Lie board or examine divot ????

[Scotland blue]

What is the opinion of using a lie board to measure the correct lie of an iron vs. examining the resulted divot from the same club.  I've heard that lie boards can come up with some dubious results but haven't learned yet if that is true or not.

I have a new set of irons that should not technically fit me for the lie measurement but when I look at the divot they are the full width of the bottom of the club and appear to be spot on for a squared up club face.  The depth of the divot and length will vary with the club used and of course my own swing faults.  I haven't hit these irons on a lie board but now wonder if it is needed at all.

I'm thinking that if the divot "exam" is a solid.....then good to go.  Your thoughts???

[Tom the Golf Nut]

Take the cheap way out. Take a piece of electrical tape and place it on the sole of the club and make a few swings on a piece of cardboard or an upside down welcome mat or anything handy. You will see the scratch marks on the tape and you will know for sure if the lie is correct.  

[FrogginBullfish]

RE: Lie Boards -

RE: Divots - I've seen a few pros talk about the divot direction not being accurate either, however I can't find any specific videos or posts off the top of my head.

Suffice it to say, the best option is to get on a launch monitor and find out what is really going on with your swing.

Sent from my Pixel 2 using MyGolfSpy mobile app

[Shapotomous]

To dial in the right lie angle, I would first go by the ball flight, then I would use a marker line on a ball and the corresponding line angle mark on the clubface and then I would use the lie board.  

[Vegan_Golfer_PNW]

I think you need both. I was retrofitted for a set. Lie board said to go 3 deg up. Fitter did that. I still struggled. Looking at divot, it was toe heavy. Got fitted for new clubs, turns out my retrofit needed to be 2 more deg up. New clubs are upright and divot is centered. 
 

as Is the ball flight

Edited September 15, 2020 by rbsiedsc
Added ball flight comment

[TENBUCK]

Amazing!!! I kind of live in a rural area, do my own adjustments/builds on my clubs and I usually rely on a lie board. This just might give me new meaning to consistency. 

Thanks for the vid!

[THEZIPR23]

Take a sharpie and mark a big thick line on a ball. Set that line towards club face vertically. Sharpie will leave mark on club face, straight up is correct lie. 

[Buffly]

9 hours ago, Scotland blue said:

What is the opinion of using a lie board to measure the correct lie of an iron vs. examining the resulted divot from the same club.  I've heard that lie boards can come up with some dubious results but haven't learned yet if that is true or not.

I have a new set of irons that should not technically fit me for the lie measurement but when I look at the divot they are the full width of the bottom of the club and appear to be spot on for a squared up club face.  The depth of the divot and length will vary with the club used and of course my own swing faults.  I haven't hit these irons on a lie board but now wonder if it is needed at all.

I'm thinking that if the divot "exam" is a solid.....then good to go.  Your thoughts???

 

9 hours ago, FrogginBullfish said:

RE: Lie Boards -

 

RE: Divots - I've seen a few pros talk about the divot direction not being accurate either, however I can't find any specific videos or posts off the top of my head.

Suffice it to say, the best option is to get on a launch monitor and find out what is really going on with your swing.

Sent from my Pixel 2 using MyGolfSpy mobile app
 

 

 

5 hours ago, rbsiedsc said:

I think you need both. I was retrofitted for a set. Lie board said to go 3 deg up. Fitter did that. I still struggled. Looking at divot, it was toe heavy. Got fitted for new clubs, turns out my retrofit needed to be 2 more deg up. New clubs are upright and divot is centered. 
 

as Is the ball flight

My experience is that all of it helps contribute with different circumstances creating interesting results. 

To short answer @Scotland blue directly: it depends on where the miss is. 

The lie board and turf can both lie depending on club path, turf interaction and club design. So the repeated results over time and repetitions will reveal the correct fit or poor fit. 

The player can adjust, to a point, to the club setup within a couple degrees. It is when compensating either creates poor performance or inconsistency that it needs to be addressed. 

Stiff turf will push back on the club. A lie board can also push back different than course conditions. Soft, spongy turf may react different with the same setup due to different resistance. 

Club sole design also reacts differently through the turf with different sole width, leading edge grind, and bounce. 

All that to say, I study other people's swings on the range to see if something sticks out creating either pure goodness or awful attrociousness. I often see people setting up with the toe toe far up and the hosel only touching the ground. The result ends up being lots of thin hits, hosel duff left hooks, and the occasional low sweet spot contact. 

The player could learn to setup more upright to eliminate many of the errors without adjusting the clubs. However, if they really want to swing with the club there then a flat lie would allow them more consistency and more pure contact strikes. 

I have a high wrist to floor measurement for my height. I developed a horrible handle raising flinch that was due to a few problems. The solution to fit my hitch was to bend my irons 2 deg up and everything was great for a long time. 

After I addressed the issues creating the handle raising, I struggle with a left miss that could be due to a new swing problem or/and the 2 deg up lie. 

It is all pretty fluid for me. Fix or change one thing and two new crop up. A good fit will allow the most progress until that fit doesn't fit anymore. 

As @Tom the Golf Nut explained, a simple check now and again with a simple lie board and electrical tape, or the vertical sharpie line on a golf ball, or reading your divot all provide pieces of the puzzle. Keep track and see if they change over time. And if any of them match strange ball flight patterns then it is time for a check-up with a fitter to optimize your set-up. 

[cnosil]

All that to say, I study other people's swings on the range to see if something sticks out creating either pure goodness or awful attrociousness. I often see people setting up with the toe toe far up and the hosel only touching the ground. The result ends up being lots of thin hits, hosel duff left hooks, and the occasional low sweet spot contact. 
The player could learn to setup more upright to eliminate many of the errors without adjusting the clubs. However, if they really want to swing with the club there then a flat lie would allow them more consistency and more pure contact strikes. 

I would be careful just looking at how the person sets up. Shafts deflect downward during the swing causing the toe to go down at impact. My instructor noticed that I was delivering my wedges toe down at impact but the ball was still going straight due to a closed face at impact. First goal is to get that face correct and then possibly go more upright which will raise the toe at setup.

To test if lie angle is correct, the method recommended my@thezipr23 seems to be the new recommended way if you don’t have access to a launch monitor that provides club head data.

As a player you can setup to fit the clubs or change the clubs to fit the swing. I always prefer to change the clubs to fit my swing since that is what I will generally trend toward doing when under pressure.

[TheClubDoctor]

The sharpie line on the ball as suggested by @THEZIPR23 is more accurate than a lie board or examining the divot .