Opinion & Analysis

Dear announcers: Stop saying “topspin”

Published

6 years ago

Sep 18, 2020

If there is one thing that grinds my gears, it’s when television announcers at the highest level in golf, with the largest audiences, get things so terribly wrong about the physics of the game. It may seem like a small issue, but the problem is these pieces of false information get into the minds of golfers, which then continues to perpetuate misinformation around the game, club fitting, and what actually happens when a golf ball is in motion.

The most recent account was during the first round of the U.S. Open when after a shot was hit from the rough and took off low with very little spin a not-to-be-named announcer said something along the lines of

“That really took off with some topspin, look at it roll out”

This, from a physics perspective, is impossible. So I did what many commentators of the game do, I took to Twitter (@RDSBarath) to state my displeasure for the comment and share the truth about what really happens when a golf club strikes a ball.

The truth

Now that we have pointed out the falsehood, let’s help you better understand what’s really going on. In the golf vernacular, there are a number of ways spin is improperly described, with the two most common being; “sidespin” and “topspin.”

What is sidespin

Spin Axis – Trackman Golf

Sidespin is a commonly used incorrect way to describe the spin axis of a golf ball as it travels through the air. Rather than try and define it myself I will refer to the experts at Trackman to help me explain what’s really going on.

“Spin Axis is the tilt angle relative to the horizon of the golf ball’s resulting rotational axis immediately after separation from the club face (post impact).”

“The spin axis can be associated to the wings of an airplane. If the wings of an airplane are parallel to the ground, this would represent a zero spin axis and the plane would fly straight. If the wings were banked/tilted to the left (right wing higher than left wing), this would represent a negative spin axis and the plane would bank/curve to the left. And the opposite holds true if the wings are banked/tilted to the right.”

To better understand just how important spin axis is it to hitting shots that land close to your intended target check out the video below which demonstrates both spin axis and launch direction.

The falsehoods of “topspin”

As mentioned off the top, no pun intended, any shot struck under normal circumstances will not have topspin. The only scenario where is it possible is when a shot is topped into the ground with the leading edge or sole of the club above the equator of the ball.

The idea of topspin originates in paddle sports like tennis and ping pong where is it entirely possible to hit a low flying topspinning shot that hits their respective courts or tables and proceed to almost pick up speed.

The difference between a racket/paddle and a golf club, is a golf club delivers loft at impact, and the center of gravity is away from the contact point of the face. A golf ball even when hit in extremely low friction will still leave the clubface after impact with some amount of backspin, even on a putt.

The below video shows a putt starting to roll forward almost immediately, but what is really happening is the ball is struck under almost perfect putting launch conditions will very low backspin (but still measurable), friction from the ground resists the movement of the ball and the ball goes from skidding to forward roll very quickly.

In the case of the announcer who misspoke, it would have been much more beneficial to the viewer to have explained the shot like

“based on the lie and circumstances of the impact that shot came out a lot lower than it normally would with very little spin, and ran out more than usual”

It’s a major change to the original statement and accurately describes what actually happened when the ball was hit from U.S. Open rough.

Remember, just because it was said on TV by a former professional golfer doesn’t make it true.

Related Topics:featured

Up Next

Ways to Win: Power and patience

Don't Miss

EXCLUSIVE: PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan recaps the 2020 season with Michael Williams

Ryan Barath

Ryan Barath is a club-fitter & master club builder with more than 17 years of experience working with golfers of all skill levels, including PGA Tour players. He is the former Build Shop Manager & Social Media Coordinator for Modern Golf. He now works independently from his home shop and is a member of advisory panels to a select number of golf equipment manufacturers. You can find Ryan on Twitter and Instagram where he's always willing to chat golf, and share his passion for club building, course architecture and wedge grinding.

15 Comments

Howard Clark

Sep 21, 2020 at 6:55 am

Good ball striker means not very bright, sort of like “less people are in the stands”, when you meant fewer. And my favorite, Bryson was a physics major. He dropped out of college.

Reply Report comment
Evan

Sep 21, 2020 at 4:50 am

What grinds my gears Ryan? People who get upset about the use of the term side spin to describe a ball curving in flight.

Reply Report comment
chip75

Sep 20, 2020 at 11:54 am

“Less spin and more roll…” would be more apt.

Reply Report comment
Stephan Lechner

Sep 20, 2020 at 10:56 am

The comment the announcers make that I find most annoying is such an such player is a really good ball striker. They will go out of their way to say it multiple times about multiple players throughout the coverage. Isn’t it obvious they are all good ball strikers? They wouldn’t be on the PGA Tour if they weren’t good ball strikers. They will say he is one of the best ball strikers in the game. No kidding!

Reply Report comment
- Wyatt Scott
  
  Sep 21, 2020 at 12:29 am
  
  they have to justify their existence , unfortunately with loads of horseshoe
  
  Reply Report comment
Steve Diver

Sep 19, 2020 at 2:57 pm

Wait, you freely admit that you can hit a putt with topspin. Regardless of how it achieved the topspin, fact is its there.

What about a teed ball with very low launch angle, inside up strike such as a draw drive. Does the ball ever achieve top spin, either in the air or upon contact with the ground?

Reply Report comment
iceman

Sep 18, 2020 at 8:27 pm

You could simplify your correct statment to “look how little the ball spun leaving the rough” as that will be easier for the audience to take. Too much information will cause you to lose the audience. Physic explanations were on point.

