I don't doubt it. It would be silly to assume that the faster golfball can't exceed the distance of standard "still air" golf drives. The issue is the diminishing return that drag puts in place, so while it can offer more, it can't offer too much more.AngryChauncey wrote:but when I see that ball come out of the launcher, (if I see it at all) it looks like a hell of a lot more than 300 yds.
It is tricky to know at times - it's very hard to guess how far something is away, particularly while it's in the air. Take for example, if you will, the fact that the moon appears to be larger when it's near the horizon than when it's further up. It obviously isn't, but it still appears it - objects in mid-air with no reference appear smaller, and thus further away than they are.I am an aspiring engineer myself and I know that I lack the experience and know how to make a good estimate about projectile ranges.
I see enough people who are utterly convinced of half mile ranges (or even more) - but as I have said many a time, seeing something of a typical launcher calibre half a mile away is beyond even the keenest of eyes.
As a general rule, if you can still just about make out the golfball, it can't be much further than about 400 metres off.
I have little doubt you can get some respectable ranges, but there are still limits to recognise.
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