Judging distance

[skillzwhogolfs]

So at the beginning of this year I have found an iron swing that most always fly's right at the pin, the problem is distance. I have been over and short so many times with such a good swing it's actually annoying and causing a par round into +6.

My question is how do you guys judge distance without any range finder ( I have no money to buy one) and just using yardage markers on the course? how do you bring wind, elevation, and whatever else into the final yardage decision?

[namkrats]

Well the very first thing I do is find out where the pin is. I then find out distance to the middle of the green by looking for a sprinkler head of that sort. Figure out the wind, take a club, usually club up by one in case i don't hit that great it still has a chance to get there. go through my pre shot routine commit and make a good swing

[Shorty]

You have to know how far you hit the ball. It's that simple. Add some for headwind and upslope. Deduct some for tailwinds and downslopes.

Noone used  a rangefindfer a few years ago. Hell, when I started you didn't even have distance markers on golf courses.

Your problem is that you are clearly not making consistent contacy and have no idea how far you hit it.

A rangefinder is useless unless you know your distances.

Aim for the middle of the green and I guarantee you'll rarely have more than a 30 foot putt.

I have found an iron swing that most always fly's right at the pin

The above is a quote form your post. You may need a dose of reality.

Even if you are one club long or one club short, this is not causing "par rounds becoming +6 rounds".

[skillzwhogolfs]

I think that the problem I have is that when i choose to club up because of wind or in between clubs I make too good of contact with the ball and launch it over the green. The other day i was about 180 out, wind against me so i took my 180-185 club and hit it almost 200 yards lol, ended up double bogey.

[skillzwhogolfs]

yeah I don't believe i am making consistent contact, I don't usually make poor contact like a chunk or anything but just seems like at the worst times i hit clubs 20 yards further than i should.

[mad max]

Originally Posted by skillzwhogolfs

So at the beginning of this year I have found an iron swing that most always fly's right at the pin, the problem is distance. I have been over and short so many times with such a good swing it's actually annoying and causing a par round into +6.

My question is how do you guys judge distance without any range finder ( I have no money to buy one) and just using yardage markers on the course? how do you bring wind, elevation, and whatever else into the final yardage decision?

Experience.

[skillzwhogolfs]

Yeah I guess so, I will just focus more on distance for a while until i get it down.

[Wallstreet]

You really need to go to a range with multiple yardages/ greens and find out how far you hit the ball with each club.  If you are hitting your 180 club 200 yards then you either have a ton of variances in your swing speeds or you don't hit the ball flush when you hit it 180.  My guess is that you over swung and had flush contact which (even with the wind) added yards to your shot.  That is just my guess though.

[Parker0065]

Originally Posted by skillzwhogolfs

I think that the problem I have is that when i choose to club up because of wind or in between clubs I make too good of contact with the ball and launch it over the green. The other day i was about 180 out, wind against me so i took my 180-185 club and hit it almost 200 yards lol, ended up double bogey.

I agree 100% with others that say you need to do more range work to get precise averages for each club. As far as dealing with wind, when I normally club up it's primarily to use a lower lofted club to keep the ball low and out of the wind. If I club up from a 7 iron to a 6 iron I will usually grip down 1/4 to 1/2 inch on the 6 iron which basically turns it into a lower lofted 7-iron. How far I grip up or down will depend on how hard the wind is blowing. There's no "Magic" answer other than practice and experience. Also on hard blowing downwind shots I try to keep the ball low as well. I see a lot of people make the mistake downwind of taking less club and swinging hard. This propels the ball higher into the air, the wind carries it and many times it comes down like a scalded cat and runs to the back of the green.

Another thing about measuring yardage on the course is learning your "pace count". The average persons stride is about 1 yard, but you could mark off a 10 yard distance and walk it a few times and count how many steps you take. On the course count off from the nearest marker. I have a Skycaddie that I hardly use anymore but I use to count off from a known marker from time to time and compare it and most of the time I would be within 1-3 yards so learning to pace off yardage can be pretty accurate if practiced.

