New Nike ad with Rory and Tiger

Nike is everywhere here in Portland. Mainly because all of the employees buy them at 1/3 the street cost and then they have days where the employees can get the same discount for friends and family. Hard to pass up.

I always thought very little of Nike equipment based on the ugly yellow square drivers and massive cavity irons, and as mentioned the drivers also sounded terrible. Last year I got a Nike VR Forged 52 gap wedge, and found it to be fantastic. I followed that up with a 58 wedge and have not looked back. These replaced my Cleveland wedges I have played for 5 years or so.

The feel on them is great, good amounts of spin, and I think they look good. They also come with S400 shafts and I think the extra weight works very well in the wedges. I plan on trying out the new Covert driver and would definitely like to get a set of the VR forged combo irons. If they feel anything like the wedges it will be a contender with my mizunos for sure.

msal13 wrote:I always thought very little of Nike equipment based on the ugly yellow square drivers and massive cavity irons, and as mentioned the drivers also sounded terrible. Last year I got a Nike VR Forged 52 gap wedge, and found it to be fantastic. I followed that up with a 58 wedge and have not looked back. These replaced my Cleveland wedges I have played for 5 years or so.

The feel on them is great, good amounts of spin, and I think they look good. They also come with S400 shafts and I think the extra weight works very well in the wedges. I plan on trying out the new Covert driver and would definitely like to get a set of the VR forged combo irons. If they feel anything like the wedges it will be a contender with my mizunos for sure.

Probably the best player I know has Nike VR wedges. They do look pretty nice, but I'm a big fan of the Cleveland CG family.

Horseballs wrote: They do look pretty nice, but I'm a big fan of the Cleveland CG family.

I am a big fan of LaJolla Knife Wedges, which they don't make them anymore (I have four 52* GWs and one 58* LW - enough for my golf life). Last weekend I did not have to putt for 4 holes since my GW sent a ball to 6" away from a cup... I eagle'd a hole with my 58* LW during a scramble tourney last summer. The wedge design has almost no bounce which makes it very easy to airborne a golf ball. The best part is I paid $8.99 brand new on eBay (plus shipping, of course), that's why I tơok a chance and ordered (4) 52* GW at one time and saved shipping cost.

[quote="Horseballs"]

msal13 wrote:
Probably the best player I know has Nike VR wedges. They do look pretty nice, but I'm a big fan of the Cleveland CG family.

I have a couple CG series and I still like those very much as well, especially the CG15. Extremely versatile around the green and even though they are cast I think the feel is good. I think the most noticeable difference with the Nike's is the weight, I guess I like a heavier wedge for whatever reason.

msal13 wrote:I always thought very little of Nike equipment based on the ugly yellow square drivers and massive cavity irons, and as mentioned the drivers also sounded terrible. Last year I got a Nike VR Forged 52 gap wedge, and found it to be fantastic. I followed that up with a 58 wedge and have not looked back. These replaced my Cleveland wedges I have played for 5 years or so.

The feel on them is great, good amounts of spin, and I think they look good. They also come with S400 shafts and I think the extra weight works very well in the wedges. I plan on trying out the new Covert driver and would definitely like to get a set of the VR forged combo irons. If they feel anything like the wedges it will be a contender with my mizunos for sure.

I picked up the Nike VR 60 and 56 at the end of last year. I really like the grind on the 60, and am very happy with it. I haven't used the 56 very much but don't feel as comfortable with it.

It is wrong to say Nike has not produced good gear. Ditto with taylormade.
I don't know but I can imagine some of you critcs have not hit a good range of their stuff, and not owned any.
In three iron catagories nike has produced some beauties. The original procombo tours are a fantastic feeling and performing combo set. The original nike (endo forged) blades are comparable toany of the top modern blades. The vrs forged is an extremely good players gi iron.
Ok their sgi is as bad as anyone elses and their drivers and fairways in the end do not measure up but it cannot be said all their gear is crap.
Likewise TM. The 300 irons are in the top ten of the last 20 years imo. Original rac blades are excellent. Miura forged 2004 cb are pretty decent as are the 2005 tp cb's. Sure the burners and their ilk are crap but the players irons are very good. I have tried all the wedges and the rac series are tops by me. The v steel fairway woods are all time classics.
Every one of the clubs i have mentioned here I own or have owned and bagged. You haters have got to get a grip.

