new technology---v.par

Just seen a presentation on setanta about this device

after aquick searchof the net i found this web page

http://www.vpar-golf.com/

just wondered what everyone else's views were

Looks like going a bit over the top to me.  I think you would need to be having some pretty big competitions in order to get the best out of it and I'm not sure there are enough of those in amatuer golf.  I notice that there are no prices on the website either which would suggest to me that a hefty price tag is attached.

I guess some golf clubs may be interested in buying the system which they could then hire out to visiting societies or use for club comps but I don't know know whether it will catch on.

Darren watch this space

Vpar is good but very very pricey.  For this or similar service from 3rd parties it would cost £15-£30 per player at events, which for somthing like our North vs South would bump the price up by over 60%+

Target martker for these products is large corporate, charity and professtional tour events.

I'm not so sure about this.  I agree about it being aimed at the corporate type, but I reckon it's a bit too gadget mad, would you really want to know how badly you're doing in a comp?  Imagine also sitting on the 18th knowing all you had to do was to bogie it to win rather than playing it as well as you could?  I can see some uses, but I think this has gone technology mad it the amount of information it gives and recieves. 

But isnt that the point Tim? I know if I was on the 18th knowing all I would need is a bogey I would play to that! That is the whole point of competitions. Its about winning the match - not beating your personal score!

This is why the NvS was soooooo slow Tim. People were playing the matchplay however once this was done, people were still taking a long time over putts, chips etc as they wanted to get a good Stableford score. The two should not be mixed!

Anyway back on topic

I like it. I would as I am quite a gadget freak. I would definitely pay a little more in comps to have this but at the prices quoted by Darren, I would definitely not be able to afford that! It could make the comp for the day up to £75. That is without adding a hotel, food and transport costs

Dennis,

you mention the NvS being slow can you imagine everyone having one of these devices on the course, it would make it even slooooower.

people would be looking at them before making a putt to see if they need to hole it or lag it up.

you might as well get everyone to ring Darren with their score so he can track it & if your that bothered about where you are in the leaderboard give him a ring for an update.

I can't see any place for it in the amatuer scene.

Dennis, yep the concepts great and I can see the fun/enjoyment factor.  Also don't worry this won't get added to any cost for future golfshake, gtour or North vs South events!! 

John, yep agree it could slow the game down.  I also think in a stableford/medal competition the last players are at an advantage assuming it's a one game match.  Obviously for pros playing over 4 rounds playing in the last group on the last day and knowing what you need to score is all part of it and your right given your previous play.  But for the individual game how would you justify who tees off when ?  I can see the fun aspect in a mathhplay event though and all it tells you is how the other groups are doing it shouldn't affect your game 99% of the time.