At what point does a range-finder or GPS actually help?

[Fourputt]

Originally Posted by Kobey

Glad you started this thread.  I had some questions as well but didn't want to change the subject in the other thread until I was sure the OP's original question had been answered completely.

I've been thinking about getting a GPS to learn how far I normally hit longer shots so I can start doing some course management.  I think rangefinders and GPS units are more helpful for the mid to high handicappers.  A beginner isn't going to need to worry about distances and I'd bet the better players can usually just tell by looking what club they will need in each situation.  But they would still come in handy on unfamiliar courses where hazards are too far away or hidden to judge properly.

Actually the better a player is, the more he is going to want accurate information.  Very few people can tell the difference between 180 yards and 190 yards just by eye, and that's a one club difference.  For a good player, it can mean the difference between a birdie opportunity and leaving the ball in potential 3 putt range or missing the green completely.

[Paradox]

Another thing a range finder can help with is when you're in the rough.  There are several holes on my course that even if you're dead even with the 150 marker, you can have +/- 15 yards difference depending on which side of the fairway you're off of.  Those are the kind of things where a rangefinder/GPS will make a difference, IMO.  No one on earth hits every shot to some place where a measurement to the green has been taken, or on a par 5 where they know how far it actually is to the spot they wanna lay up to.  Always better to know than to guess.

[Deryck Griffith]

For me, knowing my distances is key to preventing any guessing.

Say I'm playing to a green and I "assume" the middle (where the pin is) is "around" 175 yards.  That's my 7iron.  If I "assume" incorrectly and hit a nice crisp 7i to a pin that was only say 163 yards, I just screwed myself and wasted a great shot.  If I had my range finder, I would've been able to zap the pin to know that it was 163 yards which is a 8 iron and would've been on the green vs on the very back or even off the green in some sort of hazard scrambling to save par when knowing the correct distance would've given me a birdie putt.

Another situation where I love to know the exact distance is off of the tee.  Say there is a hazard at the end of the fairway on a shorter par 4.  Without knowing how far that hazard is, I can assume that it's say 260 yards away but I'm not sure really.  So what do I do?  I pull out my driver and take a half ass "weak" swing that results in a bad hook or some sort of push into tress or whatever.  If I had a range finder or GPS, I would've known that the hazard at the end of the fairway is exactly 250 yards away.  Key word here is KNOWN and that added reinforcement in knowing the exact distance would've prompted me to immediately pull out my 3 hybrid enabling me take a nice full proper swing that will only carry and roll out to 230-240 vs. a half ass "I'm not sure if I'll be safe if I hit this driver hard" swing.

Reinforcement in golf, especially when estimating distances is a VERY important thing.  Golf is a hard enough game as is and playing the guessing game with distances can only hurt your game vs. help it.  So why assume or guess when there is legal technology there to help you?

[BuckeyeNut]

Knowing the exact distance to the pin will help both the beginner and low HC player.  If you are a beginner, it's a very good way to learn your distances!!

Plus...many lower tier courses/muni's have terrible yardages.  Just because you're relatively near the "150 bush" doesn't mean you have 150 to the pin.  The difference to the pin could be +/- 20yds..........  Or you'll be on a par3 with one yardage plaque. (sometimes with bad yardages)  You'll never learn how far you hit your clubs until you know yardages with certainty.

Every golfer will benefit from accurate yardages...there is no doubt about it.

[SpannersReady]

As a newb to golf the GPS has helped me with course management. Inside 100 yards I find it hard to judge. I have a shot that goes 50 and knowing that I'm at 40 yards exactly tells me what percentage of my 'go to' 50 yard pitch to play.

Also because I can't hit my 4,5 or 6 iron yet I have a large yardage gap from my 150 7i to my 190 3 hybrid if I find myself at 180 exactly I can choose to hit an easy 9 instead of over reaching the 3hyb. anything

beyond 200 I need to lay up. Knowing the yardage means I can pick my approach shot and not just try to belt the living water out of it with my 3.

[Wansteadimp]

I've got a laser, helps from 150 in. Helps all over on unfamiliar courses.

Also helps in matchplay against fast players, get it out from 30 yards out, take your time, watch steam rise, hopefully reap benefits!!!

[BuckeyeNut]

I find it interesting when people say it helps me from "XX-and in"........yes, most shots are from inside XX.......but it should help you from everywhere....from the tee, layups, etc, etc..... it's just not from 100 or 150 and in......

[Kobey]

Question:  Do the pros use rangefinders?  I don't think I have ever seen a caddy using one.  If not, why not?

