Question:
Perhaps the dirt in between the grooves is what is coming loose and catching fire. You would have to scrub that thing spotless to test again with your experiment.
lol …. to tell you the truth dave i don’t exactly ever really pick up dirt in the grooves of my driver. in fact it’s rare that the head of my driver ever actually touches the ground, except during setup …. ymmv of course. but as i’ve said in other parts of this debate, the jury seems to be out on the actual cause of the phenomena. intuitively i like most others would first guess that it is a result of something very hard like silica being compressed onto the face of the driver. but the opinions i heard from boffins who’ve studies it suggest that this is probably not the case though no well reasoned study/argument that i’ve seen offers a good alternative with lots of hard evidence. brett
Response:
Once we admitted that we saw sparks, my son and I had a lot of fun with the sparks from his King Cobra TI. He had a GBB before that but didn’t get the sparks. The best time is on the range at night. At the time I thought it was the moisture on the balls.
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wouldn’t that be errr, PLUTONIUM? =)
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I too have noticed this ’sparking’ thing. I was demoing a Titanium GBB at the time. I have also seen the GBB/spark thing on the tee at a golf course. This spark thing is not specific just to range mats. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Vroom, Vroom! I noticed this sparking phenomena a few years ago during a round in December. I wasn’t too good about cleaning of the ball and the greens and tees had been dressed with a fine type of sand. As it was beginning to get dim in the late afternoon, I with my playing partner noticed the sparks of my Cobra Ti driver. After checking with the Cobra folks they explained some dirt or sand on the ball can cause the Ti alloy to spark upon contact and compression of the ball. It’s not necessarily the Titanium but the trace amounts of cadmium and other elements in the alloy. According to other in RSG at the time they had similar experiences. A novelty item for sure. I’m not sure if anyone has had anything happen with irons, but I doubt that it has much to do with static electricity, unless you’re rubbing it the wrong way! 
Get some shades and keep hitting em! Ed Sometimes we observe small sparks, when my friend Arie does his first shot with a methal wood from a tee. What is the cause of this ? Can this happen with all methal woods of all brands ? Can it also happen with irons ? Has the moisture contents of the air anything to do with this (dry wet)? Temperature ? Is charge involved ? Has this anything to do with the way he hits the ball (angle versus force of impact) ? Is there any relation with ordinary lightning ?
Response:
The spark phenomenon is most likely to be derived from either the tee (spontaneous combustion of silicate material on the tee or sole of the driver) or by small silicates (pebbles and the such) on the ground when the sole makes contact with the titanium and the alloys therein. This would be my best guess as to why this happens. I have seen it happen and just assumed it was the former due to friction between the clubhead and tee. — Scott Fallowfield "Those who think they know everything, really annoy those of us who do." – Anonymous
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Once we admitted that we saw sparks, my son and I had a lot of fun with the sparks from his King Cobra TI. He had a GBB before that but didn’t get the sparks. The best time is on the range at night. At the time I thought it was the moisture on the balls.
Response:
wouldn’t that be errr, PLUTONIUM? =)
Perhaps it is a new exotic metal hybrid, TiPu, for more explosive drives! … 
JB
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I’l bet whatever wood it is has Titanium in it. I read somewhere (Golf Digest?) that some woods will do this. Something to do with cilica in the sand used to topdress grass and the metal in the wood. If not true, its because of extreme clubhead speed. : ) Ross Bowditch No Pin is Safe
Response:
I believe that titanium has something to do with the sparks. Before the titanium driver I have now I had a steel driver and I’ve never seen any sparks, now, with the titanium one, they are pretty common. But when I see them usually the driver hits at least some ground. Greetings from Italy Massimo – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – but as i’ve said in other parts of this debate, the jury seems to be out on the actual cause of the phenomena. intuitively i like most others would first guess that it is a result of something very hard like silica being compressed onto the face of the driver. but the opinions i heard from
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I’m assuming that pun was intended? =) TiPu, gotta ask my prof if that’s possible.=P
Response:
Sometimes we observe small sparks, when my friend Arie does his first shot with a methal wood from a tee. What is the cause of this ? Can this happen with all methal woods of all brands ? Can it also happen with irons ? Has the moisture contents of the air anything to do with this (dry wet)? Temperature ? Is charge involved ? Has this anything to do with the way he hits the ball (angle versus force of impact) ? Is there any relation with ordinary lightning ?
