Instruction
Are you curving the ball too much?
As a teacher, I have to admit that the invention of the Trackman has been one of the most amazing additions to the golf instructional world; however, as with any type of technology, it can be utilized incorrectly and this can hamper the player in the end. Just ask Brandel Chamblee!
One of the trends that I am beginning to see from the younger generation of teachers using launch monitors is requiring their players to “zero out” the face to path numbers in order to obtain less curvature on the ball. While this sounds like a great idea on paper, there is a flaw within this concept.
In the new-age teachers’ defense, they did not see the great players of the past using balata, which allowed the ability to curve the ball much more than you can with today’s golf balls. There were many players playing with drastic curvature that would be better defined as a “sweeping” ball flight. I continually tell my players at the highest levels that it is up to THE PLAYER, not me, as to how much curvature they see visually and how much curvature they can play with comfortably.
Here’s an example: I was playing golf with a multiple time winner on the PGA Tour last year.
“Is it ok to play golf with a face to path relationship that is more than three degrees?” he asked.
I almost fell over when he asked me – of course it is! I asked him first what he “saw”and the amount he “liked” to see the ball curve. He showed me with his hand and my question to him was that if you “see and like” that amount of curvature (which was much more than what he was doing at the time) then why would you try to play with less?
He said his teacher back home was trying to get him to hit the ball with less curve saying his pro students preferred this type of flight. While this seems correct, this player could not play without curving the ball and thus he struggled for 3/4’s of the season until he went back and hit more curving golf shots.
Not everyone can play with the same amount of curvature!
Let me explain the data to you and I’ll dive deeper into the curvature of the golf ball that we discussed above. If you assume that the ball is impacted in the center of the face, then curvature of the golf ball would be created by the difference between the direction of the face at impact and the path at impact.
This difference tilts the d-plane right or left and this, coupled with the loft of the club itself, helps Trackman to create the ball’s spin axis number. Spin axis tells me basically how much the ball is curving.
So let’s examine this sample shot to understand the data:
- The path of the club is moving from out to in left of the target at -3.9 degrees as shown by the blue line
- The face angle at impact is pointing right of the target at impact at 4.2 degrees as shown by the red arrow
- This was a big slice – we can see that the ball begins in the direction of the face and curves away from the path with centered impact in the photo above
- The difference between the face and the path was 8.1 degrees; the bigger the difference the higher the ball’s spin axis number will become, the more it will curve
- The spin axis was 15 degrees and the ball curved 107.8 feet to the right
Ok, so now that we can understand the data, I want to go back to our Tour Pro example of face-to-path amount and subsequent ball curvature. In my opinion, there are three basic ball flights:
1) A very slight curve
2) A moderate curve
3) A big curve
You can play with ALL of these curvature amounts, it just depends on what the player visualizes and is comfortable with in general. So I took my Trackman out and hit the three shots I described above so you can see what I mean. (One note: the wind was blowing about 15 mph from right to left so it was “holding” my faded golf shots a touch).
A slight curve
- Face-to-Path is 1.4
- Spin Axis is 1.8
- This shot should have basically dropped off a touch to the right with very little curvature. This shot moved 5.2 feet from right-to-left
- In a perfect world this would be great, but it’s hard to do consistently due to the tight tolerances necessary to do so
A moderate curve
- Face to Path 5.8
- Spin Axis 6.5
- This ball curved a touch more than the one above, around 20 feet total from right to left
- This moderate curvature gives you some leeway if you miss the center of the blade or get a touch handsy at the bottom of the swing
A big curve
A big right-to-left wind held this shot up a touch.
- Face to path 11.7
- Spin Axis 8.9 (I hit it a touch off the toe and the wind was blowing right to left a touch harder, which negated some of the left-to-right curvature it should have had)
- The ball did curve a total of 40 feet or so giving us bigger movement or more curve
As the player, it’s up to you which of the three flights you deem acceptable in your own world. It’s my thought that the younger generation of teachers, who never saw big curving golf balls, cannot accept the ball moving too much, but it’s really up to the player. If you hyper-focus on limiting curvature and having a super tight face to path/spin axis relationship, you are setting yourself up for some issues. We are not robots, and curvature feels can change from day to day. My suggestion is to use the numbers as a guide to your FEELS, and you’ll play much better in the end!
The LPGA Tour is kicking off its 2026 season this week at Lake Nona Golf and Country Club in Orlando, and the pros are dealing with something most Florida golfers rarely face: freezing temperatures.
“It’s colder here than in the UK at the minute, which is a first,” said England’s Charley Hull during Wednesday’s media day at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions.
