Inrange Golf

[nickjdavis]

Went up the local driving range where I do most of my practice earlier today. Over the last few months there has been a great deal of renovation as new owners are obviously putting some money into the facilities...all bays upstairs and down now have power tees, all the mats have been replaced, new carpeting going down, redecoration yada yada yada... and today (first time I've been for a few weeks) I found that every bay has been kitted out with a monitor...I asked if it was being fitted with TopTracer or Trackman but it seems they are installing an Inrange system. Frankly I'd never heard of it but, on googling, there are a dozen in the UK.

Inrange | Golf is for everyone. (inrangegolf.com)

Anyone ever used one? How does it compare to TopTracer?

 

[Jigger]

Went up the local driving range where I do most of my practice earlier today. Over the last few months there has been a great deal of renovation as new owners are obviously putting some money into the facilities...all bays upstairs and down now have power tees, all the mats have been replaced, new carpeting going down, redecoration yada yada yada... and today (first time I've been for a few weeks) I found that every bay has been kitted out with a monitor...I asked if it was being fitted with TopTracer or Trackman but it seems they are installing an Inrange system. Frankly I'd never heard of it but, on googling, there are a dozen in the UK.

Inrange | Golf is for everyone. (inrangegolf.com)

Anyone ever used one? How does it compare to TopTracer?

Not used it but would be interested to hear your thoughts.

 

[nickjdavis]

Not used it but would be interested to hear your thoughts.

Well....due to go live in a couple of weeks time apparently.

I will let the mad rush subside and then amble along when its quiet.....might book myself a 2 hour "offsite" work meeting one weekday.

Just downloaded the ap and it gives a bit more info than the website....array of ultra-sensitive radars (do you get insensitive radar?) creates an interlocking mesh (surely all meshes interlock by their very nature?) that geo-locates the exact position of your ball in space (I dont hit it that far) and time throughout its flight....accurate to within 1%

Ohh...you get an "Inrange handicap"

You can convert your yardages with range balls to what you would hit with a premium ball.....this conversion is unique to each driving range dependent upon the type of range ball used....i guess (well...actually I'd hope) that they do some sort of calibration on the system....maybe get a robot to hit a load of shots using the range balls with various clubs and then with "proper" balls.....for this to really work yould have to hit at varying swing speeds because range balls fly totally differently....the ones at this range have a lower ball flight and seem to emphasise sidespin greatly compared to a normal ball.

Roll is simulated and modelled based on the individual flight characteristics of each shot.

Uses "strokes gained" theory to rate each of your shots against your own current skill level (you tell the app your handicap). So for any shot hit towards a virtual target...the target size will change based on your handicap and your shot will be scored according to how good/bad your shot was.

Shot data includes...strokes gained, carry, total distance, height, ball speed, launch direction, launch angle, left/right distance, curve, proximity to hole.....doesnt appear to list Spin.

Various games you can play...i guess similar to TopTracer....you can play "real" courses (doesnt list them on the app)

Augmented reality game play....superimposes the range targets on to a virtual course on the touchscreen....allowing you to make real life shot decisions allowing you to make real life shot decisions by playing to different parts of the range.

To be honest....I've only skimmed the major parts of what the app describes....but I'll be honest...on first impressions it looks to be impressive....just needs to work and more importantly, be accurate.

Watch this space!!

 

[Jigger]

Nice to see you’ve seen through all the marketing

interesting how they think they can extrapolate range ball data into real ball data. Most ranges I’ve been to have really shoddy balls which makes consistency impossible.

 

[Bunkermagnet]

Nice to see you’ve seen through all the marketing

interesting how they think they can extrapolate range ball data into real ball data. Most ranges I’ve been to have really shoddy balls which makes consistency impossible.

Or you stick a decent ball down, and smack it with and lo and behold, we have 400 yd drives being given out......the range monitor says so

 

[IanM]

Or you stick a decent ball down, and smack it with and lo and behold, we have 400 yd drives being given out......the range monitor says so

...or is that range "Molitor?"

 

[Barking_Mad]

Range balls really are really rubbish. I occasionally go to a toptracer range and for fun I'll hit a decent ball I've found whilst playing and the ball speed jumps significantly, especially with driver.

I think I'm right in saying that range balls aren't equal, you can buy different ones depending on the length of the driving range. I know toptracer does give you a different number to account for this, but I'm not convinced it's accurate.

That said I do like toptracer. The range of options and games are really fun and makes practice really worthwhile, and importantly measurable! My short game got much better as a result.

 

[Jigger]

Range balls really are really rubbish. I occasionally go to a toptracer range and for fun I'll hit a decent ball I've found whilst playing and the ball speed jumps significantly, especially with driver.

I think I'm right in saying that range balls aren't equal, you can buy different ones depending on the length of the driving range. I know toptracer does give you a different number to account for this, but I'm not convinced it's accurate.

That said I do like toptracer. The range of options and games are really fun and makes practice really worthwhile, and importantly measurable! My short game got much better as a result.

I think it all has a place to make practice more entertaining but I would trust the numbers.

 

[nickjdavis]

The range balls at the place I go were all renewed last summer...I must say they are of noticeable better quality that the previous batch....though still you notice significant differences from even a budget ball....especially in terms of launch and ball flight.

I myself am quite sceptical about how they plan to convert range ball distances into normal ball distances....its not just a matter of ball speed off the club face...launch angle and spin will all play apart. Wouldn't be difficult to do a little experiment....hit 10 range balls and get the system to convert for a proper ball, then hit 10 proper balls and dont do the conversion.

As to trusting the numbers....I'm pretty sure that most of us have a good idea about how far we hit the ball (no, really...I think we do) so if this new system suddenly tells me I'm carrying the ball 250 with driver or 155 with a 7 iron then I know its a bit duff. But....if its all radar tracked until landing...there is no reason for it to be wrong.....if it measures then it measures and should be accurate....if it predicts/calculates then that is where it is going to be fallible.