DMD

Golf zealously guards its past and traditions. And, I've wondered at times if golfers shouldn't simply get used to noise - people talking, gum popping, etc. After all, other sports have to deal with it. But I also acknowledge the intense concentration required, and with it, the hushed expectations of the crowd which conveys a type of respect and acknowledgment of the sport.

Golf struggles with change and clings to its traditions with fervor, kinda like the Catholic church struggling over ordination of women. In the past there was a sense of doom pervading golf when carts were introduced. Then there is the time when its pedigree confronted potential damage when blue collar pros were permitted to change in the locker room. I won't even comment about acceptance of minorities and women on the links.

Now it is high tech. The latest threat is the DMD or "Distance Measuring Device." The DMD uses lasers to measure the distance to distant objects. No longer do you have to guess the distance to the green (never mind that you have distance markers.) The USGA is ambivalent and sort of rules against them. I can't decide whether to spend the $400 for a DMD so I know the exact yardage to the pin.

As I think about it, I could care less. Whatever the distance I have to go, its going to take me twice the strokes of the next guy. If the DMD says I have 200 yards to go, it won't account for all the detours I'll make from rough to rough to trap to pond. A pedometer is more useful, I can at least know how far I walked that day.

Now, what I need ia a "BLD". A ball locating device (BLD) would indeed be revolutionary. I could pay $400 and justify it by all the balls I would recover. I imagine I would realize payback within a year. Its that or buy one of those new "forgiving" clubs and hit the ball straight...naw, that would take the fun out of it, not to mention exercise.