Distance-measuring devices have become as common in the amateur game as double bogeys. Watches tell us front–middle and back yardages with a tap. Lasers can zap every tree, bunker and flag. Apps now estimate temperature, elevation, wind and effective playing distance. We’re becoming so indebted to technology that we’ll be using robots to hit our shots for us next.
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Is all this technology making golf better? Or is it quietly stripping away skills that once defined the game? That was the debate on a recent episode of The NCG Golf Podcast, where Tom Irwin and Steve Carroll pulled no punches in arguing that distance-measuring devices may be doing golf more harm than good.
From pace-of-play myths to the erosion of course design principles, and from rules confusion to creeping technological dependence, the case for banning DMDs has never felt stronger.
The Pace-of-Play Myth
Many golfers claim that rangefinders make rounds faster, but the evidence simply does not support that belief. Even trials on the PGA Tour, where caddies currently spend time pacing yardages with meticulous precision, shaved only around five minutes from round times.
At club level, it can be argued the opposite is often true. Irwin challenged the broader assumption that rangefinders actually speed up amateur play.