Olderplayer wrote:It is wrong to say Nike has not produced good gear. Ditto with taylormade.
I don't know but I can imagine some of you critcs have not hit a good range of their stuff, and not owned any.
In three iron catagories nike has produced some beauties. The original procombo tours are a fantastic feeling and performing combo set. The original nike (endo forged) blades are comparable toany of the top modern blades. The vrs forged is an extremely good players gi iron.
Ok their sgi is as bad as anyone elses and their drivers and fairways in the end do not measure up but it cannot be said all their gear is crap.
Likewise TM. The 300 irons are in the top ten of the last 20 years imo. Original rac blades are excellent. Miura forged 2004 cb are pretty decent as are the 2005 tp cb's. Sure the burners and their ilk are crap but the players irons are very good. I have tried all the wedges and the rac series are tops by me. The v steel fairway woods are all time classics.
Every one of the clubs i have mentioned here I own or have owned and bagged. You haters have got to get a grip.

Every word you mentioned here I would concur....Especially the : "Sure the burners and their ilk are crap but the players irons are very good" but the Tayloremade MB tour preffered is the worst so called blade I have ever hit in my live. The R-series noob clubs are unbareable to be held in ones hand. Tha Rac series was still good with its simplicity.

Olderplayer wrote:It is wrong to say Nike has not produced good gear. Ditto with taylormade.
I don't know but I can imagine some of you critcs have not hit a good range of their stuff, and not owned any.
In three iron catagories nike has produced some beauties. The original procombo tours are a fantastic feeling and performing combo set. The original nike (endo forged) blades are comparable toany of the top modern blades. The vrs forged is an extremely good players gi iron.
Ok their sgi is as bad as anyone elses and their drivers and fairways in the end do not measure up but it cannot be said all their gear is crap.
Likewise TM. The 300 irons are in the top ten of the last 20 years imo. Original rac blades are excellent. Miura forged 2004 cb are pretty decent as are the 2005 tp cb's. Sure the burners and their ilk are crap but the players irons are very good. I have tried all the wedges and the rac series are tops by me. The v steel fairway woods are all time classics.
Every one of the clubs i have mentioned here I own or have owned and bagged. You haters have got to get a grip.

Pretty good flame job.
It doesn't change the fact that perception is reality when it comes to Nike gear. They may have excellent products but they aren't taken seriously. I don't jump on the bandwagon with TM and Callaway, but they dominate golf sales in my area. Half of my club has a white driver, fairway wood, or both. Tons of Callaway irons too, despite the fact that the pro shop pimps Titleist gear.
The one thing I have noticed is that the really good players are not on Quixiotic crusades to replace their gear every year. The fallacy with equipment hoarders is that the gear is going to make a monumental difference. Familiarity is key. It's a mindset that holds all hoarders back from achieving their potential. If Sooner was still alive, he'd agree that it is a personality flaw requiring a combination of drugs and therapy. Many will rationalize that equipment hoarding is a fun hobby, yet that is just one more hurdle to overcome before the problematic mindset can be corrected. Of course I'm speaking in generalities here.

Horseballs wrote:

Olderplayer wrote:It is wrong to say Nike has not produced good gear. Ditto with taylormade.
I don't know but I can imagine some of you critcs have not hit a good range of their stuff, and not owned any.
In three iron catagories nike has produced some beauties. The original procombo tours are a fantastic feeling and performing combo set. The original nike (endo forged) blades are comparable toany of the top modern blades. The vrs forged is an extremely good players gi iron.
Ok their sgi is as bad as anyone elses and their drivers and fairways in the end do not measure up but it cannot be said all their gear is crap.
Likewise TM. The 300 irons are in the top ten of the last 20 years imo. Original rac blades are excellent. Miura forged 2004 cb are pretty decent as are the 2005 tp cb's. Sure the burners and their ilk are crap but the players irons are very good. I have tried all the wedges and the rac series are tops by me. The v steel fairway woods are all time classics.
Every one of the clubs i have mentioned here I own or have owned and bagged. You haters have got to get a grip.

