Range Finders on Tour ?

[Deleted member 15344]

How long do you think it will be until they are allowed to be used on the ET ?

They have been used on the Euro Pro and understand that have gone down well and helped with pace of play

Is the next step the challenge tour to trial and then onto the main tours ?

Is it a good idea and would they speed up play instead of caddies and pro consulting yardage books and pacing out until markers ?

 

[Maninblack4612]

This would be so sensible. Must save time if it stops the caddies fannying around trying to find the distance to the nearest centimetre from their yardage books.

 

[ADB]

This would be so sensible. Must save time if it stops the caddies fannying around trying to find the distance to the nearest centimetre from their yardage books.

It certainly didn't help with the pace of play from what I saw of the Walker Cup.

 

[ger147]

Would deffo be a sensible move IMO as it's simply a device to measure a distance that is accurately calculated from endless other measurements and yardage books compiled using these devices prior to the round. In other words, it's info they already have so I see this as a quicker way to get the distance info they need to decide what shot they want to play next.

 

[Deleted member 3432]

Guys on tour won't hit a shot without knowing the exact yardage so its a no brainer. Should in theory speed things up hugely but the players will just faff about with an even longer pre shot routine.

 

[Norrin Radd]

i dont like any type of range finder,they should be banned from all golf.
we managed without them before so why not now .

 

[BTatHome]

i dont like any type of range finder,they should be banned from all golf.
we managed without them before so why not now .

we've managed without many things, but things getter better and progression means things change for the better.

We should embrace change rather than living in the dark ages like many golf clubs do.

 

[Deleted member 15344]

i dont like any type of range finder,they should be banned from all golf.
we managed without them before so why not now .

So the reason you want them banned is because we managed without them before ?

Shall we ban graphite shafts ?

Metal Woods ?

Big Headed Drivers ?

Plastic spikes

Spikeless shoes

Many many things we managed without before - shall they all be banned as well ?

 

[Qwerty]

i dont like any type of range finder,they should be banned from all golf.
we managed without them before so why not now .

I agree, although I do use one

As for the tour.. The slow players will still be slow, discussing wind speed and direction, the angle to the pin, general strategy etc.Regardless of the fact they've got the exact yardage.

 

[Norrin Radd]

So the reason you want them banned is because we managed without them before ?

Shall we ban graphite shafts ? i like a bit of lead in my pencil

Metal Woods ? is there such a thing

Big Headed Drivers ?plenty of them on this site

Plastic spikes been around for years ,tee pegs arent they

Spikeless shoes i wear them every day in normal life ,so not really new are they.

Many many things we managed without before - shall they all be banned as well ?

and not one of the above helps with course management like a RF.
are people unable to judge if they need a seven iron or a six iron for a specific shot ,has mankinds eyesight deteriorated that much
no course it hasnt ,but using range finders is in my opinion not golf .
you have your opinion .i dont agree with it .live with it.

 

[Three]

i dont like any type of range finder,they should be banned from all golf.
we managed without them before so why not now .

Lol.

When you say "we managed" , do you mean that actually we played for a long time just by guesswork, and frankly didn't manage too well on courses we didn't know?

Tour caddies used to use string, wheeled distance measures etc etc before lasers came in, so the top players have had access to accurate measurements for ages.

Controlling distance is a major skill, yardage books are made using lasers, so why not allow them?

GPS should be banned, I believe we should only be able to measure what we can see from where we are standing, eg not over trees.

 

[fundy]

and not one of the above helps with course management like a RF.
are people unable to judge if they need a seven iron or a six iron for a specific shot ,has mankinds eyesight deteriorated that much
no course it hasnt ,but using range finders is in my opinion not golf .
you have your opinion .i dont agree with it .live with it.

so its ok to use technology to make it easier to hit the shot but not to know how far to hit it? Surely golf is about hitting the shot not guessing how far it is?

 

[Deleted member 15344]

and not one of the above helps with course management like a RF.
are people unable to judge if they need a seven iron or a six iron for a specific shot ,has mankinds eyesight deteriorated that much
no course it hasnt ,but using range finders is in my opinion not golf .
you have your opinion .i dont agree with it .live with it.

Blimey no need to be like that

Would suggest those things I mentioned actually are more damaging because they help the person actually hit the ball better - is that not more about golf than just judging distances - you have no issues with improvements in technology helping someone actually hit the ball ?

So would you want rid of yardage markers and course planners as well - all which help with course management ? Maybe get rid of the hole map on tees ?

