Garmin, Bushnell, Cobalt, Leupold, Voice Caddie.

If you’re a golf equipment junkie, chances are you know these brand names well.

While these five are firmly ensconced in what I’d consider to be the pantheon of high-end rangefinders, they represent different products and user experiences.

Cobalt, Bushnell and Leupold produce what most consider to be a conventional rangefinder. Voice Caddie offers that as well as other high-end technologies and Garmin makes the most feature-rich product on the market.

In the end, if you’re going to spend $450 or more hard-earned dollars on a rangefinder, you’ll want to make sure you get what best fits your golf game.

Is that the Garmin Approach Z82 for you?

Overall impressions

This is a fantastic rangefinder with all the features and functionality you’d expect from a unit at or near the industry’s highest price point.

Its speed and accuracy are as good or better than the best I’ve tested, it’s got more functionality than anything else on the market outside of the Voice Caddie SL series, good stability and a nice feel in your hands.

Speed

If you’re looking for something fast, the Garmin Z82 is a cheetah. It locks on to flags instantaneously and provides a consistent distance measurement as quickly as any of my other favorite rangefinders on the market today (eg: Cobalt Q-6 Slope, Bushnell Tour V6 Shift, Precision Pro NX10 etc.).

Optics

Powering up the Z82, it’s like you’re booting up an iPad or laptop with the optics provided through the viewfinder.

The crystal clear full-color OLED display shines, and the menus are simple and intuitive to navigate. The Z82 has the best optics I’ve seen on a rangefinder, hands down.

Accuracy

The Approach Z82 is billed as the most accurate rangefinder on the market – to 10” from a distance of up to 450 yards – and I believe it. In fact, I find it so consistent that I used it and the Cobalt Q-6 Slope during testing as the standards for all other rangefinders when building out my buying guide.

Another great feature I’ve found on the Z82 is the laser range arc. This feature draws an arc on the 2-D CourseView map at the distance shot. This arc shows everything in play at the distance lasered in case your shot goes left, straight or right of your target (assuming you hit the ball the distance measured).

Associated with that arc, hazard view allows players to cycle through each course hazard and layup distance on the map to measure yardage (or meters) to each one, including distances to their fronts and backs:

If you have an active Garmin Golf app membership, the Z82 will also display greens contour data including red, yellow and green sections along with their associated contour lines. For example:

Slope

Providing a realistic plays-like distance that factors in elevation, “Slope” on the Z82 is made even better by way of factoring in wind.

Factoring in data collected from the nearest official weather station to your starting point (typically airports, which fellow drone pilots will recognize as METARs), the Z82 is able to one-up all competition’s plays-like measurements by including wind speed.

Bushnell’s newest model (the Pro X3+) incorporates similar functionality, but this is very cutting-edge at the time being and Garmin was first to the table.

What is slope?

In the case provided below, an ~ 29-foot rise from the tee to the green on the 7th hole at North Hills Country Club should certainly affect your club selection.

If hitting an 8-iron because of the 150-yard distance, chances are a well-struck tee shot will land short of your target, potentially landing in the front-right bunker or at the base of the elevated green. A 7-iron, on the other hand, should reach the 29-foot height nearer the 150-yard shot distance you’re looking for.

This also works opposite. A significantly downhill shot will travel farther because the ball will continue its downward arc longer.

If you’re not great at math or don’t want to consider elevation in club selection, a rangefinder with slope functionality (like the Garmin Approach Z82) will provide realistic plays-like distances quickly and effectively and is a must for most serious golf enthusiasts.

Wind Speed

The first rangefinder to incorporate wind data, the Approach Z82 provides wind direction and speed relative to the pin for the hole. While the wind data does not factor into plays-like distances, it is helpful.

In order for this to work, your rangefinder needs to be paired to the Garmin Golf app on your iPhone or other compatible smartphone. From the main menu you’ll then select Play, select the course and after connecting to GPS satellites see wind information displayed at the bottom-left of the screen.

Power & Charging

All rangefinders are charged using batteries (typically the small CR2 batteries we like to keep in our golf bags to avoid spending $10-15 apiece at the pro shop) or USB.

The Z82 has a USB charging port beneath a waterproof gasket on the front-bottom of the unit and provides ~ 15 hours of use per charge.

The Rangefinder for Serious Golfers

If you’re looking for the rangefinder with more bells and whistles than anything else on the market today, the Z82 will scratch your itch and then some.

This is the rangefinder for the serious player who wants it all: Precise yardages to greens and all hazards, aerial hole layouts, a great looking design and incredible performance.

If you’re looking for one of the best pieces of golf equipment money can buy, the Garmin Approach Z82 is the high-end rangefinder for you.

Shop the Garmin Z82 rangefinder

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