224 Influence of golf swing characteristics on the velocity and orientation of clubhead at impact

Abstract

The objective of this study was to construct a finite element (FE) model for estimating the behaviour of a golf club during the swing, and to investigate the influences of swing characteristics on the velocity and orientation of the clubhead at impact, by conducting an FE analysis with varying the swing profile. The swing was represented by inputting the positional coordinate data of the grip and the rotation angles of three axes: the two axes perpendicular to the swing plane and the longitudinal axis of the shaft, which were obtained from an experiment using a golf robot, into the cubic grip model. The simulation results generally matched the experimental results for the swing motion, the behaviour of the shaft during the swing and that of the clubhead at impact. The relationship between the swing profile and the clubhead orientation indicates that the particular orientation of the clubhead may be controlled by varying the swing profile, and that the model and the approach for modelling may have potential to be useful for evaluating the performance of clubs.