So you’ve decided to jump on the bandwagon and get a rangefinder. Congratulations! This could mean improving your game significantly which makes you more of a challenge to others. And that’s the beauty, if you all are good, the competition makes for a fun day, instead of waiting for someone to try and hit the ball 87 times before even remotely coming close to the hole. There are many options, brands, prices, etc., of rangefinders and you can find many of them, along with reviews, at Top Golf Rangefinders. Taking a look at what each one has to offer will be the best bet after you decide which one to get. Here are some of the differences.
Optical Rangefinder
If you are looking for a basic rangefinder with no extra bells and whistles, at a cost that isn’t through the roof, than the optical rangefinder is for you. But you also want to consider your abilities as well. This one comes with the least help when calculating distance, but it also benefits from not needing batteries or a monthly subscription fee, etc. These ones are pretty simple to operate. You can find these for as cheap as about $22 whereas you can also find ones that go upwards of $100. It all depends on what you are looking for.
Laser Rangefinder
This would be a step up from the optical rangefinder as this is a longer range and is a bit more accurate than the traditional optical rangefinder. These shine a laser beam at a stationary object such as the flag, and measures the time it took for the beam to return. They calculate using the speed of light and then return to you the distance. They will take some getting used to and you should start by practicing on distances that are close to you and working your way out. For this one you will have to figure out the different settings that it comes with and knowing when to use which one. There are numerous videos on how to use it on YouTube. Also, unlike the GPS ones, these only use batteries (no need to charge it) and can be used on any golf course because it doesn’t need to have the greens mapped.
GPS Rangefinder
When you are working with well known golf clubs, you have the opportunity to potentially use the GPS rangefinders. These are the ones that can determine your distance from an object by locating the object and then you and calculating it that way. But also know that with these you can’t always play with them in a tournament so you would have to read the regulations of where you are. Some of the pros with this would be that you don’t need to hold the camera steady while locating the target. One of the cons is that the battery does need to be charged after every round. However, some people swear by these, just research where you play in order to determine if it would be a wise decision.
In the end you have to decide which would work better for you and choose accordingly. You might even have to try all of them to see which one works better with you. And when in doubt, read some of the reviews of the best ones out there on Top Golf Rangefinders.