Welcome to Play Smart, a regular GOLF.com game-improvement column that will help you play smarter, better golf.
Rangefinders are wonderful tools that are a great investment if you’re getting serious about golf. With the ability to laser the pin, bunkers and other obstacles on the course, you can take the guesswork out of your game and really dial in your shots.
But while rangefinders are great tools, they can be used incorrectly — and then they can do more harm than good.
Recently as I was scrolling on social media, I stumbled upon a video from Jon Sherman regarding this exact topic. Sherman is one of the brightest minds in golf when it comes to course management, so it immediately piqued my interest. Check it out below.
The distance measuring device you use might be costing you strokes pic.twitter.com/SsnxCXhR3k
— Jon Sherman (@practicalgolf) September 18, 2024
Sherman makes an excellent point about how rangefinders can actually hurt your game. When you’ve got your laser in your hand, it’s likely you are only shooting the distance to the pin. However, this is typically a poor strategy.
Firing directly at flags may be good fodder for stories at the 19th hole after the round, but it’s not the best tactic if you want to post low scores. When you only focus on the flag, you are ignoring some key yardages that are needed to be successful.
How may yards to cover the bunker? How far is it to the back of the green? How much room do you have on either side of the flag? Questions like these need to be answered before every shot you hit.
“Sometimes they’ll choose a yardage that doesn’t give them enough wiggle room,” Sherman says.
When you only get the yardage to the flag, it can lead to poor strategic decisions that result in big numbers. Instead, you should be focusing on yardages that give you the most margin for error. Once you start doing that, you’re sure to see your scores drop.
