Laser vs. GPS

[Flyers99]

I have been using a GPS device but was looking to get a laser and I think I have decided on a model.

 

Now I am wondering if I should even put out the extra money to get a laser?

 

Can you guys tell me why you like the one you use and what the benefits or drawbacks are of each?

 

To me the laser seems great to get pinpoint accuracy for targets and there are no subscriptions to buy.

 

The GPS seems more convenient to just look and get a number? Also, I like the GPS to see distances of shots.

 

Any thoughts are appreciated.

[Hateto3Putt]

[TM_HOYER]

Which is best for you depends on your playing habits. If you play a lot of different courses, the GPS would be best. This would provide the yardages from tee to green and would help with course management where you do not know the course. If you play the same course most of the time, the laser is best. Since you already know the course, you already know what club to hit off the tee for the best position and avoid the hazards. You also already have a feel for the greens so yardage to the pin will probably give you all you need most of the time.

[BlkNGld]

I've got both. Have a (original) upro and a leupold gx-2.

When playing I almost always use the upro. For me, it's quicker and easier. The fact that it's so small means I can leave it in my pocket. For my needs, the accuracy is fine, and with the upro I don't pay subscription fees.

The laser is great for going to the range or short game area when you're working on your distances and nothing is marked. There are a few times that I use it on the course - for a 'learning opportunity' with the slope feature.

If the course is backed up and I want to get a reading on the cart/bag of the group in front of me to see if it's ok to hit, or get one on some non-hazard the upro doesn't map I might use the laser. To be honest though, I can use the upros anypoint feature and get close on those too.

If I had to choose just one, it would be the upro. I just happened to stumble on an awesome deal on the leupold earlier this year.

[Lamo70]

laser, hands down.

[RRFireblade]

Omg. I did a search for laser vs GPS and my PC punched me in the face.

Right before I blacked out tho I'm pretty sure I saw "laser".

[Redskinsfan]

I have both and here are a few things to think about. If your GPS is based off of Sat. images the yardages can be off alot. The gps unit I have came with my course and there was about 4-5 holes that was off as many as 10 yds. The unit had a feature that allowed me to map the course myself. Now the holes are pretty accurate and I feel confident in the distances. I took that same unit to a course that is severly tree lined and narrow on some holes. That map was so far off that it had holes going in the wrong direction. So if you use gps I'd make sure you either have good maps or have a unit that was walked off such as skycaddie does. Of course if its a local course you could map it yourself. I should note that the gps I have is the Golf Guru 4 but I believe they are going out of business for units and switching to software. I would bet there are other units that allow you to map courses yourself though.

The laser I think is better and if I had to do it all over I wouldn't have bought the gps ( I bought first). The laser can be used to hit almost anything. The laser can be harder to hit your target if you have the shakes but if you prop yourself where you won't shake its a better option. The laser I have is the Bushnell V2 which takes 3 volt batteries. Those batteries can run out of juice without any warning from the unit so make sure you have some handy.

[Tgstan]

The laser is a bit of work. Half the reason I got a device in the first place was for convenience. A laser is not that. It does it's job though, no doubt.

[Brent4567]

Garmin gps watch excellent.

[ikari]

I use an older Bushnell GPS Neo and a V2 range finder. While GPS is more convenient but I often find the yardage is off. Now I just use range finder to get yardage before the shot and use GPS to measure the actual distance I hit.

[Hacker#5252]

Keep in mind with a laser, you can only get distances to targets you can see.

[Shiram]

If you already have a GPS... I wouldn't buy a laser. (The flip is true as well)

I use a laser and it's great... but unless you need yardage directly to the pin within a very narrow range... it doesn't do anything that a GPS won't do for you.

For most of us mortals - knowing that the front of the green is 100 yards, the back in 135 and the pin is in the front/mid/back.. is enough info. PIck a yardage and play to it.

Most good GPS units will also give you carry distances for forced carries/hazards...

You can find pro/con lists by searching the forum.

[Guia]

I use a Garmin Watch and a Leupold GX3i. The watch is great for courses I play regularly, and the GX ford tournament. On trouble holes I will use both.

[Flyers99]

Ok I was able to play 3 rounds since posting this topic and I believe answered my own question. I played 3 rounds with a person who had a laser and let me use the unit. To me, I do not see any benefit for the laser. I am a 9 HC and do not hit every 9 iron within a yard or two of the other. I do not play tournaments and to to me the laser is limited. I like the GPS providing an overview of the hole so I can see everything.

Yes, the laser will give the hole exact distance but having front, back, middle of the green on the GPS is enough for me.

I found the GPS is 10 times easier to use and quicker. I like knowing the exact hole distance on every hole to start which the laser does not provide. I played one hole and the card said it was 418 but the tee was more like 388 due to the placement. To me that is helpful.

