Flightscope Trajectory Optimizer - Launch Angle

http://flightscope.com/products/trajectory-optimizer/

This is a great tool and I use it frequently to assess my launch conditions against a different flight model (Flightscope instead of Skytrak or Trackman), and also to experiment with different parameters so I can analyse how they affect distance.

I launch my driver quite high, on average between 14.5-16 degrees. Trackman suggests the optimum for my ball speed is closer to 13 degrees so I wanted to assess the impact and it turns out the results are quite interesting.

The coloured columns are carry, total (hard), total (soft).

This suggests high launch is not a big issue, and strongly indicates it is better to err on the side of launching too high vs too low. According to this launching at 17deg is optimum for carry, but even launching at 25deg will only cost you 6.5 yards of carry and approx 10 yards of total distance in hard conditions. Conversely reducing launch angle to 9 degrees will cost you 10 yards of carry. From this point carry distance drops rapidly with decreasing launch.

N.B. the dip in the curve for total (hard) at 10 degrees launch.

133mph ball speed
I thought it might be interesting to compare this with a lower ball speed (the average ball speed of player a from our Skytrak vs Trackman test).

A similar pattern emerges and optimum launch increases to a whopping 20-22deg. How many amateurs launch their driver at 20-22deg???

The dip in the curve for 10deg launch is much more pronounced. Not sure what this indicates???