 

[Norrin Radd]

Phil i just think that RF`s have taken away that little bit of what makes a golfer,having everything at your fingertips is just ,to my mind not golf ,where is the challenge of looking at a shot and thinking about the club to be used rather than a device telling you its 150 to the centre and you hit your 7 iron 150 ,so its taking away some of the skill involved in playing the shot.
the thing that makes me laugh with these things ,is when a club member who has played his own course for countless years uses one ,wtf ,dont people learn their own course without the RF to say its a certain distance .
im sure you know every blade of grass on your track but still use the bloody thing.
on an away track then maybe they will prove useful ,but i [maybe im old school]prefer to look at my shot and choose a club ,if im wrong so be it.i dont lose sweat over it ,nor do i when my pp takes out his RF and fires the same club that i just hit .
we could argue the toss about this till the cows come home ,but you will not be swayed as wont i .
just the way it is .you like em ,i dont end of.

 

[Qwerty]

It isn't a massive deal but personally I feel that rangefinders do take a little enjoyment from the game.
I'd get far more satisfaction stiffing a 5 iron to 2ft having used a little local Knowledge rather than a rangefinder.
I enjoy the challenge of the game and I think knowing and learning your home course is part of that.

Based on this I really can't understand why anyone would want to use Aimpoint regardless of how effective it is.

I play a lot of Moorland courses with very undulating greens and I get a hell of a lot of enjoyment from lagging a lengthy putt up close. I just don't understand anyone that would want to lose that.

Wheres the enjoyment in a system that supposedly tells you the line dependant on green speed?? You might as well just roll a ball towards the hole before making the putt.

Maybe for some Winning is the enjoyment.

 

[garyinderry]

Also not a massive fan of GPS or range finders. came to England a few years ago to find everyone using one and felt at a disadvantage.


I don't look at them much on bounce games. Might go 5 holes at a time without looking at it. It regularly tells me I am 639 yards from the hole. 4 club comp last week was a perfect excuse not to even bother with it.

Tend to use them in comps as I want to do my best so use the yardage as its clipped to my bag. I may as well. Everyone else is.



Certainly worth a few shots on average over a round.

 

[Jimaroid]

We should go back to leather and feather balls and use young boys to pace out yardages.

 

[Deleted member 15344]

Phil i just think that RF`s have taken away that little bit of what makes a golfer,having everything at your fingertips is just ,to my mind not golf ,where is the challenge of looking at a shot and thinking about the club to be used rather than a device telling you its 150 to the centre and you hit your 7 iron 150 ,so its taking away some of the skill involved in playing the shot.
the thing that makes me laugh with these things ,is when a club member who has played his own course for countless years uses one ,wtf ,dont people learn their own course without the RF to say its a certain distance .
im sure you know every blade of grass on your track but still use the bloody thing.
on an away track then maybe they will prove useful ,but i [maybe im old school]prefer to look at my shot and choose a club ,if im wrong so be it.i dont lose sweat over it ,nor do i when my pp takes out his RF and fires the same club that i just hit .
we could argue the toss about this till the cows come home ,but you will not be swayed as wont i .
just the way it is .you like em ,i dont end of.

So yardage markers and course planners and sprinkler heads with yardages on them ?

How can it "not be golf"

The main part of golf is swinging the club and hitting the ball - do you have a problem with all the items that help that ?

The skill is in the execution of the shot and picking the right club and playing the right shot

Knowing the yardage can be gained from many ways - RF , GPS , course planners , yardage markers or pacing out from points on the golf course

Knowing the distance is 5% - the rest is picking the club then hitting it well enough.

There are so many things that have progressed and developed in golf - some massive changes that changed the whole way golf is played - drivers , balls , all clubs - yet there always seems to be an opposition to something that is such a small part of the game.

Yes I use a RF when I'm unsure of the distance - instead of checking a course planner or finding the yardage marker a quick look and I'm done - still have to then do the important part

 

[Norrin Radd]

personally the only distance that should be marked on a course is from tee to green ,its then up to you to interperate the distance you have hit a ball and how far you have left.no extras required.
as for balls and clubs that is not the issue in this thread.

 

[Deleted member 15344]

personally the only distance that should be marked on a course is from tee to green ,its then up to you to interperate the distance you have hit a ball and how far you have left.no extras required.
as for balls and clubs that is not the issue in this thread.

How long have courses had yardage markers ? 20 ? 30 years ?

So you expect people just judge purely on guess work using no markings ? What happens if it's blind approaches or hidden bunkers or lakes etc

Can understand some peoples reluctance in regards range finders - despite them not actually helping someone hit the ball but to have no markers or course planners etc ?! That just seems a bit mad