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Rangefinders? Seriously?!?

SuperStroke
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Richard Rodgers said:
I started playing in the '70s when it was rare to even have 150yd markers. It taught me to give my best guess, which was prob way off in many cases.
Three yrs ago I bought a GPS watch. How the hell I coped all those previous years I don't know. It has been a revelation. I usually take note of front and back yardage, and work from that.
I see folks lasering the flag all the time, and whilst they get an accurate distance to pin, I bet prob 90% or more golfers on this forum, and golf in general, are not good enough to be accurate to within 10 yards from outside 120yds.
Distance devices generally speed up play unless you are one of those guys who use it for every single shot. That is what winds me up, especially when it is some 20 capper who is lucky to hit the green from outside 100yds, never mind get anywhere near the pin.
Since using a GPS, my manual judgement of distance has got way better.

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I'm not sure what a golfers accuracy or their handicap has to do with them wanting to know how far away their target is. Are you saying the average golfer would be better off guessing and then hoping for the best? I guess I don't understand how skill has any relevance in this discussion. I'd say flying greens or accidentally getting into a fairway bunker adds way more time than shooting a laser.
 
Heez, what I was trying to get at is that whilst knowing that the flag is 135.5 yards away is very nice and dandy, actually having a swing repeatability that will get that little white egg close to that distance is not very common, and in general, but not always, I would say that the higher someone's handicap the further away from that 135.5 yards they will be. In that case the golfer would be way better playing the percentages and getting it on the green rather than getting over concerned about the flag.

Getting a short game that is half descent will shave far more shots off than a GPS/Laser ever will for newer golfers.

Yes we all like to do the best we can and use the best technology we can. Sometimes though we all, me included, rely too much on this modern technology on the course rather than using the most technologically advanced things we have. Our eyes & brains. There is a lot of golf that is all about feel.
 
I don't mind some fast playing hack using a rangefinder (just as quick as pacing if not faster), but they need to use it after the shot, too, so they can find out how far they actually hit whatever club it was they had deluded themselves into thinking was a good idea.
 
Or, and this is a wacky idea, they could just figure out their distances on the range. Like the vast majority do. No need to laser twice.
 
Jman said:
Or, and this is a wacky idea, they could just figure out their distances on the range. Like the vast majority do. No need to laser twice.
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And maybe since we hacks can't be as precise as a laser demands we be, we can figure out where the top of that pesky bell curve ends up with each club and use that information in concert with the laser on the course.
 
Jman said:
Or, and this is a wacky idea, they could just figure out their distances on the range. Like the vast majority do. No need to laser twice.
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A likely response from at least some of them - "range?"
 
PetuniaSprinkle said:
A likely response from at least some of them - "range?"
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You should really attend a THP event sometime. Tons of fun with golfers who use range finders quite well, and might change a lot of the pessimism about people and the game.
 
Richard Rodgers said:
Heez, what I was trying to get at is that whilst knowing that the flag is 135.5 yards away is very nice and dandy, actually having a swing repeatability that will get that little white egg close to that distance is not very common, and in general, but not always, I would say that the higher someone's handicap the further away from that 135.5 yards they will be. In that case the golfer would be way better playing the percentages and getting it on the green rather than getting over concerned about the flag.

Getting a short game that is half descent will shave far more shots off than a GPS/Laser ever will for newer golfers.

Yes we all like to do the best we can and use the best technology we can. Sometimes though we all, me included, rely too much on this modern technology on the course rather than using the most technologically advanced things we have. Our eyes & brains. There is a lot of golf that is all about feel.
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I doubt anyone would ever argue that a rangefinder will lower ones score more than practice and/or working to improve ones game.

I just don't get how zapping the flag and getting the precise 135.5 is worse than pacing from a marker and then guessing pin depth to end up with 130ish. How does making an educated guess allow one to "play to percentages" any better than accurate information?
 