Even Lydia Ko, who lives at Lake Nona, seemed surprised by the cold snap. “We’re pretty much getting to below zero in celsius here, which maybe in other parts of the country they would be thankful, but when you’re in Florida it is a little bit of a surprise,” she said.
If the world’s best players are adjusting their games for cold weather, recreational golfers should, too. Here’s how to play smart when the mercury drops.
Understand What Cold Does to Your Game
Before you change anything, you need to know what you’re fighting against. Cold air is denser than warm air, which means your ball won’t fly as far. Period.
Hull noticed this immediately during practice rounds at Lake Nona. She mentioned hitting a gap wedge into the 18th hole during a previous win but needing a 4-iron during Tuesday’s practice round. That’s a difference of four or five clubs for the same shot.
Action item: Expect to lose 5-10 yards on every club in your bag when temperatures dip below 50 degrees. Plan accordingly and don’t be stubborn about club selection.
Layer Up Without Restricting Your Swing
Hull admitted she wore three pairs of pants during practice. While that might be extreme for most of us, staying warm is critical to playing well in cold conditions.
Your muscles need warmth to function properly. When you’re cold, your body tightens up and your swing gets shorter and faster. Neither of those things help you hit good golf shots.
Action item: Wear multiple thin layers instead of one bulky jacket. Look for golf-specific cold weather gear that stretches with your swing. Keep hand warmers in your pockets between shots. And don’t forget a good hat because you lose significant body heat through your head.
Take More Club Than You Think You Need
This is where ego gets in the way of good scores. When it’s cold, the ball doesn’t compress as well off the clubface. Combined with denser air, you’re looking at serious distance loss.
The pros at Lake Nona are dealing with a course that measures 6,642 yards but plays much longer this week. If they’re adjusting, you should too.
Action item: Take at least one extra club on every approach shot. In temperatures below 40 degrees, consider taking two extra clubs. It’s better to fly the ball to the back of the green than to come up short in a bunker.
Adjust Your Expectations on the Greens
Cold weather affects putting in ways most golfers don’t consider. The ball is harder and doesn’t roll as smoothly. Your hands are cold, making it harder to feel the putter. And if there’s any moisture on the greens, they’ll be slower than normal.
Ko mentioned that she still sometimes reads the greens wrong at Lake Nona despite being a member for years. Cold weather makes that challenge even tougher.
Action item: Hit putts more firmly than usual. The ball needs extra speed to hold its line on cold greens. Take a few extra practice strokes to get a feel for the speed before you putt.
Embrace the Mental Challenge
Hull said something interesting about cold weather golf: “I like the mental toughness of it.”
That’s the right attitude. Everyone on the course is dealing with the same conditions. The player who stays patient and doesn’t get frustrated by the extra difficulty will come out ahead.
Action item: Lower your expectations by a few strokes. If you normally shoot 85, accept that 90 might be a good score in 40-degree weather. Focus on solid contact and smart decisions rather than perfect shots.
Warm Up Longer and Smarter
This might be the most important tip of all. Cold muscles are tight muscles, and tight muscles get injured easily.
World No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul revealed she’s been protecting a wrist injury that bothered her late last season. Cold weather makes those kinds of injuries more likely if you don’t prepare properly.
Action item: Spend at least 20 minutes warming up before your round. Start with stretching, then hit easy wedge shots before working up to your driver. Keep moving between shots on the course to maintain body heat and flexibility.
The pros at Lake Nona this week will adapt and compete at the highest level despite the cold. You can do the same at your local course by following these tips and keeping a positive attitude.
PGA Professional Brendon Elliott is an award-winning coach and golf writer. You can check out his writing work and learn more about him by visiting BEAGOLFER.golf and OneMoreRollGolf.com. Also, check out “Playing Through” now on R.org, RG.org’s partner site, each Monday.
Editor’s note: Brendon shares his nearly 30 years of experience in the game with GolfWRX readers through his ongoing tip series. He looks forward to providing valuable insights and advice to help golfers improve their game. Stay tuned for more tips!
Brooks Koepka is back on the PGA Tour, and whether you love him or hate him, the guy knows how to win when it matters. After his LIV Golf stint, the five-time major champion returns this week at the Farmers Insurance Open.
What makes Koepka fascinating? He doesn’t fit the mold. His swing isn’t textbook. He doesn’t obsess over mechanics. Yet he’s won three PGA Championships and two U.S. Opens, regularly making it look easier than guys with prettier swings.
So, what can average golfers learn from someone who treats the game so differently? Quite a bit.
