FAQ: Do PGA Tour caddies ever use rangefinders?
By The Caddie Network Staff · January 12, 2021
Through our readers and social media followers here at The Caddie Network, we often receive questions related to the caddie profession. We’ve collected the most frequently asked questions from our readers and followers and tasked actual PGA Tour caddies to serve up the answers based on their experiences. Here are the answers — from PGA Tour caddies — to the questions we most often receive from you.
We’ve covered the most important tools of the trade for a caddie in this space before. But we’re often asked if PGA Tour caddies use rangefinders, in particular. For that answer, we turned to a longtime PGA Tour caddie.
Do PGA Tour caddies ever use rangefinders?
Professional caddies absolutely use rangefinders in the thorough preparation for tournaments, along with other items — like a compass — to dial in yardages to areas of the course where we know our player will be most comfortable. We’re using the rangefinder to chart things in the yardage book like distance to trouble areas, lay-up areas and more so that we’re able to provide our player with all the information he needs, and asks for.
That said, you won’t see us pulling the rangefinder out during competition, as that’s currently not allowed.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The PGA of America announced on February 9, 2021, that it would allow the use of distance-measuring devices in its major championships, beginning with the 2021 PGA Championship at Kiawah Island in May.
Do you have more caddie questions? We have more caddie answers. From “What is the biggest difference between an amateur and a professional?” to “Do caddies ever repair ball marks on the green?,” our pros have you covered with loads of answers to these FAQs – just click here.
