Nikon’s top-of-the-line rangefinder distinguishes itself both in size and speed. Equipped with the latest iteration of the brand’s stabilization technology, the Coolshot Pro II Stabilized compensates for about 80 percent of a user’s unsteadiness while holding the device. This helps it to quickly lock onto the target and then relay the measured distance in less than half a second. Using the device in point-and-shoot mode, measurements are displayed on the screen the same moment the user presses the activation button.            

Like most leading rangefinders on the market, the Coolshot Pro II Stabilized offers a number of display modes, including one that factors in elevation changes. The device is waterproof and fogproof, and allows for 18 millimeters of eye relief, which makes it easy to use while wearing sunglasses or eyeglasses. Of no less importance is that it’s sleek and lightweight—so small, in fact, that golfers could comfortably keep it in a pocket during their rounds. $450; nikonusa.com

When used in a competition setting, most rangefinders will perform similarly. Yes, some might be slightly quicker in the display of a desired measurement; others will be lighter in weight or more ergonomic to hold. But all will calculate the same general measurement. Where Bushnell stands out is making adjusted distance measurements that it calculates based on a number of factors. When contrasting the industry’s rangefinders based on each brand’s proprietary slope algorithm technology, nothing compares to the Bushnell Pro XE.

Not only does the Pro XE incorporate Bushnell’s most advanced slope algorithm—one that factors in updated ball flight measurements—it is also equipped with technology that factors in both altitude and ambient temperature. In the right circumstances, these factors can result in drastically different calculations. Tested in the field, the Pro XE provided adjusted distance measurements that differed by as much as 11 yards from other rangefinders that only accounted for elevation change. Depending on the shot needing to be hit, such a discrepancy is—quite literally—a game changer. It’s easily the difference between a ball landing in a hazard or being safely on the green. $550; bushnellgolf.com

Have you ever wondered how much better you could play if you had access to the same information that’s routinely shared during television broadcasts of PGA Tour events? The Garmin Approach S62 will show you. Equipped with a 1.3-inch color touchscreen display, the GPS-aided wristwatch does much more than simply provide distances to various points of a golf hole. Yes, the device offers distances (adjusted for uphill or downhill shots) for more than 42,000 courses around the world, and it also provides golfers with wind speeds and direction; the shape of a green as it relates to the golfer’s position on the course; a hazard view that allows players to quickly toggle between each hazard on their current hole; and easily accessible measurements to the front, middle, and back of the green. The watch even comes with a pin-pointer function, which acts like a compass and provides golfers with the direction of the flagstick on blind approach shots. Best of all, customizable watch faces can be downloaded to the device, turning the Approach S62 into an everyday timepiece when away from the golf course. $500; garmin.com

The latest golf watch designed by SkyCaddie includes almost all of the features of the company’s SX500 handheld GPS golf device. Simply put, a round played while wearing the LX5 is like teeing it up with an expert caddie, one who can offer detailed course knowledge gleaned from years of experience. The watch is programmed with a course map feature that allows golfers to a slide a crosshair over any portion of the hole to get specific distances to any target. This feature, known as Dynamic HoleVue, automatically reorients as golfers make their way from tee to green. The LX5 is also equipped with IntelliGreen Pro, a SkyCaddie program that displays the major contours and topography of a green. Like Dynamic HoleVue, this program allows players to slide a crosshair over the green to learn the distance and depth measurements for the most defining features of the green complex. Players can even input hole locations at the start of a round—info that is typically available on daily pin sheets—and allow the LX5 to offer real-time distances to the hole depending on where they are standing relative to the green. In addition to the cost of the device, which includes two years of data access, membership renewals cost $50 annually. $300; web.skygolf.com