Lucky Hole-in-One
What are the odds that your ball lands off the green and rough, sits for a few seconds then rolls 20 feet into the hole? Very likely if you’re this guy!
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How Dimples Affect Ball Flight
Engineers and scientists in the golf industry study the impact between a golf club and a golf ball to determine the ball’s so-called launch conditions. The impact typically lasts only 1/2000 of a second, but it establishes the ball’s velocity, launch angle and spin rate. After this brief impact the ball’s trajectory is controlled entirely by gravity and aerodynamics–no matter how much the golfer hopes or curses. As a result, aerodynamic optimization–achieved through dimple pattern design–is a critical part of overall golf ball development.
A smooth golf ball hit by a professional golfer would travel only about half as far as a golf ball with dimples does. Most golf balls have between 300 and 500 dimples, which have an average depth of about 0.010 inch. The lift and drag forces on a golf ball are very sensitive to dimple depth: a depth change of 0.001 inch can produce a radical change to the ball’s trajectory and the overall distance it can fly. Dimples have traditionally been spherical in shape, but it is possible to optimize the aerodynamic performance of other shapes. The HX golf ball by Callaway, for example, uses hexagons.
Air exerts a force on any object moving through it. Holding your arm out of the window of a moving car easily illustrates this phenomenon. Aerodynamicists break down the force into two components: lift and drag. Drag acts to directly oppose motion, whereas lift acts in a direction perpendicular to motion (it is usually directed upward in the case of a golf ball). As you rotate your hand in the air stream, you vary the amount and direction of the lift and drag forces acting on your hand. Read the full article on sciam.com.
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Life Lessons Learned on the Golf Course
Bruce over at Brucisms.com has an absolutely wonderful article he wrote up last week called “Life Lessons in 18 Holes of Golf”. He associates everything that happens on the golf course to his real life, and how he can learn from his golfing experiences.
Appreciate the Beauty - Golf courses are typically beautiful places. Manicured grass, stately trees, pristine lakes - on the course I always take a moment to appreciate just how beautiful it is. I need to do this in my everyday life as well. We are surrounded by wonders everyday - I need to take a moment to appreciate the beauty in my life.
Be In the Now - I’ve always played “athletic” sports - football, baseball, basketball. Sometimes I could “get in a zone” and couldn’t miss a shot, or could hit anything that came near the plate. But in golf - with that little ball just sitting there, and no stimulation from direct competition - I have a hard time finding that zone. Everyday life can get that way, too. I need to find ways to be in the now - to slip into “the zone”.
Play the Ball As it Lies - In golf, the rules state that you must play the ball as it lies. Life is like that. I need to accept my situation whatever circumstances may bring - and take my best shot to be successful.
Be Honest - In golf, everybody keeps their own score. I read somewhere that Bobby Jones once penalized himself a stroke because his ball “shuttered” as he was taking a practice swing. Both the tournament official, and his opponent, said that they did not see the ball move and that he need not take the stroke. But Bobby said that it had moved, and took the penalty - and lost the tournament by one stroke. What an inspired life I would lead if I could hold myself to the same level of integrity!
Plan ahead - Good golfers don’t just grab a club and hit the ball as hard as they can! They “work the hole backwards” - they decide where they need to put the ball on the green to have a makeable putt, what approach shot will put it there, and where their tee shot needs to land to give them that approach. I need to look at my life like that and ask, “Are the actions I’m taking now putting me in the best position to take my next shot?”
Narrow Your Focus - To make a great shot you have to narrow your focus to the point that you can see the exact point of impact where the clubhead meets the ball. I need to apply that same level of attention and narrowness of focus to my everyday activities.
Let Go - No matter how great or how lousy your last shot was, let it go! A guaranteed recipe for a bad shot is to be dwelling on the last one. I need to let go in everyday life as well. Let go of my insecurities, past grievances, past successes and failures. I need to give myself a clean slate every day so that I have the opportunity to make something spectacular!
Be Aware of Your Emotions (so they don’t get the best of you) - Part of letting go is to approach each shot objectively and with purpose. I need to approach both my failures and successes with same level of objectivity. This isn’t to say that I should become an unemotional machine. It means to be aware of my emotions - the ups and the downs - and to make sure that I take action with intention rather than reacting based on emotion.
Keep Your Eye On the Ball - To make a great golf shot, you have to keep your eye on the ball all the way through the point of impact. It’s the same in life. If I find that I’m not making the progress I want toward my goals, it is usually because I’ve let myself get “busy”, but with activities that don’t really help me achieve my goals.
This is just the advice from the front 9. Please read his entire article on his blog by clicking here.
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A Couple Golf Jokes
Two men were playing golf on a course right next to a cemetery. After they teed off, one of them noticed a funeral procession passing by. So he takes off his hat, places it over his heart and bows his head. When the funeral is over the other golfer looks at his friend and asks ‘That was a very nice gesture, why did you do it?’ The man replies ‘ Well, we were married for almost 40 years. It is the least that I could do’.
A Lady golfer had just started playing her first round of golf when she suffered a bee sting. Her pain was so intense that she decided to return to the clubhouse for help… and to complain. Her golf pro saw her come into the clubhouse and asked, “Why are you back in so early? What’s wrong?” “I was stung by a bee”, she said. “Where”, he asked? “Between the first and second hole”, she replied. He nodded knowingly and said, “Then your stance is too wide.”
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