I measured every approach shot with the laser and 16 out of 18 holes the yardarges were within 3 yards. Now for me, 9 feet or less of difference is not going to change or effect any shot for me. On the other 2 holes they were off by 5 and 6 yards. So, 15-18 feet is a difference but again, for me is not gonna break the bank or justify buying a laser.

I just thought I would post my thoughts now that I have used both.

[Hacker#5252]

Which gps was that, and how old was it ?

I've tested my Skycaddie SG5 against a Bushnell Tour V2 and sprinkler heads and mine was always spot on, but it's been used for 5 months only.

[Tyrone Tyger]

Funny, that was my exact thought as well!

[Flyers99]

[u]I used an old bushnell neo[/u]

[MBA-J]

A laser rangefinder shoots a beam of light at an object, receives the light back, does the math, and gives you an exact distance. A GPS has to go through the ATMOSPHERE into SPACE and BACK to give you a yardage. I'm taking the laser and math every time...

[vix02]

Laser hands down....gps is good for new courses with dog legs etc...but that's about it.

[njlam]

For me, age had a lot to do with it.

As a gadget guy, I enjoyed doing the research on both and had come to the conclusion that the Garmin A6 GPS and the Leupold GX 3i Laser were the respective bests in breed.

To be honest, I was leaning towards the GPS because of the broader range of info on the screen and the higher tech contained in the product.

However, when I went to test them both, I found that my 50 year old eyes could not read any of the info on the GPS screen, so no matter what it told me, I needed reading glasses to see it!

I have been using the Leupold GX 3i for a season now and can't live without it. Accuracy is more important than all the other info....imo

[596]

I use either a Skycaddie SGX which is a great GPS. Has distances measured to anywhere you put the cursor and then from there to the flag. It's very accurate and fast enough. Super handy when you don't know the course, to carry doglegs, bunkers, etc from the tee or on the second shot of an unreachable par 5. This GPS also has flags and stuff measured on the range on most courses. You could also plot your range yourself in about 5 minutes and save it for future use.

I also just began using the Garmin Approach S1 watch. Dang, this thing is nice. Accurate to the front, middle ,back. Measures distance of shots, also. It's super fast, no need to touch anything as it goes hole to hole. Just look down and see the yardage, done. 2 buttons to push to measure shots, then one to go back to the GPS. No fees, no membership, free upgrading to the current software. I use this one when I know most of the fairway and tee shot distances. The only thing I need is front middle back on the green.

BTW - I'm 57 and can see the screens on either of these without any problems and I use reading glasses when at work and home but not on the course.

[BlackDiamondPar5]

[quote name='njlam' timestamp='1347325891' post='5620029']
For me, age had a lot to do with it.

As a gadget guy, I enjoyed doing the research on both and had come to the conclusion that the Garmin A6 GPS and the Leupold GX 3i Laser were the respective bests in breed.

To be honest, I was leaning towards the GPS because of the broader range of info on the screen and the higher tech contained in the product.

However, when I went to test them both, I found that my 50 year old eyes could not read any of the info on the GPS screen, so no matter what it told me, I needed reading glasses to see it!

I have been using the Leupold GX 3i for a season now and can't live without it. Accuracy is more important than all the other info....imo
[/quote]

I presume you mean the garmin g6? And yes I agree those numbers are getting small. I wear +1.5 readers and would certainly appeciate larger font but can still read the screen. They need a larger font option -- I along with some others have sent that suggestion into Garmin and they said it's possible that larger font options could be included in a future software release.

[BlackDiamondPar5]

[quote name='MBA-J' timestamp='1347324929' post='5619895']
A laser rangefinder shoots a beam of light at an object, receives the light back, does the math, and gives you an exact distance. A GPS has to go through the ATMOSPHERE into SPACE and BACK to give you a yardage. I'm taking the laser and math every time...
[/quote]

I don't see how that's germane to accuracy. A GPS also uses math by cross referencing timing signals from 10-16 satellites that are synchronized by atomic clocks in order to calculate time differences to an exact location. It is not affected by fog, clouds, precipitation or dust. Try using your laser on a rainy or foggy morning. Sorry but your reasoning for preferring one technology over the other is parochial.

Truth is my experience shows GPS is typically accurate to +/- 3 yards or better and laser by +/- 1 yard. Considering the top players on the PGA tour are accurate to the pin by around 4-5 yards from ~100 yards out, I'm guessing that either accuracy level is good for 99.9999% of the people playing golf.

My partner uses a laser and me a GPS. I see both as being useful tools and both have pro's/con's. While laser is better for exact pin distance, truth be known I can almost always estimate the pin distance to 3 yards or better using my GPS so long as the course uses some type of pin indicator for front, center, back pins (eq. colored flags). GPS is superior for knowing Front, Center, Back green distances which is usually more useful for most golfers, except perhaps for very low to + handicapers. While I find GPS to be much faster, easier and overall more informative about course layout, I do like laser for knowing how far ahead the group is in front of us or for knowing distance to a specific target or tree.

