Smash Factor is ball speed divided by club speed
Smash Factor relates to the amount of energy transferred from the club head to the golf ball.
The higher the smash factor the better the energy transfer. A golfer would hope to achieve a smash factor near 1.50 on driver shots.
That means for a 100 mph club speed the ball speed would be 150 mph. The higher the loft of the club, the lower the smash factor is expected to be. A PW should have a smash factor near 1.25.
DRIVER EXAMPLE
Golfer A has a club speed of 100 mph and a smash factor of 1.40. Golfer A’s ball speed is 140 mph.
Golfer B has a club speed of 100 mph and a smash factor of 1.50. Golfer B’s ball speed is 150 mph.
The 10 mph difference in ball speed between Golfer A and Golfer B equates to approximately 20 yards in distance between the two golfers even though they have the same club speed.
See video example with Instructor Martin Chuck from Revolution Golf.
Technical Definition:
Smash Factor – The ratio between the Ball Speed and the Club Speed
Tour Averages
PGA TOUR
- Driver – 1.49
- 6 iron – 1.38
LPGA Tour
- Driver – 1.49
- 6 iron – 1.39
For a full list of Tour averages, visit TrackMan PGA and LPGA Tour Averages
TrackMan Combine Averages
Male Amateur (Driver)
- Scratch of Better – 1.49
- 5 HCP – 1.45
- 10 HCP – 1.45
- Average Golfer (14.5) – 1.44
- Bogey Golfer – 1.43
Female Amateur (Driver)
- Scratch or Better – 1.46
- 5 HCP – 1.45
- 10 HCP – 1.44
- 15 HCP – 1.41
Learn more about TrackMan Combine, visit TrackMan Combine Explained
The standard assumption for smash factor comes from the TrackMan Optimizer. For the driver, a club speed of 94 mph, attack angle of 0 degrees, and optimized carry results in a smash factor of 1.46. For a 6-iron, a club speed of 80 mph and mid-trajectory results in a smash factor of 1.38. For a PW, a club speed of 72 mph and mid-trajectory results in a smash factor of 1.19.
What our TrackMan Masters say about Smash Factor…
Andrew Rice Berkeley Hall Golf Club, United States
“Smash factor is often misunderstood as being representative of only how centered a ball was struck.
I stress that it purely represents how well a player converted club speed into ball speed.
It is also possible to have a smash factor that is too high with certain clubs.”
James Leitz Pinewood Country Club, LA, US
“Smash factor is used to determine the efficiency of impact.
Face to path relationships, spin loft, and impact point location are the main factors to look at after you have determined that the smash factor is too low.”
Richard Woodhouse KDV Sports. Australia
“During an initial assessment of a golfer I will observe smash factor, in particular with the driver.
If a golfer’s attack angle, dynamic loft, face to path numbers, and impact location are good, then I will definitely question if the equipment is the correct fit.
If these items are not optimal, then I will educate the player to understand what we are looking for.
From there we can begin work on the primary improvement which will be the parameter that is furthest from optimal.”
How could one play, the Game of Golf. which can not be played without, specific calculations.
I see that Only Trackman is the right Calculater.
Thyagaraj (Raj) that’s a peculiar comment, The game has been played for hundreds of years without this technology. Information is only useful if you know how to implement it! While this information is potentially valuable, so to is digging it out of the dirt, understanding the feel of your “natural” swing.
Would love to see some tests by Trackman on COR with different temperatures. In other words, is the 1.50 SF ratio still possible when it’s 50F degrees, as compared to 80F?
Why don’t you address why trackman routinely reports driver smash factors well in excess of the theoretical maximum of 1.5? Could it be measurement errors? How much are trackman’s reported numbers in error. Measurements (likey political polling results) are useless without meaningful error bounds.
Smash Factor is a very sensitive measure.
Club speed has a tolerance of +-1.5 mph for TM3e and +-1.0 for TM4. For a club speed of 100 mph with a ball speed of 150 mph, this will give a variation of the smash factor from 1.478-1.523 (TM3e) respectively 1.485—1.515 (TM4).
Note that the uncertainty of the clubspeed measurement is really an uncertainty on where on the club head the measurement is referenced to. There are significant differences between heel and toe speed (in average +-6-7%, meaning if center is 100 mph far heel is 93 mph and far toe is 107 mph), so this combined with uncertainty on where the radar reflection origins from on the club head gives this added club speed tolerence.
Maybe it’s all about timing
There’s a tolerance in every kind of measuring device. Until trackman has the ability to know where on the face the ball contacted, and has the ability to measure multiple speeds of the face so it can say “the impact point was travelling X mph”, then the issue of heel/toe measurement will always be there.