Response:
Sometimes we observe small sparks, when my friend Arie does his first shot with a methal wood from a tee. What is the cause of this ? Can this happen with all methal woods of all brands ?
More than likely the culprit is static electricity. HTH p e a r c e A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. On my desk I have a work station… -Steven Wright Want more humor from Steven Wright? Then goto: http://members.home.net/jwps3/home.html
Response:
: Sometimes we observe small sparks, when my friend Arie does his first : shot with a methal wood from a tee. : What is the cause of this ? : Can this happen with all methal woods of all brands ? : Can it also happen with irons ? : Has the moisture contents of the air anything to do with this (dry : wet)? : Temperature ? : Is charge involved ? : Has this anything to do with the way he hits the ball (angle versus : force of impact) ? : Is there any relation with ordinary lightning ? : Nicolaas, The sparks you see are nothing to be alarmed about IF your mate is using a TITANIUM type driver. It is a perfectly normal reaction although I do not know what causes the sparks to fly. Regards, Russ T.
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Sometimes we observe small sparks, when my friend Arie does his first shot with a methal wood from a tee. What is the cause of this ? Can this happen with all methal woods of all brands ?
Don’t know what METHAL woods are. (But if they contain methane, sparks could represent a serious danger. Better ask your pro.) On the other hand, metal woods, especially titaniums, often produce observable (but quite harmless) sparks at impact. Don’t know the physical explanation, but presume it’s some sort of friction effect–like striking a flint. — "Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself. . ."–Walt Whitman
Response:
I have observed sparks on occassion when hitting my titanium driver. This is the only club I have noticed sparks accompanying impact with a ball. I can’t say what the atmospheric conditions were like on these occassions (other than it was very overcast or nearing sundown), and I haven’t observed this phenomenon with any other clubs. However, keeping in mind a statement made by a golf pro I once went to for help with my swing, I would guarantee that I had made a sound swing with solid impact on the ball. ChiliDipper p.s. Oh, the statement made by the golf pro was, "Upon evaluation of your swing, I can safely say that I can get you to the point of making solid contact with the ball about as often as the likelihood of lightning striking your teed up ball." (snipped)
Response:
There is a reaction between the titanium and silica in the soil which causes the spark…I am not sure (I don’t know) what the mechanism is. Silica is a very common substance in soil and sand.
i don’t think thats it. fwiw i’ve seen the question put to some physics genius and after a week of research he wasn’t able to come up with a satisfactory answer, though he was leaning towards some surface charge effect. i’ve had sparks with my gbb, using a ball new out of the sleeve and picking it off the tee without any contact with the ground. brett
Response:
The sparks are caused by bits of grit caught between the club and ball at impact…
this has been debated by scientists. please point me to any available technical literature which supports your argument …. can’t do it?? didn’t think so. the scientific community is as far as i can tell leaning toward some weird surface charge effect. brett
Response:
The sparks are caused by bits of grit caught between the club and ball at impact… — my names Cliff… drop over some time.
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Sometimes we observe small sparks, when my friend Arie does his first shot with a methal wood from a tee. What is the cause of this ? Can this happen with all methal woods of all brands ? Can it also happen with irons ? Has the moisture contents of the air anything to do with this (dry wet)? Temperature ? Is charge involved ? Has this anything to do with the way he hits the ball (angle versus force of impact) ? Is there any relation with ordinary lightning ?
Response:
Ha Ha…you are joking, right? — my names Cliff… drop over some time. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Sometimes we observe small sparks, when my friend Arie does his first shot with a methal wood from a tee. What is the cause of this ? Can this happen with all methal woods of all brands ? More than likely the culprit is static electricity. HTH p e a r c e A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. On my desk I have a work station… -Steven Wright Want more humor from Steven Wright? Then goto: http://members.home.net/jwps3/home.html
Response:
Perhaps the dirt in between the grooves is what is coming loose and catching fire. You would have to scrub that thing spotless to test again with your experiment. Dave – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – There is a reaction between the titanium and silica in the soil which causes the spark…I am not sure (I don’t know) what the mechanism is. Silica is a very common substance in soil and sand. i don’t think thats it. fwiw i’ve seen the question put to some physics genius and after a week of research he wasn’t able to come up with a satisfactory answer, though he was leaning towards some surface charge effect. i’ve had sparks with my gbb, using a ball new out of the sleeve and picking it off the tee without any contact with the ground. brett
Response:
: Sometimes we observe small sparks, when my friend Arie does his first : shot with a methal wood from a tee. : What is the cause of this ? : Can this happen with all methal woods of all brands ? : Can it also happen with irons ? : Has the moisture contents of the air anything to do with this (dry : wet)? : Temperature ? : Is charge involved ? : Has this anything to do with the way he hits the ball (angle versus : force of impact) ? : Is there any relation with ordinary lightning ?
