In the never-ending quest to get better and try out every golf-aid I can get my hands on, I came across the new Green Maps and Yardage Book by Golf Logix. As a scratch golfer, I have been playing tournament golf since I was 13 years old, first in High School, then College, and finally at the state amateur level in years since. As my golf maturity developed over the years, I was frustrated playing in tournaments when I did not know the course well and made stupid course management mistakes. How many times have you played a new course with someone that plays it all the time, and they say, “I know that putt looks like it goes to the right, but all the members know it breaks to the left”? That has happened to me a lot. When you are competing, a stroke or two can mean the difference in winning the tournament or coming in 10th place.
Over the last ten years, I have been creating my own course books from scratch when I play in important tournaments. I take meticulous notes about where to aim my drive, what club to hit, and where the breaks are on the green. I have found this information extremely helpful, giving me a leg up on my competition before I even step up on the first tee. I have taken pictures of satellite imagery from Google Earth and traced golf holes from my computer screen onto paper. I am always searching for the perfect amount of information to eliminate those course management mistakes. I have seen the books that the pros use and trust me; those books have crazy amounts of data!
When I first saw these books were available from GolfLogix, I immediately bought two of them, one for each of the two courses I play the most. The price tag of $40 each seems a bit steep, but I understood the power of the information within. If I could win one extra bet with my buddies, it would pretty much pay for itself.
When you first open up the book, it can look a bit intimidating to some people, but don’t be scared; they explain how to understand the lines and colors in each book, along with an easy video tutorial online.
Now, starting with course management, this book does a decent job showing you the general overlay of the hole. I have seen much more detailed renderings, but for overall outlook, this does an okay job. I wish there were more yardage detail here. I do like how they included a compass to show where North is. Every morning before I tee off, I check my weather apps to see how fast the wind speed is that day, and from what direction it is out of. With that compass on each page, I can understand wind direction on that hole, which is especially helpful on a course you are not familiar with.
Now let’s get to the real good stuff, the most valuable part of these books, the greens. I like to position the book to show the direction of the putt I am about to take, then look at where the pin is on the green and where my ball is. The heat map does a great job helping you understand how much slope there is, and the direction detail underneath gives you better detail on break direction.
I have been using these books for about a month now, and the green feedback is fantastic. When I am faced with a putt where the break is evident and straightforward, speed is the most significant factor in sinking the putt. However, on those “I’m not sure if it breaks right or breaks left” ones… this book is fantastic! I can’t tell you how many times this has helped me understand break on putts and helped me make a better, and correct decision on which way to go. I would say that these books save me easily, 1-2 strokes per round. I am making more putts and making more birdies than ever before. It is enjoyable to see them roll in knowing how much the book helped!
If you are looking to perform better on the green and to improve yore green reading skills, I highly recommend these books for anyone that wants a leg up on the competition, either with your usual buddies or a serious tournament. My only wish is that they were a bit cheaper to make it easier to buy one every time I play a new course. At $40 a pop, playing in junior tournaments, College, or state level, you end up traveling all around, and this would get expensive fast!