Pretty good flame job.
It doesn't change the fact that perception is reality when it comes to Nike gear. They may have excellent products but they aren't taken seriously. I don't jump on the bandwagon with TM and Callaway, but they dominate golf sales in my area. Half of my club has a white driver, fairway wood, or both. Tons of Callaway irons too, despite the fact that the pro shop pimps Titleist gear.
The one thing I have noticed is that the really good players are not on Quixiotic crusades to replace their gear every year. The fallacy with equipment hoarders is that the gear is going to make a monumental difference. Familiarity is key. It's a mindset that holds all hoarders back from achieving their potential. If Sooner was still alive, he'd agree that it is a personality flaw requiring a combination of drugs and therapy. Many will rationalize that equipment hoarding is a fun hobby, yet that is just one more hurdle to overcome before the problematic mindset can be corrected. Of course I'm speaking in generalities here.

Fair point, and a fair bit of truth there but basically we are all made different. What is enjoyable to one is a waste of time to another. Re familiarity once you find something that works well for you you are definitely best off to stick with it. However it can take a long time by trial and error to find those clubs. I haven't bought a putter in nearly two years as my current one has been in the bag that long. That said I still have a nice collection of older ones including some Rawlings classics; some of my favorites. Players irons and blades are not a lot different in the end. The biggest difference being sole width and grind and type of shaft. It doesn't take a hell of a long time to start nailing distances with a set you like standing over. If I went and got fitted for a set of heads and then played them for five years i doubt I would have discovered the nuances of design and grind than I now know suit me best. Haven't changed my fairway woods in 3 years and as for driver the search for the optimum stick probably never ends. I did a fitting for a shaft last week with a guy that builds clubs for pros and has done so for 25 years. No launch monitor, no endless array of screw in heads. He said bring 3 of your favorite drivers and let me watch you hit them. He then analyzed their specs and put it all together to come up with the perfect detailed profile of specs in a shaft,head combo. I will be interested to see the result.
As I said one mans meat is another mans poison. I used to live on a few acres in the country and spent some time practicing short irons in the paddock next to the neighbors dairy. He used to say to me he could not believe i would put so much time into something that does not produce anything. He could not understand why I was not fencing, or working on sonething that would make me income. We are all different HB. If you want to be happy in life follow your nose and do what interests you. As long as you are not hurting anybody. It is not always easy to understand others and why what they do is worthwhile for them.

Horseballs wrote:
The one thing I have noticed is that the really good players are not on Quixiotic crusades to replace their gear every year. The fallacy with equipment hoarders is that the gear is going to make a monumental difference. Familiarity is key. It's a mindset that holds all hoarders back from achieving their potential. If Sooner was still alive, he'd agree that it is a personality flaw requiring a combination of drugs and therapy. Many will rationalize that equipment hoarding is a fun hobby, yet that is just one more hurdle to overcome before the problematic mindset can be corrected. Of course I'm speaking in generalities here.

Yes and yes. I think it is a broader need to feed the monkey.... the monkey being consumer spending. I don't think anything is made with the intention of lasting more than 2-3 years. TV's, appliances, cell phones, lap tops, tablets... golf clubs for sure... the shelf life has gone WAY down. Today's $400 Drivers are certainly not 1990's $400 Drivers... these things are soda cans on a tube of glorified plastic.

I'm not saying it is a bad or good thing. It is just the way is. A TV purchase used to mean something... it was a life event... same with bicycles... same with cameras... same with golf clubs... day you bought your first set of professional level irons was a big day in your life... but now, this kind of major purchase every 7-10 years is not what is going drive consumer spending.

You need to jump from 720p to 1080p... you need quad core processors instead of your duo... you need a 16 mega pixel camera to replace the 8 you bought 2 years go (the 8 already has too many pixels to fully display on any LCD you own)... this driver goes 15 yards father with a higher tested smash factor... your TV isn't a Smart TV... you are still using a 3G cell phone?