Damn that cheap Chernobyl waste titanium! Stuart
Response:
There is a reaction between the titanium and silica in the soil which causes the spark…I am not sure (I don’t know) what the mechanism is. Silica is a very common substance in soil and sand. david
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Sometimes we observe small sparks, when my friend Arie does his first shot with a methal wood from a tee. What is the cause of this ? Can this happen with all methal woods of all brands ? Can it also happen with irons ? Has the moisture contents of the air anything to do with this (dry wet)? Temperature ? Is charge involved ? Has this anything to do with the way he hits the ball (angle versus force of impact) ? Is there any relation with ordinary lightning ?
Response:
It’s fairly common with titanium metal woods. And though I’ve never personally witnessed it with titanium irons, I suspect it happens with them, too. Randy website: http://wwwgolfer.home.mindspring.com RSG Roll Call profile: http://u1.netgate.net/~kirby34/rsg/brownr.htm "Preparing now for Y3K."
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Sometimes we observe small sparks, when my friend Arie does his first shot with a methal wood from a tee. What is the cause of this ? Can this happen with all methal woods of all brands ? Can it also happen with irons ? Has the moisture contents of the air anything to do with this (dry wet)? Temperature ? Is charge involved ? Has this anything to do with the way he hits the ball (angle versus force of impact) ? Is there any relation with ordinary lightning ?
Response:
: Sometimes we observe small sparks, when my friend Arie does his first : shot with a methal wood from a tee. : What is the cause of this ? : Can this happen with all methal woods of all brands ? : Can it also happen with irons ? : Has the moisture contents of the air anything to do with this (dry : wet)? : Temperature ? : Is charge involved ? : Has this anything to do with the way he hits the ball (angle versus : force of impact) ? : Is there any relation with ordinary lightning ? This happens frequently on my drives, according to people I play with. I’m fairly certain it is just caused by contact of the metal wood against small rocks and pebbles that are often present on the tee box. JWB ——-
Response:
Vroom, Vroom! I noticed this sparking phenomena a few years ago during a round in December. I wasn’t too good about cleaning of the ball and the greens and tees had been dressed with a fine type of sand. As it was beginning to get dim in the late afternoon, I with my playing partner noticed the sparks of my Cobra Ti driver. After checking with the Cobra folks they explained some dirt or sand on the ball can cause the Ti alloy to spark upon contact and compression of the ball. It’s not necessarily the Titanium but the trace amounts of cadmium and other elements in the alloy. According to other in RSG at the time they had similar experiences. A novelty item for sure. I’m not sure if anyone has had anything happen with irons, but I doubt that it has much to do with static electricity, unless you’re rubbing it the wrong way! Get some shades and keep hitting em! Ed
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Sometimes we observe small sparks, when my friend Arie does his first shot with a methal wood from a tee. What is the cause of this ? Can this happen with all methal woods of all brands ? Can it also happen with irons ? Has the moisture contents of the air anything to do with this (dry wet)? Temperature ? Is charge involved ? Has this anything to do with the way he hits the ball (angle versus force of impact) ? Is there any relation with ordinary lightning ?
Response:
Sometimes we observe small sparks, when my friend Arie does his first shot with a methal wood from a tee. What is the cause of this ? Can this happen with all methal woods of all brands ? Can it also happen with irons ? Has the moisture contents of the air anything to do with this (dry wet)? Temperature ? Is charge involved ? Has this anything to do with the way he hits the ball (angle versus force of impact) ? Is there any relation with ordinary lightning ?
It happened to my Great big bertha titanium 5 wood a lot of times. My firesole driver also has a TI head, but haven’t seen anything yet. Before you buy.