Sky Caddie?!

[Chilidipper]

Does this really improve your game? I've been debating between the range finders and Sky Caddie. Please let me know your experience with either one or both.

Thanks for any input.

[PiKapp23]

There are several very long forums discussions on range finders vs. GPS units. Just do a search from toolbar for 'rangefinders' or 'gps' and you'll find the threads (many have recent updates). The summary of what most say is GPS is simple and quick, but info is static. Rangefinders can be more difficult to use but provide more dynamic information. When it comes down to it almost everyone prefers what they have. I have GPS and have found it helps me a lot. People with rangefinders are saying the same thing. There is a lot of good info and opinions in those other discussion threads that might help you out in making a decision.

[Chilidipper]

  PiKapp23 said:

There are several very long forums discussions on range finders vs. GPS units. Just do a search from toolbar for 'rangefinders' or 'gps' and you'll find the threads (many have recent updates). The summary of what most say is GPS is simple and quick, but info is static. Rangefinders can be more difficult to use but provide more dynamic information. When it comes down to it almost everyone prefers what they have. I have GPS and have found it helps me a lot. People with rangefinders are saying the same thing. There is a lot of good info and opinions in those other discussion threads that might help you out in making a decision.

Thank you

[jmoc]

  Chilidipper said:

Does this really improve your game?

Yes, which ever one you chose, knowing the distances gives you more confidence to swing, should get you closer to the pin and "should" make club selection quicker. Better scores, less time... jmoc

[PiKapp23]

  jmoc said:

Yes, which ever one you chose, knowing the distances gives you more confidence to swing, should get you closer to the pin and "should" make club selection quicker. Better scores, less time... jmoc

Personally, I have found they are more helpful on those short irons/wedge shots than anything else. I like it for these because I can get front/middle/back yardages quickly and decide how to play it based on that. Knowing all three distances can be a huge help over just knowing middle (or for some short shots even knowing the middle distance is a guess).

[Big_M]

They won't help you hit shots any better, but knowing things like
-a green is 35 yds deep
-I have 240 off the tee to a creek and 280 to clear it
-if I cut the dogleg the green is 280 over the trees and I might be able to reach

mainly they save you time... no more pacing off yardages (especially nice on poorly marked courses, and help with lay-ups, decesions, etc.

I love mine... rangefinders are nice too, but I prefer GPS.

I also suggest checking out iGolf products http://www.igolf.com/

[joseywales]

I bought the sg5 this summer and sold it a month later. Don't get me wrong...it was really cool and more of a toy than anything. The only problem is that for me, it was great on courses that I didn't play very often. On my home course, it did more harm than good. I am used to just hitting what I have all my life on the course I am most familiar with. The greatest advantage was under 100 yards where there is no marker to get yardage from. On the full shots, I found that I would talk myself into and out of bad shot decisions because I had too much information. The biggest thing I didn't like about it was that it took alot of the fun out of the game. Being able to decide on what type of shot to hit after deciding on the correct yardage on your own is alot of what makes golf fun for me.
It was a really cool toy though with all of that being said.

[Fourputt]

  PiKapp23 said:

There are several very long forums discussions on range finders vs. GPS units. Just do a search from toolbar for 'rangefinders' or 'gps' and you'll find the threads (many have recent updates). The summary of what most say is GPS is simple and quick, but info is static. Rangefinders can be more difficult to use but provide more dynamic information. When it comes down to it almost everyone prefers what they have. I have GPS and have found it helps me a lot. People with rangefinders are saying the same thing. There is a lot of good info and opinions in those other discussion threads that might help you out in making a decision.

And I will soon have both, and be able to get the benefits that both provide...

..... yeah, yeah... I know I'm a sick, sick man. But I get such good prices with my employee discount through the golf course pro shop that I can't help myself.