Halliday, Resnick & Walker — Motion in Two and Three Dimensions: Problem 40

40 Suppose that a shot putter can put a shot at the world-class speed $v_0 = 15.00 \text{ m/s}$ and at a height of $2.160 \text{ m}$. What horizontal distance would the shot travel if the launch angle $\theta_0$ is (a) $45.00^{\circ}$ and (b) $42.00^{\circ}$? The answers indicate that the angle of $45^{\circ}$, which maximizes the range of projectile motion, does not maximize the horizontal distance when the launch and landing are at different heights.