Making stuff as cheap as possible... not sure where we are... is it better to have expensive products with a quality build made by workers who care? Or is it really cheaper to have to buy a new foreign-made POS every 2 years? Who really benefits from lower prices?

Craft beer and single barrel Bourbon... that's what I spend my extra money on. It may even last longer than some of these POS consumer goods.

Technology improvements in golf are for the sole purpose of generating income by the equipment manufacturer, obviously. There is no benefit to the golfing public by introducing clubs with better technology than before. We would all be enjoying the game just as much if we were still playing persimmon drivers and small, traditionally lofted irons. In fact, I think we'd be enjoying the game more. In the old days, a golfer would keep his driver for 10 years or more.

The list could go on and on. I don't see any benefit to having cell phones other than the fact that everyone else has one, meaning you need to own one to keep up with the times and be "connected". I would argue that cell phones, internet, etc. have not improved our lives. We are more efficient with our time but not relative to everyone else.

BTW, GPS devices slow down play. After watching people use them for several years now I am convinced.

FamousDavis wrote:Technology improvements in golf are for the sole purpose of generating income by the equipment manufacturer, obviously. There is no benefit to the golfing public by introducing clubs with better technology than before. We would all be enjoying the game just as much if we were still playing persimmon drivers and small, traditionally lofted irons. In fact, I think we'd be enjoying the game more. In the old days, a golfer would keep his driver for 10 years or more.

The list could go on and on. I don't see any benefit to having cell phones other than the fact that everyone else has one, meaning you need to own one to keep up with the times and be "connected". I would argue that cell phones, internet, etc. have not improved our lives. We are more efficient with our time but not relative to everyone else.

BTW, GPS devices slow down play. After watching people use them for several years now I am convinced.

I remember when I first started to play golf in the 1950's. At my father's club and some of the other private club courses he took me to, there were no yardage markers of any set design. After awhile, you would figure out that a certain bush or holly tree was 100, 150 or whatever to the middle of the green. Back then we took caddies and I remember some of the old caddies would know yardages but more than likely they'd watch you hit shots for a couple of holes and, instead of telling you yardage, say "Hit you 7 iron" or "Tee off with that 3 wood instead of driver." I liked the wood woods except for the whipping coming off that really irked me as a kid. I liked the balata balls too and how cool it was when you hit one of them thin and gouged a "smile" in the ball. Then you didn't throw the cut ball away but put it in your shag bag. It was fun to watch how freaky the ball flight was with one of those cut balatas.

FamousDavis wrote:Technology improvements in golf are for the sole purpose of generating income by the equipment manufacturer, obviously. There is no benefit to the golfing public by introducing clubs with better technology than before. We would all be enjoying the game just as much if we were still playing persimmon drivers and small, traditionally lofted irons. In fact, I think we'd be enjoying the game more. In the old days, a golfer would keep his driver for 10 years or more.

The list could go on and on. I don't see any benefit to having cell phones other than the fact that everyone else has one, meaning you need to own one to keep up with the times and be "connected". I would argue that cell phones, internet, etc. have not improved our lives. We are more efficient with our time but not relative to everyone else.

BTW, GPS devices slow down play. After watching people use them for several years now I am convinced.

Not true. If your being sarcastic nevermind.

Lord Helmet wrote:Not true. If your being sarcastic nevermind.

I play much faster with Nikon/Callay RF... Much easier for club selection and where to layup if needed

Pky6471 wrote:

Lord Helmet wrote:Not true. If your being sarcastic nevermind.

I play much faster with Nikon/Callay RF... Much easier for club selection and where to layup if needed

FD is just trolling.
Of course you play faster with a gps or laser.

Lord Helmet wrote:

Pky6471 wrote:

Lord Helmet wrote:Not true. If your being sarcastic nevermind.

I play much faster with Nikon/Callay RF... Much easier for club selection and where to layup if needed

FD is just trolling.
Of course you play faster with a gps or laser.

