Equipment
Numbers don’t lie: An interview FlightScope founder Henri Johnson
For even the best golfers, it’s often difficult to understand what makes one round of golf better than another.
That might be one of the reason golfers are relying so heavily on numbers to analyze their games. Statistics like “greens in regulation,” “fairways hit,” and “up and downs” are tools golfers can use to monitor their progress. But they’re not perfect measurements. How many times have you hit a good drive that made its way into the second cut of the fairway, or struck a great iron shot that just rolled into the fringe? Often, a great putt bails out a poor chip, and vice versa. How do you measure that?
Flightscope founder Henri Johnson didn’t know much about golf when he began designing golf radar systems more than a decade ago, but he did know one thing – speculation is inferior to information.
He and his team sought to create a tool that could give golfers immediate feedback on their ball flight and golf swing – objective numbers they could use to improve their games. They came up with Flightscope, a system that uses thee-dimensional Doppler radar to measure the entire flight of a golf ball, as well as important aspects of the golf swing.
Most launch monitors are able to measure things like clubhead speed, ball speed and spin rate, but they have limitations, Johnson said.
“With a launch monitor, you’re measuring the ball flight over literally 6 inches of data,” Johnson said. “The rest is speculation. Our approach at Flightscope is that if you can measure something, why should you have to speculate about it?”
Because Flightscope measures a golf ball’s trajectory from launch to finish, it more accurately measures launch angle, spin rate, apex height, angle of descent, carry distance and roll. It also can identify a club’s angle of attack, ball spin axis, face angle, dynamic loft and club path – very important tools for club fitting. Flightscope’s latest product, the X2, has the ability to measure the golf club’s path from the top of the shoulder on the downswing until the club disappears behind a golfer’s back on the follow through. It also creates a “speed profile,” which calculates a golfer’s clubhead speed at different parts of the swing, as well as the amount of force a golfer is applying to the club at those points. By showing graphically what the club is doing through impact, fitters are better able to decide not only what shaft is best for a golfer, but also what kind of tip stiffness a golfer should have in their shaft.
Click here to see LPGA Tour player Ryan O’Toole’s Flightscope numbers
But where Flightscope really shines is in its ability for PGA professionals to use it as a teaching tool. Johnson himself has used Flightscope products to diagnose issues with his golf swing. He took up the game 11 years ago, and credits the products for helping him play to a six handicap. The X2 measures both the horizontal and vertical swing planes. Johnson said that he closely monitors his vertical swing plane, a part of his swing that has caused him problems in the past.
“It lets me know what causes what in my golf swing,” Johnson said. “It tells me know what I shouldn’t be doing, and reinforces good behavior.”
Click here for more discussion in the forum
One of the X2’s most important new features is that it requires no PC connection to function. It is wirelessly compatible with Apple iPad, iPhone and iPod, as well as with Android devices through applications available for purchase in the iTunes Store and Android Market.
“When we were designing the X2, we knew it had to be wireless,” Johnson said. “I personally don’t like wires because they’re messy. Mobility today is very important. Everything is going wireless.”
The app costs $49 dollars for instructors, and student’s can view their sessions with their teachers with an app that costs $10.
One thing that separates Flightscope from other golf radars available is its price point. It costs around $11,000, about half the amount of its nearest competitor, Trackman. According to Johnson, the X2 is also more accurate than the more expensive model offered by its competitor.
“If you put X2 against Trackman, and you measure – I would put money on it that we are more accurate,” Johnson said.
Johnson’s primary market for Flightscope has been PGA professionals, a market he said the company has been doing very well in. He said his company works hard to show PGA professionals that proper technologies like Flightscope can help differentiate them from their competition. But Johnson has also received a lot of positive feedback about Flightscope products from non-professionals. Through the X2’s wireless technology, Flightscope was able to show spectators data from professional golfers at the ranges at this year’s British Open and Women’s British Open.
“We want to inform the general public of what professional golfers are doing with their swings,” Johnson said. “We’ve found that people are craving information. When we took iPads into the crowd at the British Open and Women’s British Open, people were amazed at how consistent the players were. It’s an insider view people want to see.”
Johnson was hesitant to talk much about future Flightscope releases, but he did say that in the coming year, his company would release a consumer product at an affordable price.
“It’s not a toy,” Johnson said. “It’s as accurate as we can make it at a tolerable price point.”
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Whats in the Bag
Webb Simpson WITB 2024 (May)
- Webb Simpson what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wells Fargo Championship. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Titleist TSR3 (10 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Black 6 X
3-wood: Titleist TS2 (15 degrees, B2 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Blue 70 TX
5-wood: Titleist 913 Fd (18 degrees)
Shaft: UST Mamiya VTS Proforce 8 TX
Hybrids: Titleist TSR2 (24 degrees)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD D1 Hybrid 105 X
Irons: Titleist T150 (5, 6), Titleist 680 (7-PW)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM9 (46-10F, 54-14F, 60-04L)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (46), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser
Ball: Titleist Pro V1
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Check out more in-hand photos of Webb Simpson’s clubs here.
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Whats in the Bag
Keegan Bradley WITB 2024 (May)
- Keegan Bradley’s WITB accurate as of the Wells Fargo Championship. >14 clubs pictured. Obviously, Bradley will reduce that number to 14 for competition. Check out more photos from the tournament here.
Driver: Ping G430 LST (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (16.5 degrees)
Shaft: Aldila Rogue White 130 MSI 70 TX
Hybrid: Callaway Apex UW (19 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black RDX 80 TX
Irons: Srixon ZX5 Mk II (3-5) Srixon ZX7 Mk II (6-PW)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Cleveland RTX ZipCore (52-10 Mid, 58-6 Low)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser
Grip: SuperStroke Zenergy WristLock
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Plus4
Ball: Srixon Z-Star Diamond
Check out more in-hand photos of Bradley’s clubs here.
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Equipment
Coolest thing for sale in the GolfWRX Classifieds (5/7/24): Mizuno 245 irons
At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals that all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.
It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.
Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, there is a listing for a set of Mizuno 245 irons.
From the seller: (@JB_007): “1. Mizuno Pro 245 – $1000 –> 950/obo
- Purchased brand new – they have 36 holes on them, with probably 10 premium range balls. Great set of irons, I just am looking to go another way right now.
- 5-PW –> stock L/L/L
- Project X LS 6.5
- Stock MCC Mizuno Grips.”
To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link: Mizuno 245 irons
This is the most impressive current listing from the GolfWRX BST, and if you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum you can check them out here: GolfWRX BST Rules
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