The Relationship between work, force and distance

[tascja]

Homework Statement

I am supposed to relate work, force and distance to each other and to a sport.

2. The attempt at a solution
I chose to describe golf. Here is how I am relating work, force and distance in the game. Could someone just check to make sure I have the right relationships?

1. When the golfers club hits the ball the kinetic energy from his swing gets transferred to his golf ball
2. Because of his energy he is able to do work - applying a force and making the ball move a certain distance
3. the more energy he gives to his swing the more work he can do. Therefore a greater force will be applied to the golf ball and it will travel a greater distance
4. If the golfer wants the ball to travel a specific distance he must perform a specific amount of work, thus applying a force.

Thank you in advance!

 

[JaWiB]

> Therefore a greater force will be applied to the golf ball and it will travel a greater distance

Is there any other way (other than increasing the force on the ball) to make the ball move a greater distance? Or maybe more accurately, is there any other way to transfer more energy to the ball?

 

[tascja]

Im not that acquainted with golf; the only thing i can think of is a harder swing. Like the more power the golfer exerts the more energy in his swing??

 

[JaWiB]

>Like the more power the golfer exerts the more energy in his swing??

Not necessarily true. Talking about power is getting a bit off topic though; I was actually looking for a more basic answer.

Work depends on two things: the force applied and the displacement of the object over which the force is applied (for constant force in one dimension: Work = Force*distance) So in general, you could apply a larger force or you could apply the same force over a greater distance to increase the work done on an object.

 

[D H]

3. the more energy he gives to his swing the more work he can do. Therefore a greater force will be applied to the golf ball and it will travel a greater distance

That's assuming all other things are equal. A lot of factors beside swing speed affect the distance a ball travels. I don't want to do your homework for you, so perhaps you should think of some of those other factors.