Not sure about that. If they are used to replace finding plates and sprinkler heads, I agree. If people use them to get yardages to other objects, they can definitely slow play. People can also get a dependency on their gadgets where the skycaddie must be consulted on every shot, even little pitches right in front of the green.

Olderplayer wrote:

Horseballs wrote:

Olderplayer wrote:It is wrong to say Nike has not produced good gear. Ditto with taylormade.
I don't know but I can imagine some of you critcs have not hit a good range of their stuff, and not owned any.
In three iron catagories nike has produced some beauties. The original procombo tours are a fantastic feeling and performing combo set. The original nike (endo forged) blades are comparable toany of the top modern blades. The vrs forged is an extremely good players gi iron.
Ok their sgi is as bad as anyone elses and their drivers and fairways in the end do not measure up but it cannot be said all their gear is crap.
Likewise TM. The 300 irons are in the top ten of the last 20 years imo. Original rac blades are excellent. Miura forged 2004 cb are pretty decent as are the 2005 tp cb's. Sure the burners and their ilk are crap but the players irons are very good. I have tried all the wedges and the rac series are tops by me. The v steel fairway woods are all time classics.
Every one of the clubs i have mentioned here I own or have owned and bagged. You haters have got to get a grip.

Pretty good flame job.
It doesn't change the fact that perception is reality when it comes to Nike gear. They may have excellent products but they aren't taken seriously. I don't jump on the bandwagon with TM and Callaway, but they dominate golf sales in my area. Half of my club has a white driver, fairway wood, or both. Tons of Callaway irons too, despite the fact that the pro shop pimps Titleist gear.
The one thing I have noticed is that the really good players are not on Quixiotic crusades to replace their gear every year. The fallacy with equipment hoarders is that the gear is going to make a monumental difference. Familiarity is key. It's a mindset that holds all hoarders back from achieving their potential. If Sooner was still alive, he'd agree that it is a personality flaw requiring a combination of drugs and therapy. Many will rationalize that equipment hoarding is a fun hobby, yet that is just one more hurdle to overcome before the problematic mindset can be corrected. Of course I'm speaking in generalities here.

Fair point, and a fair bit of truth there but basically we are all made different. What is enjoyable to one is a waste of time to another. Re familiarity once you find something that works well for you you are definitely best off to stick with it. However it can take a long time by trial and error to find those clubs. I haven't bought a putter in nearly two years as my current one has been in the bag that long. That said I still have a nice collection of older ones including some Rawlings classics; some of my favorites. Players irons and blades are not a lot different in the end. The biggest difference being sole width and grind and type of shaft. It doesn't take a hell of a long time to start nailing distances with a set you like standing over. If I went and got fitted for a set of heads and then played them for five years i doubt I would have discovered the nuances of design and grind than I now know suit me best. Haven't changed my fairway woods in 3 years and as for driver the search for the optimum stick probably never ends. I did a fitting for a shaft last week with a guy that builds clubs for pros and has done so for 25 years. No launch monitor, no endless array of screw in heads. He said bring 3 of your favorite drivers and let me watch you hit them. He then analyzed their specs and put it all together to come up with the perfect detailed profile of specs in a shaft,head combo. I will be interested to see the result.
As I said one mans meat is another mans poison. I used to live on a few acres in the country and spent some time practicing short irons in the paddock next to the neighbors dairy. He used to say to me he could not believe i would put so much time into something that does not produce anything. He could not understand why I was not fencing, or working on sonething that would make me income. We are all different HB. If you want to be happy in life follow your nose and do what interests you. As long as you are not hurting anybody. It is not always easy to understand others and why what they do is worthwhile for them.

I was just flaming you back, OP. I certainly don't care what others spend their time and money on. Personally, I went through a phase as an equipment junkie several years ago. Never for irons, but for drivers. I thought it was an equipment issue that I couldn't square the face on 460cc drivers. Several drivers per year, several shaft swaps, etc., and I always felt like I had to put the same swing I'd put on a 3 wood to hook the shit out of it. I figured out some things in my set up, tee height and ball position, and now I have no issues.

