Ball flight of Full Swing and Half Swing

[Morpheus]

Hi there,
This is my first post and sorry for my English, i'm from asia.

I just started playing golf for a month. I've been practicing iron 6 and i've got about 150 yards distance. The thing is, when I tried half swing, i would get about 120-130 yards but ball flight was twice as low as my full swing. So, I'm wondering if my ball flight when i do full swing is too high? so that i got shorter distance.

PS. my half swing is about 45 degree to the ground and my full swing is about120 degree.

[leftylucas]

Morpheus, this is normal, your half swing likely has a shorter follow through thus keeping the ball lower. Your full swing will likely have a full follow through and the ball will anturally be higher as the loft of the iron and the force with which you strike it (full swing, longer arc) will carry the ball further. No need to worry about that.

[golfin-buddy]

Distance is related to ballspeed and trajectory is relative to the speed of the club and attack angle which dictate the launch characteristics of the shot (ie: launch angle and spin). Ie: if two balls are hit with 100mph ( 6 iron ) ballspeed and the same launch angle (18*) but the first has 8000 rpm backspin and the second has 5000 rpm, which one wil be higher.

In your half swing, the club doesn't travel as far back and through thus creating a shorter arc. Shorter arc = less speed= usually more control. This is why most pros will say to take one club less against the wind and swing smoother. A less agressive swing will usually have a flatter arc and thus create less spin.

Funny thing about half swings... if they are truly half then why is the distance difference only 20-30 yards or roughly 80 to 86% of the distance of your full swing...

The trick is to find the spot were you can control your shots and get the maximum distance. That's why the guys on tour are so good. They could hit it alot farther but then they would have no idea where its going.

[Morpheus]

I see...

Thank you guys very much.