A guy named Heisenburg algorized measurement tolerance
Nice explanation Christian.
“Smash Factor is ball speed divided by club speed”
If this is correct, how do maximum COR and head weight fit in for driver heads?
The same club speed with heads weighing 180gm and 220gm, surely the 220gm will transfer more energy to the ball resulting in a higher ball speed?
And with CORs of 0,8 and 0,83, surely 0,83 will result in a higher ball speed?
Engineers need to take that into consideration so that COR for that specific clubhead will not go over 0.83.
You need to understand what COR is. Coefficient of Restitution. So two different clubheads, weighing different amounts, but each with a COR of 0.83, deliver the ball at the same ball speed (provided the same clubhead speed). COR *IS* in effect a measurement of the amount of energy transferred to the ball.
How does knowing smashfactor help me get better?
Can I suggest that you go back and re-watch the video. The pro explained (and demonstrated it) with ultimate ease.
In other words – suck it Frank
Really really appreciate the PGA tour from the LPGA tour stats. Those of us over 50 would love to see the Champion’s Tour stats ?
Will it make me hit the ball straighter? No? Then it is a meaningless number since it is based off my swing and how I deliver the club to the ball. Just another stat for the statisticians resumé. Now tell me the face/path/angle of attack numbers and we have something to work with. For example, I had the Club Champion fitting yesterday and produced a SF of 1.50 on a hooked drive that would have had me out of bounds or across (not just in) the adjacent fairway. Fun to try to reach it? Yes. Necessary? No.
It certainly isn’t meaningless. After all, it’s just data. If you don’t know how to use that data or interpret it, then it’s meaningless *to you*.
If you have a player who hits it pretty straight off the tee, but has a 1.35 smash factor, then you know that there’s huge room for improvement that will get the guy another 20-40 yards off the tee.
I’m curious about the comment “… a smash factor that is too high with certain clubs.”. Does this refer to striking it with the leading edge of a wedge (for example), resulting in less of a “glancing blow” (less spin loft) and therefor a higher SF? Because I would have thought maximum smash factor value is the goal for all clubs.
At my son’s last lesson in Sept., his coach put him on Trackman for nine swings with his driver. All nine swings measured 1.52 smash factor. My son is really good, but is his coaches’ Trackman unit working properly? From what I’m reading, 1.52 is possible, but not the norm. In that session, he averaged 154.5 ball speed and 101.6 swing speed, but the individual swings ranged from 99.8-103.0 SS and 151.7-156.2 BS. Am thinking this TM unit could be under reporting swing speed? Would appreciate any feedback.
Correction – the highest ball speed measured was 156.7, correlating to the swing with 103.0 SS.
Hi Jon,
Thanks for your comment.
Please have a look at the answer i posted to an earlier comment:
“Smash Factor is a very sensitive measure.
Club speed has a tolerance of +-1.5 mph for TM3e and +-1.0 for TM4. For a club speed of 100 mph with a ball speed of 150 mph, this will give a variation of the smash factor from 1.478-1.523 (TM3e) respectively 1.485—1.515 (TM4).
Note that the uncertainty of the clubspeed measurement is really an uncertainty on where on the club head the measurement is referenced to. There are significant differences between heel and toe speed (in average +-6-7%, meaning if center is 100 mph far heel is 93 mph and far toe is 107 mph), so this combined with uncertainty on where the radar reflection origins from on the club head gives this added club speed tolerence.”
I just purchased an S.C. 200 swing caddie. Temperate was 30 degrees.
I have a net and good Mat on my patio.
I also have a radar that measures club swing speed and tempo. On the swing caddie my club speed was 72mph, on my radar it was 85 mph my smash factor on swing caddie was 124 with an 8 iron.
What is more important, swing speed,
Ball speed or smash factor?
Thanks
W R
Ball speed is king
Can the type of golf ball (eg. range ball vs ProV1) affect the smash factor or does that play no role?
I’m pretty sure it does make a difference. a range ball will not have near the ball speed of a pro v1 since they aren’t designed for distance.
Great to see Smash Factor being taken into account by the TrackMan Masters, especially the note on how having a smash factor that’s too high can also be a problem!
Smash Factor, also known as ratio efficiency, is the ratio between club head and golf ball velocities. Also described as ball speed divided by head speed.
My smash factor has always been close to 1,5 . I swing slowly according to people that watch me , and i know i have fast hands and prefer hitting a small head three metal than a driver . My distance control has always been very good but accuracy not so much . My favorite club as a youngster was my one iron . Lowest handicap was four . Does above make any sense. By
I would honestly say that i average 1,47 in smash factor and one time managed to get 1.54 with my 5 iron. This is all based of track man data