Horseballs wrote:

Lord Helmet wrote:

Pky6471 wrote:

Lord Helmet wrote:Not true. If your being sarcastic nevermind.

I play much faster with Nikon/Callay RF... Much easier for club selection and where to layup if needed

FD is just trolling.
Of course you play faster with a gps or laser.

Not sure about that. If they are used to replace finding plates and sprinkler heads, I agree. If people use them to get yardages to other objects, they can definitely slow play. People can also get a dependency on their gadgets where the skycaddie must be consulted on every shot, even little pitches right in front of the green.

Ive seen one person have to consult the gadget for trees, bunkers, pitches, etc...Most I see (including myself) are quick to get yardages to green or layup spots. Really doesnt slow play. So yes, if someone is using the thing to measure every friggin thing out there it will slow play, but this hasnt been my experience. FD is just trollin along!

Lord Helmet wrote:

Horseballs wrote:

Lord Helmet wrote:

Pky6471 wrote:

Lord Helmet wrote:Not true. If your being sarcastic nevermind.

I play much faster with Nikon/Callay RF... Much easier for club selection and where to layup if needed

FD is just trolling.
Of course you play faster with a gps or laser.

Not sure about that. If they are used to replace finding plates and sprinkler heads, I agree. If people use them to get yardages to other objects, they can definitely slow play. People can also get a dependency on their gadgets where the skycaddie must be consulted on every shot, even little pitches right in front of the green.

Ive seen one person have to consult the gadget for trees, bunkers, pitches, etc...Most I see (including myself) are quick to get yardages to green or layup spots. Really doesnt slow play. So yes, if someone is using the thing to measure every friggin thing out there it will slow play, but this hasnt been my experience. FD is just trollin along!

No, I wasn't trolling at all this time. I say "this time" because obviously I have in the past.

With GPS devices, I'll expand on what HB said about a golfer's dependence on finding exact yardages. I can't tell you how often I see guys standing on the tee and comparing yardages between GPS devices, which leads all of the players to recheck them. We played behind a threesome today and on every shot this jackarse would stand on the tee, without a club, outstretch his rangefinder and aim it at a target for what seemed like an eternity. Then he'd walk back to the cart, put the device away and then select a club. From my limited observation of the guy, who was playing the back tees BTW, he probably shot 98.

For someone who shoots 98, I think the person would do better to simply look at the 150 or 100 marker, do a quick estimation and then choose a club.

At first glance, you'd think a GPS device would speed up play. You pull it out, look at the yardage and then select a club. Is that a representation of how most people utilize GPS or rangefinder devices. No, it isn't. Most people that I've obvserved take it out of a protective case and then walk over to their ball with it. They then aim it, check the yardage and then re-aim it again. Next, they put it back into the case and then grab a club.

Most public courses have an easily identifiable marker for 100, 150 and 200 yards. If you are inside 200 yards, isn't it pretty easy to determine about how far it is to the hole? And, since most of us aren't good enough to hit the ball an exact distance, all we're really trying to do is hit the green somewhere around the flag.

In theory they should speed along play but in practice I don't believe they do. I'm speaking in a general sense of course.

The worst is when 100 shooting hackers GPS or laser every shot.

I know it's rude, but I frequently feel compelled to ask them to laser a divot 20 yards in front of them, and as politely as possible inform them that they'll most likely be playing their next shot from that very divot once they cold-top this shot...

I have no idea why hackers hate me.

You would think that beginner golfers would appreciate an honest assessment of their games. Getting booted in the junk by golf spikes tends to come off as more than a little ungrateful.

Help ain't free, honey... you should have choked out Mr. McGoo when you had the chance.

Hit the seven.

Worste thing that happened to me w.r.t a distance measuring device...We were playing our first time on an very up/down slope golf course, Some portions would be 40meter uphill and other 50meter downhill....We had to take the cart and used the distance on the golfcart's gps device. We still compensated for the uphill and downhill shots but thats where things went wrong. On the first 9 on every uphill shot out ball was past the hole. On every downhill shot they landed up short....

