Simple Golf Simulator

A physics-based golf swing and ball trajectory simulator with an interactive GUI built using Tkinter and Matplotlib.

Requirements

• Python 3.12+ is recommended for best compatibility
• Third-party packages: matplotlib, numpy
• Standard library: tkinter, math, cmath, sys

Installation

pip install matplotlib numpy

On some Linux systems, tkinter may need to be installed separately:

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt-get install python3-tk

# Fedora
sudo dnf install python3-tkinter

Getting Started

python Main.py

Features

Swing Simulation

The simulator models a two-degree-of-freedom golf swing using torque-driven angular mechanics. Users can configure:

• Golfer parameters -- gender, weight, shoulder radius, arm length
• Club parameters -- head/shaft mass and length
• Swing conditions -- swing plane angle, initial/impact arm angle, wrist-cock angle, swing type (Type I / Type II)
• Torques -- arm torque, wrist-cock torque (with automatic optimization)

Three numerical solution methods are available, all based on 4th-order Runge-Kutta integration.

Ball Trajectory

The ball flight model includes drag, lift, spin (Magnus effect), and wind. Configurable parameters:

• Ball mass, diameter, drag/lift coefficients
• Coefficient of restitution (COR)
• Air density, wind speed/direction
• Clubhead loft angle, launch angles, spin angles

Plots

Swing plots: Tracks, angles, angular velocities, angular accelerations, clubhead velocity, torques, arm length, and moment of inertia.

Ball trajectory plots: X-Z (elevation), X-Y (horizontal), Y-Z (lateral), and 3D flight path.

Documentation

The full technical report (two-rod swing model, aerodynamic equations, simulation cases, and user's guide) is available as Sphinx documentation under docs/.

To build:

pip install sphinx sphinx-rtd-theme
cd docs
sphinx-build -b html . _build/html

Then open docs/_build/html/index.html in your browser.

Project Structure

File	Description
Main.py	GUI application entry point
BasicFunc.py	Core swing physics
BasicFunc2.py	Ball trajectory physics
AppFunc.py	Swing simulation functions
AppFunc2.py	Ball trajectory simulation functions
Plot.py	Swing visualization
Plot2.py	Ball trajectory visualization
Case1.py - Case10.py	Standalone example cases

License

ISC License -- Copyright (c) 2026, Cheng-Chin Chiang