Wet versus Dry Golf – Testing balls and clubs

[gocchin]

via golftoimpress.com

READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE WITH RESULTS

We all know that playing in the rain is

tough. Besides getting wet and clubs getting harder to grip, the wet

conditions affect the peformance of both your golf club clubs and

balls. What exactly does rain do to your performance? Golf Today and

PRGR ran a very interesting test on club and ball performance in dry

conditions vs wet conditions. Golf to Impress is glad to be able to

present the results for your reading pleasure.

The

test was done indoors to maintain consistency and take wind out of the

equation. Because of this, results reflect how wet conditions affect

clubs and ball performance and do not take into account a player or the

hands and grips getting wet or as I said before wind. If those

variables were taken into account, results would be far to erratic and

inconsistent so they were factored out.

The test used PRGR's Science Fit Launch

Monitor, a very advanced swing and ball flight analysis system that

PRGR uses for all its fittings and club testing. The system tracks not

only ball data but also the complete swing of the player hitting the

ball is captured and analyzed by Science Fit which is able to measure

acceleration through the entire swing. In this test however only the

ball data was looked at and not the swing. The tester was Accordia

Golf's Tojima Pro who has a head speed around 108mph.

The equipment used in the test were the following:

PRGR GN502 Tour driver with 9* loft

PRGR Egg FW #5 18*

PRGR TR Spin Ball (Urethane Cover)

PRGR Premium Red Ball (Ionoma Cover)

Grind Studio Prototype 58* Wedge with grooves

Grind Studio Prototype 58* Wedge with NO grooves... yes I said NO grooves

For wet testing, a spray bottle was used

before the swing to wet both the club and ball with water. This

simulated the wet conditions of light rain on the ball at impact.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE WITH RESULTS

[Blader-X]

I absolutely love to play in the rain. I know, I’m a fool, but I’ve shot many a good round in the rain. You have to really work to keep your hands and grips dry. Its very draining mentally and physically, but its a really good way to see just how good you are. Any errors in ball-striking are magnified immensely with both mud in your face and severe loss of distance. I love the rain. In fact while in Japan golfing with family on a course in Chiba shot one of my best rounds in rain which lasted throughout the round, but it was a wonderful day even with the rain.

[+TourSpecGolfer]

Thanks T,

love the part about the flat face wedge having almost as much spin in dry weather as a wedge with grooves.

[Spoon]

i do not mind the sloshy fairways or the bad weather, i also dont mind donning full rain gear, in fact i enjoy it! the only thing that is annoying is a wet glove and a very insecure grip. i usually bring 5 extra gloves when i play in the rain. sometimes it is not enough. i really should invest in good grips that work well with this kind of weather.

[iThinkitsASwing]

Guess it goes to show that grooves or no grooves, don't matter in dry conditions if you hit it good.

That said I, I still see pros using the new nike wedges w/v gooves that conform to the new groove rule, and they manage to spin the ball like crazy off the green.

I got a friend who uses a tom wishon wedge lob wedge and an F2 gap and sand wedge both over 2 years old, he spins the ball back a good 5-10 feet depending on conditions. Guy looks at me and says "ho ah...!!! (sniker) I spin um just as much as your 200buc jdm wedges, and I just laugh and say 'yeah but, mine looks prettier'"

Edited July 8, 2009 by iThinkitsASwing

[xchangmanx]

The definate benefit of having wedges w/no grooves is you will never shred balls.

o_O