Only half way through the round we where told the GPS devices calculates the slope to the pin and adjusts the distance accordingly....They never made it clear as they mentioned it basically helps the hackers to compensate enough on each of their shots....

FamousDavis wrote:

Lord Helmet wrote:

Horseballs wrote:

Lord Helmet wrote:

Pky6471 wrote:

Lord Helmet wrote:Not true. If your being sarcastic nevermind.

I play much faster with Nikon/Callay RF... Much easier for club selection and where to layup if needed

FD is just trolling.
Of course you play faster with a gps or laser.

Not sure about that. If they are used to replace finding plates and sprinkler heads, I agree. If people use them to get yardages to other objects, they can definitely slow play. People can also get a dependency on their gadgets where the skycaddie must be consulted on every shot, even little pitches right in front of the green.

Ive seen one person have to consult the gadget for trees, bunkers, pitches, etc...Most I see (including myself) are quick to get yardages to green or layup spots. Really doesnt slow play. So yes, if someone is using the thing to measure every friggin thing out there it will slow play, but this hasnt been my experience. FD is just trollin along!

No, I wasn't trolling at all this time. I say "this time" because obviously I have in the past.

With GPS devices, I'll expand on what HB said about a golfer's dependence on finding exact yardages. I can't tell you how often I see guys standing on the tee and comparing yardages between GPS devices, which leads all of the players to recheck them. We played behind a threesome today and on every shot this jackarse would stand on the tee, without a club, outstretch his rangefinder and aim it at a target for what seemed like an eternity. Then he'd walk back to the cart, put the device away and then select a club. From my limited observation of the guy, who was playing the back tees BTW, he probably shot 98.

For someone who shoots 98, I think the person would do better to simply look at the 150 or 100 marker, do a quick estimation and then choose a club.

At first glance, you'd think a GPS device would speed up play. You pull it out, look at the yardage and then select a club. Is that a representation of how most people utilize GPS or rangefinder devices. No, it isn't. Most people that I've obvserved take it out of a protective case and then walk over to their ball with it. They then aim it, check the yardage and then re-aim it again. Next, they put it back into the case and then grab a club.

Most public courses have an easily identifiable marker for 100, 150 and 200 yards. If you are inside 200 yards, isn't it pretty easy to determine about how far it is to the hole? And, since most of us aren't good enough to hit the ball an exact distance, all we're really trying to do is hit the green somewhere around the flag.

In theory they should speed along play but in practice I don't believe they do. I'm speaking in a general sense of course.

In the scenario you outlined, yeah, that is just brutal and slow play. I have seen that once (as I mentioned above) and it was in San Diego. It was horrible! I would say my experience has been folks just take a look at the gps, grab a club, and swing away. There has been times I havent even noticed a playing partner even had or was using one....

It just hasnt been my experience, the scenario you threw out there....
Heck, i think RF would be more detrimental...guys wanting to laser everything around the pin, taking up time.....

I've softened my stance on RF and GPS since they have become more prevalent. It used to be absolutely brutal to play behind a foursome where one guy had a device. The other members would be powerless pull a club without checking every yardage. Not that any of this information is actually beneficial.
My disdain for Skycaddies is pretty fierce on GR. I have also referred to RF's as "chopper binoculars." I now own a RF. I have only used it to shoot pins. As Lennon said, "You may say I'm a hypocrite, but I'm not the only one."

Horseballs wrote:I've softened my stance on RF and GPS since they have become more prevalent. It used to be absolutely brutal to play behind a foursome where one guy had a device. The other members would be powerless pull a club without checking every yardage. Not that any of this information is actually beneficial.
My disdain for Skycaddies is pretty fierce on GR. I have also referred to RF's as "chopper binoculars." I now own a RF. I have only used it to shoot pins. As Lennon said, "You may say I'm a hypocrite, but I'm not the only one."

I dont mess with any of the features my GPS has (mapping a course, etc)...all I use it for is front/middle/back of greens on approach shots. Occasionally, if I am playing an unfamiliar course, I will use the feature to get layup distances. But since I mainly play the same courses, I already know that.