Why is Spin Important?
By Luke Nesbitt, Club Fitter
Miles of Golf
During a fitting, some of the most common questions I get are centered around the topic of spin. What does it mean? How does spin affect the flight of a golf ball? Is there a proper spin rate?
What is spin?
Spin is lift, it’s what gets the ball in the air.
Spin rate in golf is measured in RPM (Revolutions per minute).
The main proponent to spin is the amount of loft you have on a club.
More loft equals more spin.
How does spin affect ball flight?
Spin is lift but lift is also drag. So the more spin you have, the more the ball fights the air.
For a proper spin, you want enough spin where the ball gets high enough in the air so that it lands and stops on the green, but not so much where it starts to fight the air and lose distance.
Spin also helps make the golf ball more stable.
The more spin you have, the more control you have over the ball flight/ distance.
In most cases, higher spin is preferable to lower spin.
Is there an optimum amount of spin?
Yes there is, however it is based on how you swing.
The slower you swing/ the lower you launch it, generally the more spin you will want.
Vice versa for faster swing speeds/ higher launch angles.
There are certain baseline numbers you should look for:
With irons, your spin rate should roughly be your iron number multiplied by 1000.
With a 7 iron, you want around 6500-7000 RPMs of spin.
With a driver, you want your spin rate to fall around 2200-2500 rpm
In conclusion, spin is a very important aspect when it comes to optimizing your ball flight. You want to make sure you have enough spin to control ball flight and have the ball fly high enough to land softly on the green. The amount of spin you want is dependent on how an individual swings, but there are certain baselines that create consistency for most golfers. To check your spin rates and discuss ways to optimize them, schedule spec check with a fitter here at Miles of Golf.
