heel of the club opening more, as the weight of the golf ball impacted the toe of the driver. This behavior caused the ball’s axis to tilt in toward the face, causing the axis to change.

What is gear effect in golf?

Gear effect doesn’t only play a role during toe strikes though. Gear effect plays a role in all shots that miss the center of the club face. Let’s go through a few more examples. Hitting the ball high on the face (toward the crown of the driver), will change both the launch angle and the spin rates.

What swing weighs do golf clubs have?

Swing weights range from A0 at the lightest to G10 at the heaviest, with most men’s clubs coming in around D0-D2 and women’s clubs weighing C5-C7.   The difference between two swing weights, D0 and D1 for example, is approximately two grams of weight in the club head.

What does weight in the heel of a driver do?

The heel is located where the shaft meets the club head. Placing weight at the heel creates an effect opposite that of toe-weighted clubs. The heel rotates slower, creating a closed club-face on impact. A closed position leads to draws and hooks.

How do driver weights affect ball flight?

1:065:36Does Back Weighting Your Driver Add Distance? - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipAnd now with it back weighted like this it essentially makes the head lighter. And now I should beMoreAnd now with it back weighted like this it essentially makes the head lighter. And now I should be able to swing this club faster coming through the ball. Because I've essentially made.

What does adding weight to back of driver do?

Placing weight more toward the rear portion of the head will make it higher spinning, higher launching and more forgiving. To simply add weight to the head, place lead tape directly in the center of the sole; this will slightly lower overall CG, as well, which can be beneficial for most golfers.

Will a heavier driver hit the ball farther?

It stands to reason that given the same swing speed, a heavier golf club will apply more force to a golf ball than a lighter one and will, therefore, result in greater distance.

What is the ideal swing weight for a driver?

More than 80% of the time, he finds that golfers are creating the best results with a swing weight of D5 with Red Range shafts.

What swing weight should a senior golfer use?

A swing weight between C-8 and D-1 is the best swing weight for a senior driver, and the shaft should be 55-60 grams. Loft should be 12-13 degrees or higher, and seniors should look for 2-4 degrees of hook in the face or consider an offset driver head to prevent slicing.

What happens if your driver is too heavy?

What Are The Signs Your Driver Shaft Is Too Heavy? If you are struggling to swing through the ball, and are pushing your shots, it is likely the driver shaft is too heavy for your swing. A heavy driver shaft will further reduce your clubhead speed, which will limit your ability to generate sufficient ball speed.

Where do you put the weights on a golf driver?

Clubs with movable weights typically have ports into which weights are screwed. To reduce a slice, heavier weights are placed by the clubhead's heel, while the club's lighter weights are set by the toe.

When should I add weight to driver head?

4:406:57Driver Head Weight & Smash Factor: Try Adding Weight! - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipAnd if you add weight to a driver it increases. Both those deflections. So one of the reasons why IMoreAnd if you add weight to a driver it increases. Both those deflections. So one of the reasons why I put the extra weight in the heel. Section of the club the the draw setting was to help limit that

Does 10 grams make a difference in golf shaft?

While most focus more on shaft flex, shaft weight is equally important. 10 grams may not sound like a big deal, but during the golf swing, it can make a big difference. This weight can make a big difference to feel, clubhead speed and dispersion (the accuracy of your drives).

Can a driver be too light?

Worse, a clubhead that's too light often results in poor swing mechanics like deceleration in the downswing, sequencing issues and a swing path that hits the ball with a glancing blow. “Efficient golfers hit with their body and get their body weight into it,” Mucklow says.

Should older golfers use lighter clubs?

While drivers and woods, because they need to be hit with faster speed, feature lighter graphite, Senior flex shafts. However, if your swing speed is very low and distance very poor as a senior golfer, make sure ALL your clubs have Senior shafts.

Does lowering the loft on a driver open the face?

The fix: Most adjustable drivers allow you to open the clubface or position more of the adjustable weight to the toe side of the club—or even both. Reducing loft also opens the face slightly.

Is a higher lofted driver more accurate?

Ultimately the accuracy of your shot will come down to the mechanics of your swing. And the position of your clubface at impact. So, a higher loft driver is not necessarily more accurate, but it does help slower swinging golfers to get the ball airborne to achieve maximum distance.

Will draw setting on driver help slice?

In my experience, an adjustable driver will NOT fix your slice. I had a slice with my driver and nothing changed when I switched to an adjustable with a draw bias. Sure, it can help a little but you'll end up with a very similar result. The only thing that's going to fix your slice is to change your swing.

Does lower loft driver go further?

Lower lofts can provide more energy transfer at impact because there's less of an oblique angle. It's why your 7-iron flies farther than your 8-iron. In our test, drivers with less loft consistently produced more ball speed, even for low swing-speed golfers (3.2 mph more compared to the 10.5 and 12-degree drivers).

Why does a golf club draw the ball?

The second reason for the club, with weight moved to the heel, applying a slight draw to the ball is because the MOI (Moment of Inertia) of the head, about the shaft, is a little less as the c.g. is moved to the heel and as a result rotating the head into the impact position is a little easier and in fact may tend to allow the face to close a little.

How to create draw bias in golf clubs?

To create a draw bias in these clubs move the weight to the heel and for a fade bias move it toward the toe.

How much bounce does a golf club need?

A large bounce (14 degrees or more) is required on most sand wedges to avoid the club digging deep into the sand. Once the clubs leading edge starts to penetrate the ground (sand or soft turf) the bounce will add resistance to prevent continued penetration and tend to make the club slide. So instead of digging into the sand or turf it will tend to bounce off it or slide through it. On the other hand this same bounce on a club will literally bounce off very hard fairways or hard pan in bunkers. When the pros are confronted with hard turf conditions such as many of the Open courses in Britain they ask for the leading edge of their wedges to be sharpened so that the club can dig (cut) through the turf before the bounce takes effect. They may also choose wedges with less bounce for these conditions.