Dial your yardages in on the range, practice hitting high and low shots and you will be hitting a lot more greens!

[Ctp722]

Yea, what the others said it right its not about knowing how far away the hole is...It's about know how far you hit each club.

As far as the wind goes take the first few holes to really pay attention to the ball flight and the direction of the wind.

Range, range, range to find your distances, in my experience don't pay attention to what others are playing just have to know your own distance.

[Popeye]

Just to revive a old thread! I am trying to work on my pitching and have managed to work out what distances I can hit different wedges to with different swings etc but what I really struggle with on the course is judging distances within 100 yards. I don't have a range finder so anyone with any tips on this it would be very much appreciated! 

[Missouri Swede]

What kind of results do you get pacing it off from the nearest marker?

[Lihu]

5 hours ago, Popeye said:

Just to revive a old thread! I am trying to work on my pitching and have managed to work out what distances I can hit different wedges to with different swings etc but what I really struggle with on the course is judging distances within 100 yards. I don't have a range finder so anyone with any tips on this it would be very much appreciated! 

Guessing you mean on random courses and not your home course?

By feel doesn’t really work very well, and pacing off markers only really works for smaller greens. So, I’d recommend purchasing a rangefinder. Even a cheap one works well for 50 to 150 yards or a bit longer?

[Patch]

Over the years, I have become a consistent judge of distances. Problem is I am consistently short.

My remedy is, if I see a 50 yard shot, I pull a 60 yard club. 

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[Popeye]

3 hours ago, Missouri Swede said:

What kind of results do you get pacing it off from the nearest marker?

I'm  only really confident for the first 50 yards or so. After that I'm not really convinced about reliable results. Especially when you start involving slopes etc! Most courses here only have a 150 marker and occasionally a 100. 

 

1 hour ago, Patch said:

Over the years, I have become a consistent judge of distances. 

Is that just through trial and error or have you a secret formula! 

2 hours ago, Lihu said:

 I’d recommend purchasing a rangefinder.  Even a cheap one works well for 50 to 150 yards or a bit longer?

My only reservation about this (apart from the cost) is that from I understand, although might be wrong, you can't use them in compititions-so then what do I do? 

[dennyjones]

6 hours ago, Popeye said:

My only reservation about this (apart from the cost) is that from I understand, although might be wrong, you can't use them in compititions-so then what do I do? 

This is partly true.  The new 2019 proposed rules allow the use of DMD:   New rule: The use of DMDs is allowed, unless a Local Rule has been adopted prohibiting their use.     I believe, the slope feature must be turned off. 

[Lihu]

7 hours ago, Popeye said:

My only reservation about this (apart from the cost) is that from I understand, although might be wrong, you can't use them in compititions-so then what do I do? 

Or be like me and have a rangefinder but be too lazy to pull it out

Seriously, it might make a couple strokes difference in a round of your chipping is good and more if bad.

[Foot Wedge]

1 hour ago, dennyjones said:

The use of DMDs is allowed, unless a Local Rule has been adopted prohibiting their use.     I believe, the slope feature must be turned off. 

@Popeye  You could get a rangefinder without the slope feature then.  This will also help with the cost.  I got a simple Bushell off ebay for about $70.  It's hard to shoot flags from further than about 175 but I am not exactly flag hunting from 200 yards out.  

If you're concerned about partial wedge distances, it's a good investment.  Say that you know a 3/4 sand wedge will go 75 yards and a 3/4 lob wedge goes 65, the rangefinder will tell you what club to pull.  If you do your part and put the right swing on the ball wouldn't it be frustrating to tack on another 10 yards to your birdie putt because you went with the wrong club?  That's the difference between a 10' birdie putt and a 40 footer.  10 yards doesn't seem like too much until you think about it that way.