Reply Report comment
Shallowface

Sep 18, 2020 at 8:12 pm

Golf balls don’t roll up clubfaces when struck either, but we hear that all the time despite high speed visual evidence to the contrary.

Reply Report comment
- Bob Jones
  
  Sep 22, 2020 at 12:37 pm
  
  There’s a Lee Trevino video on YouTube where he says just is what happens. Ignorance is bliss, I guess.
  
  You don’t even need video evidence. Just explain how if the ball is running up the face what force stops it before it flies off the clubface away from the target, what force turns it around, what force starts moving it in the proper direction, and what force imparts the speed needed to send the ball from there to who knows how far down the fairway. Go ahead. Explain that one.
  
  Reply Report comment
Rwj

Sep 18, 2020 at 7:42 pm

Plenty of things the announcers are doing is annoying:

Feherty dry mouth
Roberts essays
Montages
Constant replays of earlier action
The complete lack of showing golf shots…
But not topspin

Reply Report comment
Doug

Sep 18, 2020 at 3:58 pm

Just because Barath correctly points out what’s really happening doesn’t make it petty.

And a golf ball can’t have both backspin and sidespin; that is, it can have only one spin axis, which may or may not be tilted.

Some of us don’t like to have everything “dumbed down” to appease those who need “simple easy-to-understand language”.

Reply Report comment
Nack Jicklaus

Sep 18, 2020 at 2:24 pm

Topspin is for ping pong.

Reply Report comment
Mark

Sep 18, 2020 at 12:37 pm

I think this opinion piece is annoyingly petty. It really doesn’t matter if they say side spin or top spin and whether or not that’s exactly what is happening. We all know exactly what they mean when they say these things. It is simple easy-to-understand language, unlike the pedantic alternative you suggested.

I especially take issue with the “side spin” police.

“There’s no such thing as side spin, the spin axis is tilted!!!” they cry. But how is it tilted? To the side. And what happens when the spin axis is tilted to one side? The ball spins more to the side in proportion to the degree to which the spin axis is tilted to that side.

Side spin seems to be a pretty good, simple description of what is actually taking place. I’ll give you topspin, it is an exceedingly rare golf shot at least as measured off the face. The term could be easily switched to low spin or minimal spin.

But even so, at some point in a low, running shot, even when hit with significant backspin, the ball, like your putt example, quits resisting physics and starts rolling forward, correct?

Reply Report comment
- Wyatt Scott
  
  Sep 21, 2020 at 12:33 am
  
  okay Simple Simon, likely a Boomer to boot
  
  Reply Report comment
Inya Mouf

Sep 18, 2020 at 11:18 am

Dear GolfWRX hackers, stop saying flop shot. Every shot around the green with an open face is not a flop shot.

Reply Report comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Opinion & Analysis

AVL: My U.S. Amateur local qualifying experience

Published

5 days ago

Jun 5, 2026

Andrew Von Lossow

This past Monday, I played in the U.S. Amateur local qualifier at Rock Creek Country Club in Portland, Oregon. A full tee sheet from 7:30 a.m. to 1:55 p.m., the top 11 scores would make it to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying.

I teed off at 10:48 a.m.. With the 7:30 am tee time, you can get a feel for the leaders’ pace, and they were off and running on the challenging setup at Rock Creek.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by GolfWRX (@golfwrx)

Getting to the highlight of the round on the par five 17th, a drive up the left side and 212 yards left to the front hole location. I took out a 5-iron with plans of middle of the green. The ball ended up 8 feet left of the hole, pin high. A slight downhill putt dropped in for an eagle 3 on the 17th. With the cut line looking to be anywhere from -2 to even par. This was the boost I had been waiting for all day.

With making par from the trees on 18, it was time to wait for a potential playoff with a posted score of one under par 71.

Three hours later, it was playoff time. 8 players for 6 spots. I made par on the playoff hole, which was good enough to advance to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying in July. USGA qualifiers sure deliver on all of the emotions in golf!

Club Junkie

Building my 2026 gamer WITB: Ranking the contenders and new putter projects – Club Junkie Podcast

Published

7 days ago

Jun 4, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

The annual What’s In The Bag build is underway, and on this episode of Club Junkie, Brian breaks down the clubs currently leading the race for a spot in his 2026 gamer setup. From drivers and fairway woods to irons, wedges, and shafts, he ranks the equipment that’s performing best and explains what’s separating the front runners from the rest of the field.

Brian also heads into the workshop to discuss several putter projects currently on the bench. From head options and shaft choices to build ideas and testing plans, he shares what he’s working on and which putters could become serious contenders for the bag this season.

If you’re a gear junkie who loves equipment testing, club building, and the never-ending pursuit of the perfect setup, this episode is for you.

Follow Club Junkie:
Instagram: @clubjunkiepod
TikTok: @clubjunkiepod
Threads: @clubjunkiepod
X: @ClubJunkiePod

Club Junkie

Tour Edge Exotics mini driver review + TaylorMade Spider ZT Max first look – Club Junkie

Published

2 weeks ago

May 28, 2026

Brian Knudson

On this episode of Club Junkie, I put the new Tour Edge Exotics Mini Driver to the test and break down the performance, forgiveness, distance, and where it fits compared to a traditional driver or strong fairway wood. If you have been curious about adding a mini driver to the bag, this one is worth a look.

I also dive into the new TaylorMade Spider ZT Max putter that was recently spotted and discuss the growing zero torque putter trend. Plus, there is a closer look at the new Project X Titan Yellow shaft showing up on the PGA Tour and what makes it different from other profiles currently out there.