ENVIRONMENT

Environmental Conditions

There are many natural phenomena that can affect the performance of the golf ball and therefore influence your game.

Three of the main environmental elements that can affect golf ball performance are wind, elevation and temperature/humidity.

Wind

Wind tends to accentuate the performance features of the golf ball but with the right understanding most negative affects of wind can be negated.

When flying into the wind, drag and lift are increased, leading to ballooning golf ball flights and lost distance.

When flying with the wind, drag and lift are reduced, leading to increased distance given the right launch conditions.

Elevation

When elevation changes, air pressure changes as well. At higher elevations, air pressure drops reducing lift and drag.

The affects of elevation change should be familiar to anyone who has seen baseball played in Colorado.

With less drag baseballs fly farther, leading to more home runs. In golf, with less drag, every shot flies further.

With less lift, pitches tend to travel straighter and in turn are easier to hit. In golf, less lift means straighter golf ball flights and less negative results from too much spin.

Temperature and Humidity

Temperature affects both the golf ball’s trajectory as well as its responsiveness at impact. Humidity only affects how the golf ball flies.

When temperature goes up or humidity goes down, the air density is reduced. Less air density produces less lift and less drag. Warmer temperatures and lower humidity lead to more distance.

Temperature changes can affect how the core of the golf ball responds. As the core cools it loses some responsiveness and in turn cannot produce as much ball speed. Playing golf in cold weather will lead to less ball speed.