Leupold GX-4 All-In-One Rangefinder Review

One of the great perks about contributing to Golficity is getting the opportunity to receive and review top of line golf equipment like the Leupold GX-4 All-In-One DNA Rangefinder.

The thing about rangefinders is that most golfers don’t purchase them (due to the heavy price tag) but rather rely heavily on the GPS watch or apps on their smartphones.   I’m not knocking those great devices, in fact I have used a watch for years and love the convenience.  Yet, I always forget to charge it and it’s not dead-on accurate.

As a golfer who’s on the cusp of breaking into the single digits (handicap), I have found that I needed more precise accuracy due to the advancement of my game—a great problem to have.

I’ll explain all of the unique features of this extremely well crafted piece of equipment, but first you need to understand who Leupold is and why their rangefinders are a ‘must-have’ tool for your golf bag.

The Company

Leupold & Stevens, Inc. is an American, family-owned, fifth-generation company that has designed and assembled precision optical instruments and other products for over a century.  The company was founded in 1907, and their success has been built on their prized commitment to providing top-tier customer satisfaction.  They strive to bring forth the very best in optics for shooting sports, golf, general and wildlife observation, and the military and law enforcement.

Located in Portland, OR, Leupold optics are well known for delivering top quality products, a waterproof guarantee and amazing optical quality.  When hunting down flag sticks on the course, wouldn’t you want the leader in hunting scopes on your side?

Features

Bravo to the team at Leupold for stepping it up and creating the GX-4, which comes with a number of features not included in the GX-3.  It’s super lightweight and the carry case clips snugly on my bag for easy grabbing before any shot.  But let’s be honest, most rangefinders come with a case and most are pretty sleek looking, but let me tell you, this one is really sleek.

One of the new features of the GX-4 (and what I absolutely love about it) is the altitude-adjusted distances and club recommendations.  Yes, it tells you which club you should hit based on some simple input you manually enter once.  As you see from this short clip, you’re given the distance to your target and the real distance with the altitude change.

[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXHSEqj6BKw&start=76&end=120&width=742&height=419[/embedyt]
 
So next time you stand high above a green on a super elevated Par 3 tee box wondering if you should go one or perhaps two clubs less, the GX-4 will not only give you the accurate distance but it will tell you which club you should be using.  Do we really need caddies anymore?

Another feature I love is their ease of locking in a target. At up to 175 yards, the Leupold GX-4 easily picked out flag sticks without a hitch which is a positive sign, but I wanted a rangefinder that can easily lock in the longer shots.  At the 200 yard marker, the device still did a good job picking up the sticks with a little more of a steady hand, but I found it to be much easier than some of it’s competitors.

Setup and Ease of Use

There wasn’t much set up with this rangefinder; simply add in the battery that comes with it and hit the button.  You can also optionally input some club distances to assist you with that “caddie-like” feature.

This thing is very easy to hold and small enough to tuck in your back pocket before a shot.  The aluminum body is protected with a solid rubber grip for easy holding and steadiness to provide a solid grip.  The Leupold GX-4 also comes with an additional “Smart Key” yellow face plate (seen in photo above), which turns on that ‘slope-adjusted distance’ feature I can’t get enough of.  It also allows you to use the club recommendation feature as well.  Just be careful if you play events because the USGA has prohibited the use of the GX-4 during tournament play with our without the face plate.  Unfortunately, this device (with or without the face plate) can only be used over a friendly round.

There is only one other scope on the market that has more magnification that the GX-4 and that’s the Bushnell 1600 Slope Edition.  The difference is minor (6x vs 7x) and not enough for me to want the Bushnell instead.

The Range Test

I have a great practice facility that I frequent about twice per week.  The greens out on the driving range are all in elevated positions from my tee box and this rangefinder certainly helped me to be more accurate during practice.

One green was measured on the little board behind the mats at 175 but my GX-4 zapped 176 with a decline to 167 to the pin.  After dropping a club, I hit that green more times than any other practice session I’ve put in there.

A photo posted by Moh Raafay Siddiqui (@mr_siddiqui) on Jul 12, 2016 at 4:38pm PDT

Now that my range session proved to me that this product was legit, I had to get it out on the course!

Game Day.  My First Round

First round, 84.  Enough said.  Tied my personal best after about 12 months from making that score the first time.  So what changed for me?  Well, I can’t give the rangefinder ALL of the credit because I was one-putting like an animal.  But, why did I find myself in more situations to one putt?  Probably because I was more accurate to my target.

I’ve used rangefinders before and never found one that I liked.  Some required a very steady hand, others we’re too bulky or awkward to simply shove in my back pocket before a shot.  That day, I felt confident with my club selections and it definitely paid off.  Notice in the picture I still used my GPS watch as a back up?  Well, I don’t even take that watch to the course anymore.  This product changed the game for me.

Conclusion and How to Get It

In conclusion, this product has changed the game for me and I cannot live without it!  Most solid rangefinders will be in the $399-$600 price range as this one is.  I put my personal stamp of approval on this device and I am giving Leupold a standing ovation for developing this great scope.

You can score a Leupold GX-4 on Amazon or Golfsmith from $399-$499.

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