Walking Off Yardages (Back in the Day)

[Friz]

17 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

As long as you trust that guy's rangefinder is reading the flagstick, not the tree over the green.

Trust is certainly the key...I don't have a laser rangefinder, but use a GPS watch that gives me front, middle, and back of green and is generally spot on.  A couple weeks ago I was paired with someone that had the laser and was friendly enough to announce everything.  But on one par 3, he gives a reading of 165 to a flag on the back of the green.  I'm looking at my watch and I have 145 to the center of the green, 159 to the back edge.  I've never played this course before so wasn't sure if it had been modified since coordinates were plugged into my watch or what, but I trust his laser, grab an extra club, and knock it 10 yards over the green.

After I swung I found a sprinkler head on the front of the tee box that matched my watch perfectly.  Not sure what his laser picked up.

[Double Mocha Man]

I recall, right after I purchased my laser rangefinder, that I boomed a drive on #9.  Used the rangefinder exclusively.  I hit a great nine iron 150 yards, thought it was going to be all over the flag.  It landed well up a wooded and blackberried hillside behind the green!  Then I looked to my right to notice the red yardage marker indicating 100 yards to the hole.

Now I always double check against any yardage markers.

[Aguirre]

Back in the day? I'm still doing this. And no, I'm not slowing up play. That specifically has to be one of the least worries about slowing play. Unless you walk like a slow f***, which DOES slow up play.

[iacas]

19 minutes ago, Aguirre said:

Back in the day? I'm still doing this. And no, I'm not slowing up play. That specifically has to be one of the least worries about slowing play. Unless you walk like a slow f***, which DOES slow up play.

It's slower than hitting it with a rangefinder.

Or glancing at a GPS.

Especially if you don't see the nearest sprinkler head right away.

[TourSpoon]

14 hours ago, iacas said:

Especially if you don't see the nearest sprinkler head right away.

So back in the day, the good course books listed the sprinkler heads and corresponding yardages to make them easier to find. We lived by those sprinkler head yardages! I can't remember the last time I looked for one, and the ones I do stumble upon seem like they were mix and matched. 

[Aguirre]

On 6/26/2022 at 9:16 PM, iacas said:

It's slower than hitting it with a rangefinder.

Or glancing at a GPS.

Especially if you don't see the nearest sprinkler head right away.

I'm always waiting to hit my shot anyway. Plenty of time.

[ssbn611]

On 6/23/2022 at 12:52 PM, Double Mocha Man said:

I recall, right after I purchased my laser rangefinder, that I boomed a drive on #9.  Used the rangefinder exclusively.  I hit a great nine iron 150 yards, thought it was going to be all over the flag.  It landed well up a wooded and blackberried hillside behind the green!  Then I looked to my right to notice the red yardage marker indicating 100 yards to the hole.

Now I always double check against any yardage markers.

One needs to make sure they are hitting the flag stick and not something behind it. My club uses flag sticks with reflectors, but not all do that.

On 6/26/2022 at 8:56 PM, Aguirre said:

Back in the day? I'm still doing this. And no, I'm not slowing up play. That specifically has to be one of the least worries about slowing play. Unless you walk like a slow f***, which DOES slow up play.

I remember on some course I played in CA the only yardage markers between the tee and the green were a specific type of small tree or palm tree that was the 150 marker. Nothing else. I got pretty good at eye balling distances and still am today.  Still use my laser range finder though. 

[Double Mocha Man]

9 minutes ago, ssbn611 said:

One needs to make sure they are hitting the flag stick and not something behind it. My club uses flag sticks with reflectors, but not all do that.

The courses I play have prisms or reflectors on the flagstick but they only work about a third of the time...