GPS Kids | Caddy Confidential: The Numbers Don’t Lie

I almost gave it up. Golf, that is. I feel dirty even saying it aloud. And worse for actually considering going through with it. I dreamed of kicking my clubs off a cliff, or setting them off in a fiery Knarr and forgetting forever that I’d ever even heard of the dreadful game…golf…mehh…

But fear not, golf fans. I came to my senses. And pretty quickly, too.

After seeing my early season handicap balloon to the heretofore unseen 12.4, I hunkered down deciding to either whittle 2.4 strokes off my beefy index, or, heaven forbid, start jogging with Peg and Jake.

My biggest issue was distance control – specifically, distance control from 100 yards and in. To help understand and hopefully improve control, I turned to my trusty new Approach G5 and the Measure Distance feature. For about a half dozen rounds in April, I quietly started measuring every iron shot I hit and made mental notes on how accurate each shot was.

For example, I learned early on that a 3/4 pitching wedge from 105 yards was far more accurate than a full sand wedge. And I don’t actually hit a full 7-iron 170 yards – more like 163. Using the Measure Distance feature basically changed my entire approach to hitting iron shots.

I learned how to hit better shots simply by knowing how far I hit each club. So now, when I’m 160 out I hit a smooth 7-iron instead of a hard 8. Since using the Measure Distance feature to catalog my distances, I’ve hacked my index down to an 8.9. Not my best ever, but 3.5 strokes better than before.

Thankfully, my regular playing partners have stopped giving me helpful tips like, “buy a good tennis racket” or delicately suggesting that I “renew the fishing license.” And best of all, I’ve finally stopped “making boat payments” for my friendly foursome week after week. So I think I’ll continue to play, for now, at least.

To learn more about using your Approach G5, check out these videos Jake posted in the Garmin Learning Center. And good luck whittling a few strokes off your handicap!

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