GPS and Disc Golf

[trimixjoe]

I am new to the game and went to a course recently that was poorly marked. I am also interested in getting my town interested in having are own course (Tinley Park, Illinois).
I got this light bulb of an idea to use my GPS and Google Earth to map out a course and it works really good! I can easily measure holes and print out an aerial view of the course for later on use.

What do you think? I am sure many have already done this...

 

[Marty McFly]

Lasers work better. But you can get very close in distance with a decent gps. Should work.

 

[cydisc]

GPS will not work so well in dense woods, either.

 

[Midnightbiker]

You need to contact Eric. He knows alot about GPS and marking a course.

 

[Miller]

Anyone ever try one of those Garmin watches?
https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=142&ra=true

 

[Marty McFly]

I have a buddy who goes geocaching and had 3 Garmins break on him... 3! Just a warning, they don't make em' like they used to. He actually posts here.

My Lowrance GPS has a guarantee accuracy up to 10-5 feet. You would be close enough with a decent one.

 

[rikardob]

GPS will not work so well in dense woods, either.

I can get up to 3 meter accuracy in a basement with my Garmin 60CSx. A cloudy day in the woods is nothing to this beast.

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?pID=310&ra=true

 

[ERicJ]

I am new to the game and went to a course recently that was poorly marked. I am also interested in getting my town interested in having are own course (Tinley Park, Illinois).
I got this light bulb of an idea to use my GPS and Google Earth to map out a course and it works really good! I can easily measure holes and print out an aerial view of the course for later on use.

What do you think? I am sure many have already done this...

Lasers work better. But you can get very close in distance with a decent gps. Should work.

Yep. I've done this dozens of times for courses I've played that don't have maps posted. Playing a new course without a map can be frustrating and if I had to do it once, I can do my part to help others not have to waste their time doing it. So I generally GPS plot (Garmin eTrex Vista HCx) the tees and baskets on new (to me) courses and sight the distances with a laser range finder. Then use Google Earth to make maps. E.g.

http://www.dgcoursereview.com/course_files/639/79f21350.jpg

I also try to remember to upload the KML file with the tees and baskets to the course page:
http://www.dgcoursereview.com/course.php?id=639&mode=lf

 

[Lewis]

The best a GPS receiver can do is locate you to within 10 feet of a point on the globe, and that's in ideal conditions with the benefit of WAAS in North America. If trees or the weather get in the way, your accuracy could be reduced down to something more like 30-50 feet. If that's good enough for you, go for it!

Otherwise if you want to get more accurate lengths for individual holes, you can buy a 300' or 400' reel tape at your local hardware store for $30-40, or for a little more money and a little less hassle (at least on flat ground) you can buy a measuring wheel. A laser range finder may have the greatest potential for absolute accuracy, but it will cost you hundreds of dollars, and may be more prone to user error.

 

[Matthew boals]

The best way to measure holes; distance wheel! Your local rental/ hardware store will have atleast one,should only be a few bucks for a couple of hours.

 

[volklgirl]

Or just buy one for about $29. The handle collapses down so you can put a carabiner on the end and just clip it to your bag/belt when not in use. Easy, peasy!

 

[ERicJ]

The best a GPS receiver can do is locate you to within 10 feet of a point on the globe, and that's in ideal conditions with the benefit of WAAS in North America. If trees or the weather get in the way, your accuracy could be reduced down to something more like 30-50 feet. If that's good enough for you, go for it!

There are GPS receivers that will get you sub-meter accuracy. We discussed this last year in this thread:
http://www.dgcoursereview.com/forums/showthread.php?t=345
It's a decent read.

The best way to measure holes; distance wheel! Your local rental/ hardware store will have atleast one,should only be a few bucks for a couple of hours.

"Best" is subjective... A wheel is probably the most reasonable compromise between accuracy and cost. But try measuring a hole over the water with one of those.

If you have the money for one, or access to one, there's nothing that tops the convenience and accuracy of the laser: stand on the tee box and in less than one second you know the distance to the basket +/- 3ft.

 

[bongripper0420]

Or just buy one for about $29. The handle collapses down so you can put a carabiner on the end and just clip it to your bag/belt when not in use. Easy, peasy!

I got one at the home depot for 9.99 on sale and it works great. I have three baskets and it work really well for setting up my own personal course.