Is a GPS device going against the spirit of golf.

[Oddsocks]

I may get flamed here but yesturday i played with 2 guys who were both running sky caddies, and me and the other guy in our group were not.

Now like most golfers (i assume) we was using course markers, yardage books and general eye sight as our range finders, yet these other two guys would often be heard muttering,

"bla bla to the front, bla bla to the back, bla bla to the middle " etc etc etc.

Im not sure if i can decide weather i agree with the GPS thing, and for that reason on my iphone i only use the score card and stats facility in My Caddie Pro.

A perfect example of the whole sport was yesturday when im about 70-80 yards past the 150 marker, Im assuming this distance as i was pretty much bang on half way between the green and this 150 marker. As a test i ask one of the chaps, "what does you sky caddie make this, i reckon its about 65/70 yards ish".. the reply i get was "105 yards"

Now i would never had said it was that far, and im still a bit uncertain it was, by my point is for me as a golfer i either use scorecards, course markers or yardage books to select clubs i need, and i beleive this is what golf is about. Im not toally convinced GPS is good for a very challenging sport, although im open to reason why people beleive it is.

I appriciate some course markers are sometimes out, but if everyone in the group/club is using them then their fair markers. is using a GPS an unfair advanatage.

discuss.

 

[Dodger]

No...end of...are yardage charts?

No.

 

[Oddsocks]

care to explain,

 

[Dodger]

Do GPS hit the shot for you?

Nothing to discuss here....rediculous thread IMO.

 

[scottbrown]

GPS gives you nothing different to the yardage book. So if GPS is against the rules the yardage books are too.

I feel lost without mine now, as I have found that most times I miss greens is left or right ( bad shot) rather than short.

A gps does exactly what a good caddy does only for cheaper

 

[JustOne]

Do GPS hit the shot for you?

Nothing to discuss here....rediculous thread IMO.

Wrong side of the bed again Dodger?

 

[JustOne]

There's nothing stopping you from walking the course the day before you play and pacing out all the yardages to the front/back of the greens and evaluating pin positions, there's nothing stopping you pacing out each shot you play on the day.... why bother though? That's the job of a skycaddie - it's nothing more than a time saver which can give you a better idea of which shot you should attempt to play.

 

[nowtfancy]

I think it's clear many people regard them as perfectly within the spirit, but they're not for me.

 

[Oddsocks]

My point is dodger the gps provides excess information which can be more accurate than information supplied by score cards, course marks and yardage books. Whether that information is wrong or right, if all players are using that information then its how you use that information that makes you a better golfer. but if your ALL using the same information its a level playing field.

A prime example would be spanking a drive down someone elses fairway, you deserve to be punished because you put the ball there. If you cant see a course marker thats your fault, you hit the ball there. knowing you have exactly 87 yards carry over the tree's to the front, pint (if middle) middle is 100 etc etc just seems against what golf was about traditionally " but this is my opinion "

Like you said "you hit the ball", this is one of the great things of golf, a man/woman with a good swing and a good putting base will always score well, because they have the foundations of a great game in place. Not because they have the advantage of a plastic box that gives them extra information.

Im not sure if im with or against the GPS systems, because now in my opinion if im playing against players that have them, they have extra information that i dont have available, meaning that they can be more accurate on shot/club selection distances. Most clubs only offer 150 marks, with the 0dd club offer 200/150/100/50 but this seems very rare,

Is it simply a case now of cough up £300 or shut up...

 

[Oddsocks]

I think it's clear many people regard them as perfectly within the spirit, but they're not for me.

Would you like to explain why, as it seems im alienating myself here for having an opinion or opening a discussion.

 

[Oddsocks]

There's nothing stopping you from walking the course the day before you play and pacing out all the yardages to the front/back of the greens and evaluating pin positions, there's nothing stopping you pacing out each shot you play on the day.... why bother though? That's the job of a skycaddie - it's nothing more than a time saver which can give you a better idea of which shot you should attempt to play.

100% valid point. By how many people will pace out a 180 yard approach shot before playing it- ive never ever seen this done

how many people pace the course before playing - tour caddies is about it

if everyone pre paced each shot before playing it, then rounds would be 8 hours long, so it standard for people not to do it. If i was playing yesturday and said to a playing partner " im going to pace this shot as im not sure on the distance " i bet i wouldnt have had a playing partner next weekend.

Its normal for people to
A) look for markers
B) look as score cards/yardage books
C) play the shot they think is correct from the 2 sources of information they have available.

 

[Aztecs27]

The GPS app(s) on my HTC are awesome and I would be lost without them now. Especially on a course that I'm unfamiliar with. As has been said, they don't hit the shot for you.