[MBA-J]

[quote name='Andy L' timestamp='1347330595' post='5620677']
[quote name='MBA-J' timestamp='1347324929' post='5619895']
A laser rangefinder shoots a beam of light at an object, receives the light back, does the math, and gives you an exact distance. A GPS has to go through the ATMOSPHERE into SPACE and BACK to give you a yardage. I'm taking the laser and math every time...
[/quote]

I don't see how that's germane to accuracy. A GPS also uses math by cross referencing timing signals from 10-16 satellites that are synchronized by atomic clocks in order to calculate time differences to an exact location. It is not affected by fog, clouds, precipitation or dust. Try using your laser on a rainy or foggy morning. Sorry but your reasoning for preferring one technology over the other is parochial.

Truth is my experience shows GPS is typically accurate to +/- 3 yards or better and laser by +/- 1 yard. Considering the top players on the PGA tour are accurate to the pin by around 4-5 yards from ~100 yards out, I'm guessing that either accuracy level is good for 99.9999% of the people playing golf.

My partner uses a laser and me a GPS. I see both as being useful tools and both have pro's/con's. While laser is better for exact pin distance, truth be known I can almost always estimate the pin distance to 3 yards or better using my GPS so long as the course uses some type of pin indicator for front, center, back pins (eq. colored flags). GPS is superior for knowing Front, Center, Back green distances which is usually more useful for most golfers, except perhaps for very low to + handicapers. While I find GPS to be much faster, easier and overall more informative about course layout, I do like laser for knowing how far ahead the group is in front of us or for knowing distance to a specific target or tree.
[/quote]

My accuracy argument stems from the technologies in and of themselves. The laser has fewer calculations to make while only dealing with local constraints/variables (rain, fog, light, etc.). There are too many jitter-afflicted satellites bouncing data through everchanging atmospheric conditions and other interference to other satellites and GPS devices. You're ultimately right, as the difference is minuscule; however, there is a difference. You're also right in suggesting that the use of both technologies is ideal, but it's also a bit cost prohibitive for the average golfer.

[m3nace]

I use both.

$150 can get you an original uPro (with updated software it is excellent) and a Bushnell Pinseeker 1500 with slope.

$0.02

P.S. Also have a few apps on the phone but prefer the above combo. YMMV

[Flyers99]

I am looking at the Bushnell hybrid now. I realize it is a basic GPS (I use a Neo now) and basic laser but I am intrigued by the combo. I am not sure thought that the cost (roughly $390 online) is worth it. I am thinking of keeping my Neo and getting a Leupold for about $225 (GX1 model). This way I would still have both and save some money. The convenience factor is intriguing though of the hybrid.

[fordy11]

Laser all the way - we've all seen greens that are 60 or more yards long so how useful is a middle reading on these?

Having said that I always use GolfShot (other GPS Apps are available) when i don't know a course - extremely useful for picking lines using the overhead images or obviously when you're unsighted.

Only annoying thing with the latter is that the images don't permenantly stay on the device due to copyright issues, and no matter what anyone syas if you use a lot the battery is toast. So spend the dough on a laser and $20 extra on an app!

[RRFireblade]

[quote name='fordy11' timestamp='1347368759' post='5622373']
So spend the dough on a laser and $20 extra on an app!
[/quote]

Better even, lazer and (free) google earth/satellite view on your phone.

I used to only take the GPS out on courses I'm unfamiliar with soley for the non 'line of sight' stuff and it is good for that. But I always have my phone anyway and when just using for references, battery life is not an issue at all. So one less 'device' to carry. Plus I like the "real" imaging, you can zoom in quite a bit and see things the GPS doesn't show.

[jjr]

Love my Leupold GX1 very easy to use, great if the flags have the reflectors for 150yds and in ( little beep sounds off) what I like the most is I can shoot other objects aside from the flag such as bunkers, trees etc if I'm having difficulty with depth perception. Plus if my not so great eyes lose the ball on the green I can see it through the GX1. GL with your decision.

[Flyers99]

I have decided to go with a laser and I am deciding between the Leupold GX1 and Bushnell V2. I know it is a little thing but I sm not s big fan of the Leupold carry case although the GX1 seems to get better reviews.

I also decided to take the advise above and will supplement the laser with GPS app. I used swing by swing (free version) twice and loved it. Works great and I love the overhead view. For me gives all I need as I am not into paying for a subscription or tracking my stats. Provides easy touch screen to hazards, doglegs, layup and trouble. Although it may be off a few yards provides a good base.

I will use the laser for approach shots and clarifying other objects as needed.