Stop Overthinking Every Shot
Koepka describes his approach as “reactionary” rather than mechanical. While most tour pros grind over swing thoughts, Brooks sees the target and hits it. No mental checklist.
This might be the most valuable lesson for weekend golfers who’ve watched too many YouTube swing videos.
How to actually do this:
On the range, hit five balls where you stare at the target for three seconds prior to addressing the ball. Don’t think about grip or stance. Just burn that target into your brain. You’ll be shocked at how pure you hit it when your brain focuses on where the ball is going instead of how you’re swinging.
Next time you play, give yourself a rule: Once you pull the club, you’ve got 15 seconds to hit. Koepka is one of the fastest players on tour because he doesn’t give his brain time to sabotage him.
If you feel tension in your hands at address, you’re trying to control too much. Koepka’s grip pressure is famously light. Loosen up until the club almost feels like it might slip, then add just enough pressure to hold on. That’s your swing thought: soft hands, see the target.
This approach works better under pressure. When you’re standing over that shot with water left and OB right, the last thing you need is a mental checklist. See it, feel it, hit it.
Play to Your Strengths (Even If They’re Not Pretty)
Koepka uses a strong grip that wouldn’t pass muster in some teaching circles. But he’s built his game around what works for him, elite driving distance and recovery skills. He doesn’t try to be someone he’s not.
Here’s how to build your game like Brooks:
Look at your last five rounds and figure out where you’re actually gaining strokes. Bombing it off the tee, but can’t hit greens? Lean into it. Play courses where distance matters more than precision. On tight holes, grip down on your 3-wood instead of trying to thread a driver through a keyhole you’ll miss seven times out of ten.
Koepka knows he can scramble, so he’s not afraid to miss greens. If you’re deadly from 50 to 75 yards, start leaving yourself those distances on the par 5’s instead of going for them in two every time.
Know when to take your medicine. Koepka in the trees at the PGA? He’s punching out to 100 yards, not trying to bend a 6-iron around three oaks. You’re in the rough with a flyer lie and water short? Hit your 8-iron to the middle and move on. That’s not playing scared, that’s playing smart.
Save Your Best for When It Counts
Here’s a wild stat: Koepka’s putting average in majors is often more than a full stroke better per round than in regular events. He elevates when pressure is highest.
How does an amateur tap into that gear? It’s not about trying harder, it’s about caring differently.
Here’s what actually works:
Decide which rounds matter to you. Club championship? Member-guest? That annual trip with college buddies? Circle those dates and treat them differently. Koepka doesn’t care much about regular tour events, but majors? That’s when he locks in.
Two weeks before your big round, change your practice. Stop beating balls mindlessly. Play nine holes in which every shot has consequences. Miss the fairway? Hit from the rough on the next hole too. Three-putt? Twenty push-ups. Koepka’s practice intensity ramps up before majors because he’s rehearsing pressure, not just swings.
Develop a between-shot routine that resets your brain. Koepka is famous for his blank expression after bad shots. Try this: After any shot, take three deep breaths while walking, then find something specific to notice, a tree, a cloud, someone’s shirt. That’s your reset button. By the time you reach your ball, the last shot is gone.
The Bottom Line
Brooks Koepka’s return reminds us there’s no single path to success in golf. His “substance over style” approach proves that results matter more than looking good.
You don’t need a perfect swing; you need a reliable one that holds up under pressure. You don’t need to hit every shot in the book; you need the shots you can count on. And you don’t need to play great every time; you need to play great when it matters.
Welcome back, Brooks. Thanks for the reminder that golf is ultimately about getting the ball in the hole, not winning style points.
PGA Professional Brendon Elliott is an award-winning coach and golf writer. You can check out his writing work and learn more about him by visiting BEAGOLFER.golf and OneMoreRollGolf.com. Also, check out “Playing Through” now on R.org, RG.org’s partner site, each Monday.
Editor’s note: Brendon shares his nearly 30 years of experience in the game with GolfWRX readers through his ongoing tip series. He looks forward to providing valuable insights and advice to help golfers improve their game. Stay tuned for more tips!
Blades Brown made a big impression last week in the California desert, and not just because he’s only 18. He put up numbers that would catch any weekend golfer’s attention. Most of us won’t hit 317-yard drives or find 86% of our greens in regulation, but there’s a lot to learn from how Brown managed his game at The American Express.
Here are three practical lessons from his performance that you can use on your own course this weekend.