[mymizunosrock]

I think the other major advantage with any measuring device is when you go to a course you have never played before. Providing there is a course file for your given GPS program. Not all courses have fairway and sprinkler measurements on them, so playing a course that is new to you with no measurements comes in handy.

[Paradox]

they don't use them in competition because they are not allowed to.  They use the heck out of them in practice rounds/walking the course before an event, though.  Its how they get specific numbers for their players in the yardage book they carry.

Originally Posted by Kobey

Question:  Do the pros use rangefinders?  I don't think I have ever seen a caddy using one.  If not, why not?

[mymizunosrock]

Originally Posted by Kobey

Question:  Do the pros use rangefinders?  I don't think I have ever seen a caddy using one.  If not, why not?

They cant on the tour, but they are allowed to use them during practice rounds when mapping a course.

[Kobey]

Originally Posted by mymizunosrock

They cant on the tour, but they are allowed to use them during practice rounds when mapping a course.

Is that an event specific rule?  So could they print maps of the holes from their GPS and mark all the locations with yardages and use that?  Or does everything have to be hand drawn in their little notebooks?

[BuckeyeNut]

Originally Posted by Kobey

Question:  Do the pros use rangefinders?  I don't think I have ever seen a caddy using one.  If not, why not?

Every pro and caddy uses them extensively..........they just can't use them during competition.

[RPMPIRE]

Agreed. I mostly reflect on when I've used the rangefinder the most. I do use them to measure the end of doglegs, if there's a fairway hazard, etc., but about 90% of my use is on my approach shots.

Originally Posted by BuckeyeNut

I find it interesting when people say it helps me from "XX-and in"........yes, most shots are from inside XX.......but it should help you from everywhere....from the tee, layups, etc, etc..... it's just not from 100 or 150 and in......

[Roblar]

Thanks to everyone for all the posts so far -- I've enjoyed reading them, and I feel like I've learned a bit.

It seems like most people find three main advantages to a range-finder / GPS:

*learning the yardage for your clubs

*confidence - being *sure* of your yardage on a shot (to hazards, greens, flags, OB, etc.)

*figuring out yardage at a new course - especially one not well marked for yardages

And really good players certainly get more out of knowing exact yardages.

It's also made me realize why I don't really crave either a GPS or range-finder: I've used the range to figure out my yardages (and they translate well to the course), and I almost always play the same course, and it's a pretty forgiving course, so I feel pretty confident about most of the shots I face.

I do wonder if there is a subconscious feedback loop from using a range finder -- knowing exact yardages helps you hit to exact yardages?

It's funny because I actually avoid figuring out exact yardages when I get closer than about 80 yards.  I spend a lot of time at the range hitting a pitching wedge to different distances (30-80 yards), and I've tried to develop a sense for it.  ...no, I'm not that good at it...  Makes me wonder if I would do better using a range finder and trying to hit to exact distances.

(So range-finder? GPS? ...The best thing I could do would be to take a few more lessons and work on a more consistent swing.)

[zeg]

Within a round, I find my GPS to be the most useful when making shots at the green.  Sure, there are times when you have to worry about trouble for other reasons, but those are not nearly as common.  Also, on a couple of the courses I played the most, it was often possible (and in one case, perhaps even preferable...) to approach the green from an adjacent fairway.  In that situation it can be very difficult to estimate an accurate distance, especially if your sight lines to the correct fairway are blocked by trees.

But I'll echo what's been said above---I think the biggest overall benefit has been getting an idea of my yardages for various clubs under playing conditions.  It turns out they were pretty close to what I'd estimated from range work, but it's comforting to confirm it.

[ghalfaire]

I carry a GPS and it is always helpful to know the yardage as I am a poor judge of distance.  But it most helpful when playing courses that you are not familiar with or when hitting from unfamiliar places on courses you play all the time.

[Fourputt]

Originally Posted by Kobey

Is that an event specific rule?  So could they print maps of the holes from their GPS and mark all the locations with yardages and use that?  Or does everything have to be hand drawn in their little notebooks?

No, its a tour requirement.  Actually, rangefinders of any kind are prohibited by the Rules of Golf under Rule 14.  They are only allowed if the suggested local rule is in effect for a given competition.  It must be stated somewhere in the tournament rules or on the organization hard card that electronic distance measuring devices are allowed.  If that permission isn't stated, then they are not allowed.

Those "little books" are actually made up and published by a guy or group which I believe does basic caddy books for all of the Tour stops.  The caddies then take the book and walk the course, usually with a Bushnell Pro 1600 laser, and check to verify the books correctness and add additional measurements to the book.  They also roll balls on the greens to check slope and break to various possible hole locations from different parts of the green.  All of that goes into the book that they use for the tournament.  Jack Nicklaus is generally credited with being the first to make and use such a book.