Can Beginners Benefit from a Golf Rangefinder?

If you are a golf beginner, you may be thinking “no way do I need a golf rangefinder. All I’m trying to do is get it off the ground and then hope it stays on the golf course! Maybe next year I’ll be ready for one.”  In this article, Val Brennan discusses the use of golf rangefinders for the beginner as well as for players of all levels.

In my opinion, if you’ve ever hit a shot that felt good and made you smile (at least on the inside), then you’re ready for a golf GPS rangefinder.  A GPS device or golf app can help you improve more quickly by making your good shots count. It will help you become more decisive on the golf course and maybe even make you a faster player. It might even have the added benefit of keeping you motivated by helping you see gradual improvements.

Don’t worry, it doesn’t have to be painful like changing your grip or trying to keep your left arm straight!

Your golf GPS device or app needs to have the capability to measure your shots and record the club you used to hit the shot.  You should also be able to look up your average distances for each club.  The Garmin Approach G6 does this very well, and if you’re looking for a low-cost option and have an iPhone or Android phone, GolfShot will also serve you very well. 

By using shot measuring features, you’ll get a sense, fairly quickly, of how far you hit each club.  Be sure to only use the shot measuring feature on shots where there is not much elevation change and when there is not much wind. Those factors can really affect the distance of the shot. Most importantly, only use the feature on your good shots. Your goal is to discover how far you’re likely to hit the golf ball when you hit it well. Always input the club you used.

You can start applying what you learn about how far you’re hitting it almost immediately, but after a half a dozen rounds or so, you should have a pretty good representation of how far you hit each club. You can now comfortably look at that distance to the center of the green on your golf GPS and choose a club accordingly. You’ll also start to understand how wind and elevation affect your distances.

Once a month or so, write down your distances for each club and reset the GPS so you can begin collecting new averages. As a beginner, you’re fairly likely to increase your distances the more you practice and play. By comparing your monthly averages, you might surprise yourself with your improvements. If you’re not getting any longer and think you should be, you may want to talk with your instructor or even find a new one.

Let’s face it, beginner golfers don’t hit a high percentage of solid shots which makes the good ones all the more critical. What could be worse than hitting your best golf shot of the day and having it fly right over the green and land in a deep bunker?

If you want to play better golf, it’s time to start treating yourself like the player you hope to be one day. You deserve to know how far you are from your target and you deserve to know how far you hit your clubs… even if only an occasional shot really measures up. When you do connect with your best shot of the day, you should be rewarded for it!  

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Val Brennan writes GPS and laser rangefinder reviews for GolfRangefinderShop.com. She is a former caddie, player and media coordinator on the Symetra (Futures) Tour and is passionate about the game of golf.


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photo credit: Mobitee

Why Tiger Woods Would Not Make a Good Ryder Cup Captain

Coming off of a disappointing loss for Team USA at the 2012 Ryder Cup, Tiger Woods commented that he would, some day, like to Captain the Team.  Although this move would make the Ryder Cup one of the most watched events in all of golf with television viewership reaching record numbers, would this be a good move for the Americans?

 

Here are a few reasons why Tiger Woods should probably leave the honor to someone else.

 

1.       LACK OF FOCUS: Tiger Woods has become vulnerable to distractions, whether it is from outside distractions or within his own game. Tiger would need to focus his attention on the entire team and how they work best together. For that, Woods needs to regain focus on his own game, from putting to the mental game, without losing his cool. Can he do it?

 

2.       LACK OF CARING: Woods asked all of the rookies to a personal apology session after the Ryder Cup to say “sorry” for not doing more to win. The decision to give up the final ½ point during his final match because he didn’t think it mattered spoke volumes to the Team and to his fans.

 

3.       LACK OF PRIDE: (See above) Tiger Woods was known never to give up; he always fought back, whether it was from a bad drive or to make the last putt on eighteen regardless of his position.

 

4.       NOT A TEAM PLAYER: Tiger Woods is best known as a singles player, but not much of a team player. His focus is predominantly on his own game, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing but would he truly understand the intricacies of putting together teammates who work well together? For example, would Tiger have paired Keegan Bradley with Phil Mickelson?

 

5.       If Tiger Woods can’t figure out how to personally win at the Ryder Cup where a Cup and pride is at stake, how is he going to figure out how to lead a team to victory? Is Woods a better player only where money is the motivator?

 

Tiger Woods has a great understanding of the game of golf, of this there is no doubt, but his willingness to accept defeat is also becoming a lot easier. This might come from his own personal experiences but it certainly is not a good trait for a team captain.

 

Woods' intense determination to win, his ability to go out believing he was going to win every tournament before it started when he was a younger golfer has been tempered by doubts creeping into his self conscious. Accepting defeat has gotten a lot easier.

 

Maybe Tiger Woods should leave the Captaincy to someone else...Phil Mickelson perhaps?

 

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Posted via email from stacysolomon's posterous

Ryder Cup anchors Woods, Stricker, Furyk sink ship for Team USA

Team USA fell to pieces on Ryder Cup Sunday as its three anchors, Jim Furyk, Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker, lost their putting skills on the final two holes at Medinah, handing over the cup to a jubilant Team Europe.

 

 

Jim Furyk, devastated by his loss to Sergio Garcia was in obvious denial commenting, “I’m pretty sure Sergio would tell you that I outplayed him today”.  

 

My thoughts?  Jim Furyk, although a great golfer, probably should never have been chosen by Captain Davis Love III in the first place, with Furyk known this season by the way he fizzles down the stretch in the finale.

 

Steve Stricker and Tiger Woods were placed in the clean-up position by Love, in spite of the fact that they lost every team match. Captain Love made mention that he wanted experienced talent just in case it was needed to win the cup but did Love take into consideration both Woods’ and Stricker’s season strokes gained putting average before making his final decision?Did Love forget the beating Stricker and Woods took by Adam Scott and KJ Choi at the Presidents Cup?

 

Poor putting under pressure ultimately lost the Ryder Cup for Team USA.

 

With all of the pressure falling squarely on Stricker, who is 65^th in strokes gained putting average on the PGA Tour this season,  the eighteenth hole was hardly the time for a “mis-read”.  And, Tiger Woods should never have missed a 3 1/2 foot putt…never.

 

To further show that Tiger has lost pride in his performance, here is Woods quote after his Ryder Cup tie with Molinari, “You come here as a team and you win or lose as a team, and it's pointless to even finish. So 18 was just, hey, get this over with."  Pointless? Tiger Woods, for certain, has gone soft.

 

I think Tiger should have sat out on Sunday and contemplated Furyk’s Ryder Cup statement, “It’s the lowest point of my year.”

 

Congratulations to Team Europe. They deserve the accolades!

 

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Posted via email from stacysolomon's posterous