Step 1: Give Priority to Accuracy Over Distance Off The Tee
Brown’s driving stats are impressive. He averaged almost 318 yards off the tee, ranking 12th in the field. More importantly, he hit 76.79% of his fairways, tying for fourth place in the tournament.
Think about that ratio for a second. Brown could have swung harder, chased more distance and tried to overpower the course. Instead, he played smart golf and kept his ball in play.
Your Action Item: Next time you’re on the tee box, ask yourself a simple question before pulling the driver. Do you need maximum distance here, or do you need to be in the fairway? If there’s trouble lurking or the hole doesn’t demand every yard you can muster, take something off your swing. Grip down an inch. Make a three-quarter swing. Do whatever it takes to find the short grass. Brown’s approach illustrates that fairways lead to greens, and greens lead to birdies. He made 22 of them last week, along with an eagle.
The math is simple. When you’re hitting three out of every four fairways like Brown did, you’re giving yourself legitimate looks at the green with your approach shots. That’s when scoring happens.
Step 2: Commit To Hitting More Greens
This is where Brown really separated himself. He hit 62 of 72 greens in regulation, an 86.11% clip that tied for first in the entire field. Read that again. An 18-year-old kid tied for the lead in one of the most important ball-striking statistics in professional golf.
How did he do it? By keeping his ball in the fairway (see Step 1) and giving himself clean looks with mid-irons and wedges.
Your Action Item: Start tracking your greens in regulation. You don’t need a fancy app or a statistics degree. Just mark down whether you hit the green in the regulation number of strokes. Par 3s in one shot. Par 4s in two shots. Par 5s in three shots.
Once you know your baseline, set a goal to improve it by 10%. If you’re currently hitting five greens per round, aim for six. The beauty of this approach is that it forces you to think strategically about club selection and shot shape. Brown’s strokes gained approach number was positive (0.179), meaning he was better than the field average. You don’t need to be perfect. You just need to be on the dance floor more often.
When you hit more greens, you eliminate the need for heroic short game shots. Brown only had to scramble 10 times all week, and he got up and down 70% of the time. That’s solid, but the real story is that he rarely put himself in scrambling situations to begin with.
Step 3: Minimize Mistakes And Stay Patient
Here’s the stat that jumps off the page: Brown made only three bogeys all week. Three. In four rounds of professional golf against the best players in the world.
He also made just one double bogey. That kind of clean card doesn’t happen by accident. It happens when you play within yourself, avoid the big miss and trust that pars are never bad scores.
Your Action Item: Before your next round, decide that you’re going to play boring golf. No hero shots over water. No driver on tight holes just because you can. No aggressive pins when there’s a safe side of the green.
Brown’s performance shows us that consistency beats flash every single time. He didn’t lead the field in any single strokes gained category, but he was solid across the board. That’s how you post numbers and cash checks.
Give these three steps a try. Your scorecard will thank you.
PGA Professional Brendon Elliott is an award-winning coach and golf writer. You can check out his writing work and learn more about him by visiting BEAGOLFER.golf and OneMoreRollGolf.com. Also, check out “The Starter” now on R.org, RG.org’s partner site, each Monday.
Editor’s note: Brendon shares his nearly 30 years of experience in the game with GolfWRX readers through his ongoing tip series. He looks forward to providing valuable insights and advice to help golfers improve their game. Stay tuned for more tips!
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Pingback: Analyzing golfers’ “favorite” shots on Trackman | GolfClick.net | Blog
Large chris
Aug 15, 2014 at 7:24 am
I understand Ian Poulter has been trying to zero out all year and his game has collapsed….
I think Chamblee was saying that Tiger has been trying to do it as well, and it was causing him to get even steeper into the ball.
Tom Stickney
Aug 15, 2014 at 9:22 am
It’s tough but not impossible. Hard to maintain.
Holton
Aug 14, 2014 at 7:19 pm
Notable that the lower the swing plane was the more the ball curved. Cool article!
Tom Stickney
Aug 15, 2014 at 12:41 am
Glad you liked it. Thx.
Jamie
Aug 13, 2014 at 8:37 am
If you want accurate measure try Foresight’s GC2 with HMT attachment. You get all of Trackman stats with club head measurements because it actually takes pictures of the club hitting the ball and measures ball flight after impact. I have one and find it very helpful and it’s less expensive than Trackman, as if not more accurate and gives more options.
Tom Stickney
Aug 13, 2014 at 9:49 am
Anything is better than nothing in the launch monitor world I’ve always said.