PetuniaSprinkle said:
If there's a 150 mark, and you can't tell how far you are from that, what good is a rangefinder going to do you?
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I think I get your point on rangefinders. It's prone to abuse. I played with somebody who had to lase from all tee boxes, including those that needed driver. Really? (He ended up in the ravine between the tee box and the fairway). Still, an informed golfer is a better golfer.

Even after the rangefinder, there's elevation, wind, and roll. I think elevation is not allowed in USGA events, just distance.

I use my rangefinder for distances below 200 yards. However, I find my rangefinder crucial going into the green. 56 yards is different from 60 yards, those 3 yards make the difference between a tap-in or a two-putt.
 
theoverswinger said:
56 yards is different from 60 yards, those 3 yards make the difference between a tap-in or a two-putt.
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Do you bring your calculator on the course as well?
 
drp3434 said:
Do you bring your calculator on the course as well?
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I think a calculator would be against the rules, but bring your slide rule!
 
Jman said:
You should really attend a THP event sometime. Tons of fun with golfers who use range finders quite well, and might change a lot of the pessimism about people and the game.
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Sorry if it comes across as pessimistic (should sound sardonically cynical instead). Realistically speaking, most of the people I'm babbling about are people who get out and play once in a while. They either don't have time, or just don't care that much. And good for them.

Despite you all persuading me on the value of rangefinders, I'd probably buy the latest club of my dreams and about 50 more wedges before I'd even consider getting one. That's probably foolish, but that's what I'd do.
 
You know that dream where your in school, walking down the hallway and all your friends are looking at you, your in a panic because your late and you have to make it to class on time but can't remember where you locker is and then once you find it you can't remember the lock code to open it and then you look down and you realize your in your underwear just went the "your late to class" bell goes off?

Yea, me either, but that's what I feel like when I step onto the course and realize I forgot my range finder or the battery is dead in it. :D
 
Nate said:
You know that dream where your in school, walking down the hallway and all your friends are looking at you, your in a panic because your late and you have to make it to class on time but can't remember where you locker is and then once you find it you can't remember the lock code to open it and then you look down and you realize your in your underwear just went the "your late to class" bell goes off?

Yea, me either, but that's what I feel like when I step onto the course and realize I forgot my range finder or the battery is dead in it. :D
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I was going to be a smartass and post a pic of some flashy boxers and suggest you wouldn't worry so much if you had something snazzy to rock. So, I looked up "fancy men's underwear". Holy crap! I'm stuck with those images for the rest of the morning (and counting backwards in German's just making it worse).
 
I don't really have a use for rangefinders, I have a gps watch and I can guestimate a few yards either way for where the pin is. Since I can't shot within 5 yards of accuracy why would I need something that is going to tell me my guestimate is off by 2 yards.
 
Jman said:
Or, and this is a wacky idea, they could just figure out their distances on the range. Like the vast majority do. No need to laser twice.
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I've seen a lot of people with rangefinders on course, and I've NEVER seen someone laser after the shot.
 
PetuniaSprinkle said:
I don't mind some fast playing hack using a rangefinder (just as quick as pacing if not faster), but they need to use it after the shot, too, so they can find out how far they actually hit whatever club it was they had deluded themselves into thinking was a good idea.
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I don't think I've ever played with someone who lasered before AND after their shot.. Pace of play is probably faster playing with a rangefinder than seeking out sprinklers with numbers on it --- And to the argument that people don't need their yardages (which i assume is coming) I completely disagree.

This thread has had some impressive traction, although I'd change the title from "Rangefinders? Seriously!?!" to "Rangefinders!! Seriously!!!" ---- They are awesome.
 
Only time I've ever shot a pin after a shot is if I come up 20 yards short or long and see if I hit the wrong target .

Since I have bought my new rangefinder this has happened a total of zero times.


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I'll laser a flag, and I'll also laser to trouble. If I am having a bad day with approaches usually center of the green is fine, but it's always good to know what I need to carry to stay out of trouble. Sometimes I'll use the rangefinder just for the magnification if it's not a course familiar to me. I'll laser waste areas and bunkers from the tee if there's any concern I might be hitting into them. Not uncommon for that info to get me to go down a club to stay safe.

