Use of distance measuring devices should be allowed

There are two boys in my house who love toys. Though separated by 30-something odd years, my son and I have the same approach to devices; an uncomplicated love and devotion to these toys.

We have been known to remain loyal to a toy for days at a time, giving it undivided attention forsaking all others in the house. At bedtime, I have to wear my “daddy hat” and check that my son doesn’t go to bed with any of the toys. I would not put this past him as it is something that I would have done at his age.

During a round of golf with my son this past Christmas season, I used my distance measuring device to gauge the metres between my ball and the hole. It was an instant hit with my son.

He was soon trying to measure the distance between him and all the things he could lay his eye on. My son was so taken with the device that even on the way back home, he kept asking for it.

“Daddy? I need to know how far that lorry is from us. May I get the distance measuring device,” he would ask.

Other than the curious uses my son imagined he could use the device for, it has come in handy on many instances when I could not estimate the distance I had left to the hole on the golf course.

Many golfers are using distance measuring devices in Kenya today. Some have downloaded applications on their phones that use GPS positioning and the database of golf courses they have pre-loaded or stored in the cloud. Some people have watches that use the same principle as the applications on phones.

The one problem with these devices is the fact that it is not permitted for use in most of the clubs in Kenya. Of the few clubs that I have had the pleasure of playing in the last few months, distance measuring devices are only allowed in Limuru Country Club, Muthaiga Golf Club, Windsor Golf Hotel and Country Club and Karen Country Club.

BREACH OF THE RULES

Before you go looking at your club’s Local Rules and declare that distance measuring devices are not prohibited, the fact that they are silent about them precludes you from their use. To allow golfers to use a distance measuring device, a club must have a Local Rule that specifically states that their use is allowed. Without this Local Rule, anyone using a watch or an application on their phone or a device that measures distance is in breach of the Rules of Golf.

The game of golf is meant to be challenging and those that are successful should be the ones with good judgement and skills.

Some golfers have developed a knack for gauging distance at a quick glance. However, when faced with the dilemma of hitting a soft 8-iron or a full 9-iron, the distance measuring devices do come in handy.

DISTANCE POINTS

At any major European Tour or American Tour events, the course is usually marked with several distance points.

The players will often be seen thumbing through a notebook. These notebooks commonly known as Stroke Savers, have distances from the tees to the painted marks on the course and the distance from these marks to the front of the green.

This is the reason why many of the professional golfers at the Barclays Kenya Open or other international PGA events are seen pacing towards the green, stopping when they get to their balls.

Since these professionals get this kind of help, why not the local amateurs?

We need more help than these highly skilled professionals.

There is one downside though; if the distance measuring device provides more information than just the distance, then it is illegal.

One that can give wind speed, slope and probably help you see into the future is prohibited. This one will lead to a straight disqualification.

What if a golfer uses his distance measuring device in a club that has not put in a Local Rule that allows them? Well, unlike in previous years, it does not earn them a direct disqualification.

For a first time offence, the player loses the hole in match play or earns a 2-stroke penalty in stroke play.

However, any subsequent use will lead to disqualification.

Should a player use the device between the play of two holes, then the penalty will be applied to the next hole.

It is my opinion that the use of this technology be allowed in all golf courses.

For those that reckon that it slows down play, then they have not noticed how many golfers are breaking the Rules in blissful ignorance on many of our golf courses.

What may seem as an innocuous glance at a watch may be all that it takes to consult the oracles of the interwebs on the distance to the green.