Pingback: Are you curving the ball too much? | Spacetimeandi.com
Jeff
Aug 12, 2014 at 9:39 am
What do they say, the hardest shot to hit is a straight one? If one can learn to hit a consistent reliable shot then what does it matter if it curves too much or too little? Ball flight is the ultimate telltale. Tom, I’m pretty impressed with the 3 shots. Nice control!
Tom Stickney
Aug 12, 2014 at 2:04 pm
Agree. Thx. Wind was howling rt to left. Killing my buttercut. 🙂
MJ
Aug 12, 2014 at 2:57 pm
I noticed you striped that moderate curve ball! Impressive distance on that.
Tom Stickney
Aug 12, 2014 at 10:49 pm
Thx
Jeff
Aug 12, 2014 at 8:37 pm
Isn’t that the way to get it close to the pin though. Hold the shot into the wind?
Tom Stickney
Aug 12, 2014 at 10:49 pm
Sometimes. But not all the time.
Martin
Aug 12, 2014 at 5:40 am
I have fallen into the need for lower spin rates with a driver, everytime I get one that gave me low spin rates on a monitor It ends up being unreliable on the course as my fade turns into a slice.
I recently bought one that I rented in a scramble that I hit the crap out of, interestingly I rejected it over the winter as too high a spinner. Now I won’t hit it on a monitor for love nor money, because I suspect the readings wouldn’t be good.
I aim right, take the club back low and wide and then pull the ball down the middle and since I bought this club and stopped chasing the holy grail of high launch low spin my FW hit has jumped way up and my index has dropped from 10.5 to 8.7.
Monitors are useful, but you need to trust what you see and make it work on the course. I am not talented enough to reproduce a perfect swing on the course.
Tom Stickney
Aug 12, 2014 at 9:24 am
If it doesn’t work on the course it’s useless.
Jason
Aug 11, 2014 at 4:56 pm
How can you see the club face if trackman is behind, or does it just assume where the club face is pointing due to the flight of the ball.
tom stickney
Aug 11, 2014 at 7:40 pm
Trackman only measures the clubface at the point of impact
Pete Player
Aug 12, 2014 at 12:11 am
I severely doubt the device actually measures the orientation of the club face at impact. Yet, the software shows it in detail.
Would be nice to see, what the manufacturer of the thing has to say and explain how the orientation actually is detected, how many hits do they get of the club face at impact etc.
Tom Stickney
Aug 12, 2014 at 12:43 am
It was developed for ballistics testing. Golf was a spinoff. Measures it and many other factors…that’s why it’s so expensive.
Jack
Aug 12, 2014 at 1:54 am
Have you seriously looked into this or are you just guessing? Pro players and coaches use this all the time. It’s not witchcraft. Or maybe you’re just smarter than everyone else.
CD
Aug 12, 2014 at 5:26 pm
It’s a radar and bounces off a clubhead ‘blob’, an algorithm is then applied. My own experience on trackman is that in the hands of an excellent teacher is it a brilliant tool. For example, I find working on mechanics is best done away from seeing the ball flight (distracting), and trackman enables me to hit whilst focusing on the feel and not seeing the ball flight directly, yet then able to see what the ball flight (representation) was, if that makes sense. My experience is it represents exactly what I see on course.
Tom Stickney
Aug 12, 2014 at 8:28 pm
Thx for the info cd.
Richard
Aug 11, 2014 at 3:52 pm
Agree 100%. I think too many golfers are worried about trying to zero everything out, but that just isn’t practical. When I’m driving the ball really well, I’m typically hitting a slight fade and I love it. My irons almost always fly pretty straight – just push or pull. When I’m on the course the only thing that matters is fairways and greens. How I get there is another story.
Tom Stickney
Aug 11, 2014 at 5:44 pm
Yep! Thx.
Pete Player
Aug 12, 2014 at 12:19 am
Well, I tend to cut all my irons, yet they go pretty far and straight normally.
With driver it’s a whole different story. Since I broke my former driver, that I’d deployed for about 7 years, I’ve not yet built a similar relationship with the new one and have gained a two-way-miss-phenomena in the process curving the ball both ways without actually feeling the difference in the shots. Makes it really hard to play the game tee to green.
Tom Stickney
Aug 12, 2014 at 2:05 pm
Your swing path is left with the irons and rt with your driver due to its lie angle is guess
Jack
Aug 12, 2014 at 1:56 am
I think most people aren’t good enough to zero it out. And it’s more important to be consistent and effective anyway. but it’s a good tool to use to fix swing flaws. Easily tell what part of the impact is going wrong (path, clubface, etc etc).
Tom Stickney
Aug 12, 2014 at 2:06 pm
Zero is hard. It’s a great tool.