How much bounce do you need for a wedge?

How is this beneficial? You've recommended that when purchasing a wedge, we should look for wedges with at least 14 degrees of bounce. What is different about a professional's play that they do not need as much bounce as an amateur? -- Thanks, Matt Rittler

What degree of bounce is needed for sand wedges?

A large bounce (14 degrees or more) is required on most sand wedges to avoid the club digging deep into the sand. Once the clubs leading edge starts to penetrate the ground (sand or soft turf) the bounce will add resistance to prevent continued penetration and tend to make the club slide.

Can weight manipulation fix a bad slice?

Please understand that weight manipulation is a tweaking of ball flight and not a cure for a bad slice or hook. The first thing to do for a slice or hook is to try to alter your swing. Generally a good teacher can correct this type of swing flaw. Then you can tweak the flight by changing the c.g. location.

Why didn't we see a correlation between shot shape and weight position?

When these players felt the club change, they made compensations to offset the change in weight. Some of the testers even stated that they felt themselves manipulating their swings to produce the shot they wanted.

Why do we favor testing with low handicap players?

We favor testing with low handicap players because the data is much cleaner: there are far fewer wild shots and mishits. However, it would be interesting to see if higher handicap players would be more or less sensitive to the movement of weight.

Where is Matt from Plugged In Golf?

He's worked in nearly every job in the golf industry from club fitting to instruction to writing and speaking. Matt lives in the northwest suburbs of Chicago with his wife and two daughters.

Can you gain weight with movable weights?

Don’t settle for the weight position that is supposed to work for you. Book some time on a launch monitor, preferably with a club fitter, and test a variety of weight positions to find the one that gives you maximum distance and accuracy.

Does the MOI of the driver increase with weight back?

Though the MOI of the driver is highest with the weight back, we found the boost in forgiveness difficult to prove. Only two players had their highest average ball speed with the weight back. Similarly, moving the weight back was no guarantee of tighter dispersion.

Do drivers have movable weights?

Movable weights in drivers is a topic almost as contentious as bifurcating the rules of golf. Some golfers won’t buy a driver without them. Others find them overly complicated, intimidating even.

Does the weight of the weights affect launch?

Though the results were not always predictable, there is no question that launch and spin were affected by the position of the weights.

What happens when you hit a ball high on the face?

Hitting the ball high on the face (toward the crown of the driver), will change both the launch angle and the spin rates. As a result, the launch angle will be high , and the spin will be low. We know this through understanding the physics, while also testing it out on launch monitors.

What is Gear Effect?

Gear effect is the term used to describe the behavior of the club through impact. It’s not a simple concept to explain without a Phd in physics, but we’ll explain our understandings as it relates to the golf club.

How easy is it to learn golf ball flight?

And learning the basics of ball flight is very easy — it takes just a minute or two to grasp the simplest, most common explanations for why the golf ball does what it does in flight.". Having the most basic understanding of ball flight cause-and-effect lets every golfer do his or her own coaching. 01. of 02.

What does "toe deep" mean in golf?

Toe-deep means the toe of the club digs into the ground more than does the heel of the club. Battle scars (skymarks) on the top and toe of the driver from hitting the ball straight up. Tee marks on the bottom of the driver that are at an angle. Contact on the toe of the club. Ball flight is high with a loss of distance.

What does hook mean in golf?

Hook (pink line): Cause — closed clubface at impact. Effect — ball curves to the left. (Note again that we are using a right-handed golfer in these examples; lefties should reverse the directional elements.)

Is ball flight high?

Ball flight is high with a loss of distance.

How to avoid pulling shaft and installing tip weights?

Well, some people don't like the looks of it but the simple solution to avoid pulling the shaft and installing tip weights is just use some high density lead tape or these tungsten adhesive pads.

How many SW points do you need to change flex?

You will change the flex some making it a little softer. Especially if you go more than 3 SW points.

How much does a swing weight affect ball speed?

5 of 6 testers lost ball speed when going from D0 to D9, an average loss of 2.2 MPH, however, two players posted their highest ball speeds at swing weights above D0 – one at D6 and one ad D9.

What is the difference between a D0 and D1 swing weight?

The difference between two swing weights, D0 and D1 for example, is approximately two grams of weight in the club head.

What is the correlation between swing weight and spin?

The correlation between swing weight and higher or lower launch and spin appears to be entirely personal . Three testers had their highest launch at D0, but the other three launched highest at D6 or D9. Similarly, four testers had their lowest spin at D9, but the other two produced the most spin at D9.

What is swing weight?

In simple terms, swing weight is how heavy the club head feels when you swing it . More technically, it’s how much the club tips towards the club head when you balance the club on a fulcrum.

How far can you hit your irons?

As they worked through the range of swing weights, our testers saw their median distance change a minimum of 7 yards and a maximum of 39 yards!

Is swing weight a personal thing?

Just as with every other element that we’ve tested to date, swing weight is a personal thing that can’t be fit with simple rules of thumb.

Where is Matt from Plugged In Golf?

He's worked in nearly every job in the golf industry from club fitting to instruction to writing and speaking. Matt lives in the northwest suburbs of Chicago with his wife and two daughters.

Game Changer Or Placebo?

The Myths

• Myth #1 – Movable weights affect launch and spin Myth #2 – Movable weights affect shot shape and dispersion Myth #3 – Movable weights affect forgiveness Myth #4 – Movable weights affect feel

See more on pluggedingolf.com

How We Tested

The Results

For Future Testing

Conclusion