Ball Flight
For one ball speed, which launch and spin carry farthest, and what is a small change worth?
What this answers
Which launch angle and spin give your ball speed the most carry?
- Pick a club, or type your own ball speed, launch and spin in the panel below.
- Read the map: lighter bands carry farther. The dot is your shot; the + is the longest carry on the map.
- The tiles show how far you are from the longest, and What if tries one small change at a time.
Reopen it any time with ? Guide
At 129.8 mph ball speed
ModelLongest on the map, not a peak: carry still rises toward lower spin, beyond the checked range.
- 170
- 175
- 180
- 185
- 190
- 195
- 200
- Your point
- Preset
- Longest
- Within 5 yd of it
- Carry hereCarry hereModeled carry at your ball speed, launch and spin, in still air at sea level, with no roll. The TrackMan figure is the carry TrackMan published for that tour average; it reads “Your numbers” once you change them.
- 195yd
- ModelLab estimate 195
- Longest on mapLongest on mapThe longest modeled carry on this map at your ball speed, within the spins for this kind of club. “Not a peak” means carry is still rising at the map’s edge, so the best may lie beyond the range checked.
- 203yd
- ModelNot a peak
- Longest atLongest atThe launch angle, and below it the spin, where that longest carry sits on the map.
- 19.5°
- Model2,400 rpm
- To the longestTo the longestThe longest carry on the map minus your carry. Ball speed stays the same; only launch and spin change.
- +8yd
- ModelSame speed
What if
Modeled at your point. Press one to try it.
The map shows the PGA Tour driver's ball speed. The controls need JavaScript.
Show the numbers as a table
| Ball speed | 129.8 mph | Lab estimate |
|---|---|---|
| Launch angle | 12.6° | Lab estimate |
| Spin | 3,275 rpm | Lab estimate |
| Carry here | 195 yd | Model (Lab estimate: 195 yd) |
| Longest on the map (not a peak) | 203 yd at 19.5° and 2,400 rpm | Model |
| Map range | 171 to 203 yd | Model |
| What if: +2 mph | +4 yd | Model |
| What if: −2 mph | −4 yd | Model |
| What if: +1° launch | +1 yd | Model |
| What if: −1° launch | −2 yd | Model |
| What if: −500 rpm | +1 yd | Model |
| What if: +500 rpm | −1 yd | Model |
Published numbers: TrackMan Tour averages (2023 data). Handicap estimates: built as in Club Distances.
For your gear
What the window tells you
Launch too low or too high
Loft is the biggest lever on launch angle and spin that you can buy. Slower swings often need more driver loft than they get.
How to choose driver loftBefore you replace your driver
If your launch and spin already sit inside the green line, changing them adds little carry on this map. The guide covers what else to check first.
Do you need a new driver?Find your own point
A launch monitor measures your ball speed, launch and spin, so you can put your own shot on the map.
Launch monitors
Method
How it is calculated
Every cell of the map is one flight of the Golf Lab's ball flight model at your ball speed: 35 launch angles from 9° to 26° by 30 spin rates from 2,400 to 9,500 rpm, the span of the published shots the model was checked against. The map stops there rather than guess beyond it.
The peak is the longest carry on the map; the green line surrounds everything within 5 yards of it. The what-ifs fly your shot again with one number changed. All of it is carry in still air at sea level, for a centered strike: no roll, and no spread of shots. The full method is on the Golf Lab methods page.