Local Trackman Facility - their numbers just seem off

[PingMan917]

So there's a place I joined a few weeks ago that has 5 indoor trackman bays. I've been hitting balls up there like 3 times a week for 2 weeks.

I thought I was getting some strange numbers and shot shape the first time I went. I was mad hooking EVERYTHING! And I'm a baby draw kinda player.

I couldn't even get my driver to fade unless I really really really tried hard to leave the face way open. (I can play fades, and slice the hell out of it in on a real course pretty easily if I try to).

The next few times I went, I basically started leaving the face way open at contact with all my clubs. And I got to where I was doing little baby draws, and even some straight right "falling right" baby fades when I wanted to.

Well, the day came today when I finally was ready to take this to the course...

I warmed up at the trackman place prior to my round and had everything dialed in SO GOOD! Little baby draws with EVERY club landing right down the middle of the virtual range... even driver, which usually, according to trackman, had gotten a little "hooky" the few sessions prior.

So I go the the course... plan to play a baby draw with driver off the first tee, and it fade a little to the right. I thought maybe I just wasn't settled in yet. Next one slices.

Next I try a few actual fades... big slices

I literally shot 14 over on the front for a 48 (par is 34)

BUT, on the back, I kinda just calibrated in to my current "on course" swing, and shot 2 over for a 39 (par is 37) for a total of 87. My point here is the DRASTIC differences in scores from using my "trackman calibration" in my mind and swing vs using my current on course calibration combined with my previous experience.

So finally, my question lol:

What is wrong with this trackman facility!?!?! I've hit on 3 or 4 different bays and all are the same type of results. I think maybe the way the have it aligned may be off, but even then, you would think the "club to path" number would be the same and the shape would be correct.

Anybody have any idea what it could be???  Maybe the way I'm aligned to the machine (if they don't have it set up just right).

I'm really disappointed, as I thought I was getting so good lol, but I feel like I'm all screwed up now. AND if I had access to accurate data, it could really take me to a new level

Edited May 19, 2022 by PingMan917

[PingMan917]

I'll add that I've seen a few other forum posts where guys have said that they noticed carry distances were off on an indoor trackman, as well as some spin rpm numbers... but I haven't seen anything mentioned on the face, path, and face-to-path numbers being wrong

[GolfSpy_APH]

 

Trackman to my knowledge is more meant for outdoor use. It needs a longer window or flight view to be more accurate.

Couldn't tell you anything more then that, but I know the indoor uses I've had with them haven't been my favorite and I've always preferred using GC quad for indoor play.

[Shapotomous]

I have experienced the same thing on some Trackman facilities.  And it was the same hook tendency you saw on the display when I know from the feel of the hit it should have been a fade.  

I have also been on a few trackman bays at different facilities that I felt were accurate in ball flight and yardages.  One accurate facility at a local course is owned by the family of a couple top amateur players and they use it extensively for training.  I'll have to ask them if they had to 'dial in' the settings and aiming to get it correct.

[PingMan917]

41 minutes ago, Shapotomous said:

I have experienced the same thing on some Trackman facilities.  And it was the same hook tendency you saw on the display when I know from the feel of the hit it should have been a fade.  

I have also been on a few trackman bays at different facilities that I felt were accurate in ball flight and yardages.  One accurate facility at a local course is owned by the family of a couple top amateur players and they use it extensively for training.  I'll have to ask them if they had to 'dial in' the settings and aiming to get it correct.

Yeah any insight you could gather from them would be amazing... especially if its something small that needs to be tweaked in the physical setup of the device, the settings, etc.

It's such a shame that it's not accurate, as of now, because I could really see myself getting to an extremely high level very quickly if the data was accurate... it's almost like cheating lol

[PingMan917]

2 hours ago, GolfSpy_APH said:

 

Trackman to my knowledge is more meant for outdoor use. It needs a longer window or flight view to be more accurate.

Couldn't tell you anything more then that, but I know the indoor uses I've had with them haven't been my favorite and I've always preferred using GC quad for indoor play.

Yeah unfortunately there aren't any facilities that I know of in my area with a GC Quad setup. The only real indoor practice facility is the one I've mentioned with the Trackmans

Even an outdoor place, if they had trackman or GCQ would be ideal... but I'm not aware of one

[cnosil]

9 hours ago, PingMan917 said:

 

What is wrong with this trackman facility!?!?! I've hit on 3 or 4 different bays and all are the same type of results. I think maybe the way the have it aligned may be off, but even then, you would think the "club to path" number would be the same and the shape would be correct.

Anybody have any idea what it could be???  Maybe the way I'm aligned to the machine (if they don't have it set up just right).

I'm really disappointed, as I thought I was getting so good lol, but I feel like I'm all screwed up now. AND if I had access to accurate data, it could really take me to a new level

Have you discussed your findings with the facility? 
 

Possibilities: indoor swing syndrome,   LM incorrectly setup, interference, balls.

[PingMan917]

23 minutes ago, cnosil said:

Have you discussed your findings with the facility? 
 

Possibilities: indoor swing syndrome,   LM incorrectly setup, interference, balls.

I mentioned the first time I went, but I wasn't as confident in my findings yet. Their response was that the machines are very accurate and they are correct.

After going up there for 2 weeks, and having played a few live rounds now, I'm extremely confident that the data is wrong.

I may approach them again, and ask for the rest of my membership to be refunded, I really don't want to keep going honestly.

I don't feel like it's indoor swing syndrome. I'm a pretty good golfer, and I'm one who like to shape the ball both ways, at least in practice... and I know what it feels like to leave the club face open vs rotating it through at impact. Like I said, you could hold a gun to my head and tell me to play a left to right shape with my driver in real life and I would hit the biggest slice you've ever seen... but, if that same gun was held to my head at this facility with the same criteria, MAYBE I get a baby fade at best, maybe

^this example may make it seem like it's slightly off... it's WAY off, like real life fades are big draws at the trackman facility 

Edited May 19, 2022 by PingMan917

[cnosil]

1 hour ago, PingMan917 said:

I mentioned the first time I went, but I wasn't as confident in my findings yet. Their response was that the machines are very accurate and they are correct.

After going up there for 2 weeks, and having played a few live rounds now, I'm extremely confident that the data is wrong.
 

Trackman devices are very accurate; there is no questioning that fact.  Typically if there are inaccuracies it is related to setup or another external variable.  You have gotten to the point that you don’t trust their units and they believe the units and environment is setup correctly so you may as well move on