You have to choose a layout first. Doesn't matter what layout system you use, it can be pin/CG distance to PAP, pin/MB distance (whether the ball has a marked MB or you mark where it would be a la RG and DT's drill sheets), or degree-based layouts.
Usually you'll at least specify the pin-PAP distance. Say 4". Draw a circle around the pin that's 4" in radius. If you want the CG to also be 4", draw a similar circle around the CG. Where they meet is the PAP or a nonsense point (since they'll intersect in two places). Usually it will be obvious which is which when you consider what a 4x4 layout should look like and where your fingers will be.
Choose a pin height above the midline, say 3" (close to the fingerline for most people). Draw a line from the PAP you've found towards where the grip center will be, measure how high the pin is above this line. If it's not what you want, try again. You'll have to take into account the vertical as well as the horizontal PAP coordinates. There's probably a way to do this in one step without guessing about where the line from the PAP to grip center goes, but my geometry fails me at that point.
If you're doing a degree-based layout, draw a line from the pin to the MB (or CG). If you want, say, a 75* layout (puts the MB close to the strong position most of the time), mark the line that's 75* from that pin-MB line. Choose your pin-to-PAP distance, measure it along that second line. That's your PAP. Back out the grip center from there.
You need a special tool called a
quarter scale for marking those lines, distances, and angles. That page also has a lot of other tools that will make laying the ball out easier, such as backing out the grip center from the PAP.
There was a video from one of the Brunswick staffers on laying out a Zone Classic using the degree system. I'll try to dig it up and maybe post it on Youtube if possible. Seeing it in action made the whole thing very easy to understand. It was simplified somewhat; I think the PAP was 5" over with no vertical component, and they just marked about where the holes would be without marking the actual cut lines.
SH
