Rory McIlroy isn't a big fan of golfers completely dependent on launch monitors. Rather, he believes the human touch is important to make the maximum use of it.

The 2014 Open champion believes that while overreliance on data can affect the game, it can also be helpful when a player calibrates physical feels with objective data.

"No, I wouldn’t totally agree with that," McIlroy said during his pre-tournament presser at the Open Championship.

"I think that TrackMan or any launch monitor, it’s a very useful tool. I think you can get too into the numbers, which then can be detrimental. Yeah, TrackMan can be very useful. It can be — I think it can actually help you with the feel of your golf swing at times."

For the unversed, a launch monitor records the physical data of your golf shots. Right from the moment you strike the ball to tracking it once it is in the air, the device does it all, measuring details like ball speed, launch angle, spin rate, carry distance and more.

The Northern Irishman explained that during tournament weeks, he isn't rebuilding his swing or chasing perfect positions on a screen. Rather, he's using the launch monitor to catch a small leak before it becomes a flood.

McIlroy has built a reputation as one of the more feel-based players in the game despite being a heavy TrackMan user all season.

"I use TrackMan where it’s like, okay, my path’s getting a little to the right, I’ve just got to feel like I swing more left. Or my face angle is getting a bit left and I’ve got to feel like I hold it a bit more square through impact, whatever it is," he added during the same presser on Tuesday, per golftoday.co.uk.

This Way of Thinking Is Not Unique to Rory McIlroy

Justin Rose, another major champion, uses his launch monitor in a very similar way. His coach, Mark Blackburn, has described exactly what happens on the practice range with Golf Digest.

"As the coach, I’m looking at what the player is putting into the club. How the club being delivered. Those are two very different sets of data," he said. "For the player, it’s about how far the ball is carrying, clubhead speed, trajectory and spin. I’m interested in that information, but that’s not necessarily my priority, especially early in a tournament week."

Instead, Blackburn pays closer attention to delivery metrics like club path, angle of attack and face-to-path relationship, all measured against a tolerance range built for that player.

But the reputation that the 'heavy launch monitor users often do badly in the Open' isn't entirely undeserved.

Bryson DeChambeau fits as the perfect example. Golf's self-styled 'Mad Scientist,' a player whose entire public identity is built on physics, 3D-printed clubs and swing science.

Heading into Royal Birkdale, DeChambeau missed the cut at the Masters, the PGA Championship and the U.S. Open, the first time in his career he opened a major season 0-for-3.

Read more at Club Golf!

Written by

Md Saife Fida

Edited by

Siddharth Shirwadkar