Other than maybe Palm Springs, bet there's more golf shops here than anywhere else. Picked up this laser range finder. Assumed they're more or less the same, and since I'm far from needing sub-yard accuracy, just got the bottom end Nikon. Usually the guts are all the same in the range.
Pretty cool gadget. Point and press and it flashes a laser beam and measures the time for it to return. Takes about 3 nanoseconds for light to travel a meter, so at 6 yard minimum distance resolution, the gadget's measuring system runs fast, as in speed of light. It records the reflection from the nearest object, so the first pulses that come back to the range finder are measured. That makes it pretty easy to use provided you've a reasonably steady hand.
Playing around with it on the range, it's harder to control distance (as in how far front or back) of a wedge shot, rather than the spread (deviation from target left or right). So, bet that the pros are really good front to back, and that's where tournaments are won. Accurate left or right is a given.
Downside is the gadget's made of super slick survive nuclear winter plastic. Slides right off the top of club stands at the range if not extra careful. Time to fix that with a coating of silicone, and add a loop or velcro to hang off the bag when I eventually get onto the course.
It's really a neat gadget. Can't imagine playing without one now that I can measure how far to the sand traps to carry.
(via Jiro on iPhone)