Range Finders....

Swinging Looney

I have played a few competitions recently in which I see more and more players (mostly professional or very low handicap players) using range finders for each and every shot, including some who even use them for 20 and 30 yard pitches. I must say that I can not understand this at all.

All of these competitions are played on a course which has a large number of sprinkler head distances to the front middle and back of every green. Also, a reasonably good strokesaver is available too. All these guys seem to do is find the distance to the flag, take the appropriate club for the distance and aim straight for the flag. No consideration seems to be given to where the hole actually is and what trouble may be lying in wait. So, a large number of shots end up in bunkers, off the back of greens, etc, etc. On links courses in particular this strategy just does not work at all. One guy had never played the course before and was armed just with his rangefinder. Needless to say he didn't score particularly well despite hitting some beautiful irons.

As for the 20 and 30 yard pitches I just cannot understand it at all. You may know what swing gives you exactly a 20 yard carry or whatever, but almost no course is flat and you must account for how the ball will actually react when it lands. This to me is all about feel.

Don't get me wrong, yardages are extremely important to me, but I find myself more and more working out distances to for the shot that will give me the best chance of attack. If a par 3 flag is 200 yards away at the back of the green with trouble behind, I will try to play a shot that lands short and releases up to the hole, deliberately trying to leave the ball just short to be sure I'll be OK. If I catch the ball a little thin or maybe better than I expected I should still end up just past the flag but still on the green. So, I'm looking for the club that will let me use an easy swing and fly teh ball 180 yards. Yet these radar players try their best to land the ball at the flag and make it stop. So a tough bunker shot from the back of the green leads to a messy bogey. Or a 240 yard second shot on a par 5 straight at a flag tucked behind two bunkers on an undulating green, when aiming at the clear area to the left of the green will give you a simple chip and uphill putt for an almost certain birdie. I could give numerous examples of this kind of play.

So, what am I missing? Is the idea of course management and strategy completely lost on the average golfer? Do most low handicap golfers simply aim straight at the flag all the time? So many of these guys seem to play most of their golf on parkland courses yet come a cropper on links despite being perfectly capable of hitting the ball extremely well.

Discuss....

f22

Links is a completely different beast where distances are achieved in very different ways. Wind and harder running surfaces take much of parklands target air shots out of play. You'd never dream of hitting a 9 iron from 170 yards into a parkland green where links can offer that variety.

I play the titleist winter series and am amazed how shocking really good players can be at adapting to the different challenges links golf throws at you.

Personally, with links golf the distance is merely a guide, there's many ways of getting it right or wrong. Rangefinders give you exact numbers instantly, how you deal with those numbers is the difference between good and bad golf. Conditions can throw numbers out the window completely.

Swinging Looney

f22 wrote: »

Links is a completely different beast where distances are achieved in very different ways. Wind and harder running surfaces take much of parklands target air shots out of play. You'd never dream of hitting a 9 iron from 170 yards into a parkland green where links can offer that variety.

I play the titleist winter series and am amazed how shocking really good players can be at adapting to the different challenges links golf throws at you.

Personally, with links golf the distance is merely a guide, there's many ways of getting it right or wrong. Rangefinders give you exact numbers instantly, how you deal with those numbers is the difference between good and bad golf. Conditions can throw numbers out the window completely.

Completely agree. It seems many low handicap players get their handicaps down playing on courses which allow for aggressive, straight at the flag golf. Links is much more about bounces and rolls and leaving your ball on the green in a position which gives you the best chance of making the putt, not necessarily trying to get it as close as possible.

Played the Titleist series a few times now and since I have never really played with low handicap or scratch golfers, I am amazed at how poor the average good players course management seems to be. So many just blame the course layout or greenkeepers pin positions on their poor score. The Par 4 5th is a perfect example. For those who don't know it, it's a 470 yard par 4. One week the pin was tucked behind the two greenside bunkers on the right hand side. Hitting a 4 iron or whatever straight at the flag is a stupid idea. You can only hope to get yourself pin high 20 or 30 feet left and hope to make the putt. Yet each of the 3 other guys in my 4 ball aimed straight at the flag. Two ended up in the bunker and one missed long over the back. Incidentally, I ended up in the heart of the green and three putted!!!!

Makes the point that everyone should really spend time thinking about what shot will give them the most achievable result. If you play on a forgiving course, then be careful when you play somewhere unfamiliar. It seems that this advice is not only for mid to high handicap players....