If it's slow, I can't say that I haven't killed time lasering the distance of a drive while waiting. But that's only when it's slow.
 
Canadan said:
And to the argument that people don't need their yardages (which i assume is coming) I completely disagree.
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My whole point has always been, how many people can say that they hit it to an "exact" yardage? If they laser it to 168 yards, they probably are playing a club into the green that will go an average of say, 165 - 175 (just guessing). Point being, us being the "general hacking public" who don't do this for a living, do not spend enough time practicing or playing that they know the exact yardages they hit their clubs, down to the yard. So to sit back in the fairway and laser it to an exact yardage is pointless, especially when you see numerous times before that he may laser it, but it rarely, if ever, reaches the target.
"Huh, gust of wind there Romes!" Seriously ... I ALWAYS hit my 6-iron 168 yards, I wonder why it came up short?

Not a Sermon ... Just a Thought
 
Whether one hits the exact yardage or not should have no bearing on wanting to know the exact yardage to hit to. Especially when one has other factors involved such as bunkers short or long, a contour of the green, etc. Having the knowledge of where the pin is located, helps a golfer choose the proper club to rid themselves of these issues.

Choosing to pace it off, or guess at yardages, does not change anything about a golfer being accurate or not.

Good thing we are not giving one of these away on THP soon, because I would hate for some of the people in here to enter to win a prize that brings so much personal pain to them...(of course they dont have to enter).

Oh wait, we are giving some away soon...:D
 
I can't wait for the "automobiles? Seriously?!?!" thread so we can 26 pages where people yearn for the good ol days of shoeing your own horse and dodging piles of dung in the street from all the drawn buggies.
 
golfinnut said:
My whole point has always been, how many people can say that they hit it to an "exact" yardage? If they laser it to 168 yards, they probably are playing a club into the green that will go an average of say, 165 - 175 (just guessing). Point being, us being the "general hacking public" who don't do this for a living, do not spend enough time practicing or playing that they know the exact yardages they hit their clubs, down to the yard. So to sit back in the fairway and laser it to an exact yardage is pointless, especially when you see numerous times before that he may laser it, but it rarely, if ever, reaches the target.
"Huh, gust of wind there Romes!" Seriously ... I ALWAYS hit my 6-iron 168 yards, I wonder why it came up short?

Not a Sermon ... Just a Thought
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But would you agree to the fact that most folks who golf a lot (the group of golfers that have a rangefinders is probably in that category) have a good idea of how far they hit their clubs, plus or minus 5 yards on a well struck ball? That puts you 15 feet away from the pin, and a whole lot better than just shooting for the middle of a big green, based on a yardage marker that may or may not be accurate plus a guess of how far you are away. I don't think anyone in here is arguing that they're playing to an exact yardage, just using that yardage to pick the club that's going to get them the closest.
 
golfinnut said:
My whole point has always been, how many people can say that they hit it to an "exact" yardage? If they laser it to 168 yards, they probably are playing a club into the green that will go an average of say, 165 - 175 (just guessing). Point being, us being the "general hacking public" who don't do this for a living, do not spend enough time practicing or playing that they know the exact yardages they hit their clubs, down to the yard. So to sit back in the fairway and laser it to an exact yardage is pointless, especially when you see numerous times before that he may laser it, but it rarely, if ever, reaches the target.
"Huh, gust of wind there Romes!" Seriously ... I ALWAYS hit my 6-iron 168 yards, I wonder why it came up short?

Not a Sermon ... Just a Thought
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I think having the exact yardage adds some confidence into the mix. I preached knowing ALL the numbers for years, but quickly abandoned that for the simplistic design of a rangefinder. Maybe it's unneeded to be dead on with yardage, but it sure beats guessing based on the 150 and 100 markers + pin placement.
 
JB said:
Oh wait, we are giving some away soon...:D
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well that's quite the bomb! I need one, so I will for sure be throwing my name in that ring!
 
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