I knew that for my second (actually fourth) shot off the first on Saturday I had 165 yards to the middle of the green thanks to FreeCaddie. That didn't stop me from duffing it 2 yards having hit a big chunk of rough instead of the ball...I finished the hole with a 9. So, it just helps with the yardages and is no different to a yardage book or going round the course the day before and pacing it out from the yardage markers/hazards etc. (I realise I'm repeating what has been said already ). I love it. I love the fact even more than FreeCaddie Pro does everything a Sky Caddie does, but for a fraction of the price (£10)

 

[JustOne]

if everyone pre paced each shot before playing it, then rounds would be 8 hours long, so it standard for people not to do it.

That's right, and that's why you should get a skycaddie.

 

[nowtfancy]

Would you like to explain why, as it seems im alienating myself here for having an opinion or opening a discussion.

Not sure I can! It's just a feeling really, I'm playing golf primarily against myself, yes i like to play for a couple of quid but its how I do compared to how i've previously done that matters to me.
I switch the phone off, the blackberry off and its me my clubs & the course.

I wouldn't mind playing with someone who used one, although if it was anyone I knew they would get the p taken!
It might be to do with the standard I am currently at, but tbh even when i get down to single figures i don't think that will change

 

[USER1999]

I am pretty much blind in one eye. This makes judging distances harder for me.

If I play against you, will you wear a blind fold to level the field?

The world is not a fair place. Yes, GPS gives an accurate yardage, at a price, and some can't (won't) afford it. Some are happy guessing yardages, some not. Some can afford the latest driver etc, some can't. Some can afford Prov1 balls, some can't. Some are talented, some aren't. Some have lessons (cheats) some don't, some practice (bigger cheats), some don't.

Unless you are going to standardise all the kit, practice sessions (like F1), lessons (free for every one?), so no one has any advantage, you are not going to have a level playing field. It is impossible.

Why single out gps?

 

[Oddsocks]

Nowtfancy, your perception is the same as mine it seems. Im on the course with no phone or electrical equipment, a bag of over prices fishing rods and a shonky swing enjoy everything i dont have access to dureing the week - An electronics free peacefull walk with banter and a few beers at the end.

as i said im a bit of a traditionalist (if thats a word) the greats of yester-year played great golf without the use of GPS, they all had yardage markers of sorts, with some sort of yardage book and that was it. for me its one of the only sports that electronic technology hadnt influenced making it cheap for people to start up and a level playing field for most, IMO the GPS systems put this traditional sport up there with every other sport now that is influenced by electrical gadgets and gizmo's

 

[Oddsocks]

I am pretty much blind in one eye. This makes judging distances harder for me.

If I play against you, will you wear a blind fold to level the field?

The world is not a fair place. Yes, GPS gives an accurate yardage, at a price, and some can't (won't) afford it. Some are happy guessing yardages, some not. Some can afford the latest driver etc, some can't. Some can afford Prov1 balls, some can't. Some are talented, some aren't. Some have lessons (cheats) some don't, some practice (bigger cheats), some don't.

Unless you are going to standardise all the kit, practice sessions (like F1), lessons (free for every one?), so no one has any advantage, you are not going to have a level playing field. It is impossible.

Why single out gps?

in the same context i have a shot knee and hip from a motorcycle accident, if we play can i dmaage yours before we start

As i said my personaly view is that if we both have the same yardage books, same course markers we both know where we are at, whether you have one eye, or i have more metal in my legs than i have in my bag is another arguement all together

 

[RichardC]

The greats of yester-year still had caddies that done the donkey work for them to get the yardage info.

I wish I could hit that perfect 154 yard shot that my GPS device tells me to hit

 

[Tommo21]

The first time I played Dalmahoy, a monster, I had the course planner thing. Trying to read it was a nightmare because of all the different tees and the massive greens. I played the wrong club quite a few times, mainly because of a dip in front of the green or the simple fact I never played there before.

When we went to Castle Stuart, GPS in hand, what a difference. Some greens looked much closer than what they measured. At times I couldn’t believe I had 240 to the back of a green, crap drive, but taking out my 5 wood was easily decided thanks to the GPS.

I just went by the yardage on the device not my eyes. Dunbar is another golf course with three or four blind greens. It just makes club selection that much easier.

Oh, it makes playing much more enjoyable and it’s not before time we had more accurate information rather than hunt for a 200, 150 or 100 marker.

Also great for wedge selection. It really is a no brainer.

 

[Oddsocks]

so it seems that basically those who havent got one yet dont seem to care for them, and those who have them wouldnt swap them for the world.

Its fine i just wanted to see if i was being narrow minded in a way, sticking with the old and not with the new. Im playing tomorrow night and for the first time ever im going to use the GPS facility on my iphone app, if im convinced i will post accordingly, but it was interesting to hear peoples views.