With their new family of rangefinders, Bushnell Golf looks set to continue market dominance
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Already known for the premium quality of product on offer, Bushnell Golf is expanding their rangefinder family’s options to include every golfer in the latest generation of distance technology
When you’re the eldest child in the family, there’s a lot of pressure on you. The firstborn is expected to set the example for their siblings to live up to, while also helping guide the way for all the others. As the first company to bring laser technology to the golf market in 1995, Bushnell Golf fills that role of big brother.
With pressure on them from the start to continue to push their designs, and with a stream of new manufacturers attempting to succeed Bushnell’s position as the market leader, it would take commitment and consistent innovation to maintain that leadership.
Luckily, the brand has proven more than up to the challenge, continuing to challenge standards and raise the bar for premium distance-measurement performance for the everyday and professional golfer. It’s this attitude that has left them as the number one rangefinder in the game since ’95, with now 30 years of incredible technology.
Trusted By The Best
One of the stats that has most compelled me in my research into Bushnell Golf’s tricennial has been the overwhelming amount of professional players who trust the company’s products.
There’s obviously a general awareness amongst golfers that Bushnell is popular with the greatest to play our game, but I don’t think most of us realise just how dominant they are in Tour circles.
At The Players Championship this year, the PGA Tour’s iconic flagship event that brings together one of the strongest fields in golf, the independent Darrell Survey assessed competitors’ bags and equipment before the event.
What they found was that 98.6% of those playing were using a Bushnell Golf model in their tournament preparation that week, to give themselves the best chance of performing to the highest level come Thursday’s Round One.
It’s a staggering amount of coverage when you consider what most brands are happy with, even outside of distance measuring devices.
It’s not just a one-off either. The last major of the season, The Open Championship, saw the always-impressive Scottie Scheffler take home the Claret Jug, but Bushnell would’ve been arguably happier than even the Champion Golfer of the Year was after seeing their stats.
96.8% of those contending at Royal Portrush enjoyed the use of a rangefinder that featured a chrome ‘B’ logo, further proof that no matter where the pros find themselves, they consistently turn to Bushnell Golf’s products.
Remember, as well, that this comes without any sponsorship money changing hands. No deals, no endorsements, no spending of any kind from the company; all of this comes from a concrete reputation and word-of-mouth reinforcing the premium quality.
With that in mind, let’s talk about the new tech being implemented by Bushnell to make their product the only choice for the serious golfer.
The New Gold Standard: LINK-Enabled Technology
To elevate the game for the next generation of golfers, the company has partnered with another innovator in the golf market – Foresight Sports.
If you aren’t familiar with Foresight, you’ll certainly be familiar with their best-selling launch monitor.
The QuadMax, that sleek-looking device in the photo above, is the flagship model in their line-up and the one you’re most likely to see on both the practice grounds of pro tournaments as well as being employed by your local PGA to provide lessons to their members.
Foresight’s other models, including the GC Quad GC3, GC3s, Falcon, and GC Hawk, are also making aggressive strides in the home simulator space, with the company keen to bring high-end performance to the casual golfer. Foresight will even take care of all of the design and installation of your new space, from the spec’d up gaming PC to the choice of sound-dampening fabric that you want to line your new arena – it’s genuinely an impressive service that’s offered!
Bushnell’s partnership with the brand is more about function than fabric in this instance, though.
The engineers at both companies have put their heads together and come up with a brand new solution for interconnectivity between their products, whether you’re using them at home, on the range, or on the course itself.
It’s called LINK, and to keep things simple, it allows you to pair your Bushnell device to your Foresight data for complete game implementation. At the moment, it’s limited to the Pro X3+ rangefinder, but on the other side of that, this is the laser of choice for golf’s most dedicated players, so it’s certainly the best choice to begin with.
What does LINK allow you to do, though, and how does it make the Bushnell Golf Pro X3+ the best choice for those serious about their game?
It’s a bold claim to make when I state this is the best model, but let me clarify why I believe that to be the case.
This is the top of the line for several reasons, but the biggest is the ability of the X3+ to offer players a true ‘Plays Like’ distance beyond simply identifying the flagstick.
Connecting your laser to the Bushnell golf app unlocks a vast array of data points for the rangefinder to utilize, giving you the most precise distance assessment you could need. These data points include the slope rating, temperature, and even the barometric pressure of your location.
On top of this, the Pro X3+ is capable of showing wind speed and, crucially, direction, which is ideal for those times you find yourself protected from the conditions but still need to accurately assess your target. You can even independently adjust your elevation settings to adjust for your home course when travelling to play, giving you an easy reference for how new locations might play for you.
The Pro X3+ is also accurate at over 600 yards through its 7x magnification scope, usable in every weather condition through its IPX7 full waterproof rating, and can go anywhere with you, whether you use the carry case on your stand bag, or the integrated magnetic BITE design that clamps onto your cart.
Finally, and most impressively, you can use LINK to provide you with in-display club recommendations that figures all of the Slope with Elements factors into its choice. Golfers simply need to complete a MyBag Assessment using a Foresight launch monitor, and the Bushnell Pro X3+ will use both your distances as well as dispersion statistics to provide you with the best choice for that exact moment.
With everything available in this ultimate rangefinder, you’ll no doubt agree that, when it comes to the most dedicated golfer, you need this model in your bag.
However, Bushnell’s family of lasers has more to offer than just the Pro X3+, and if you treat golf as more of a casual affair, or want to keep the Bushnell quality without adding too many features to your game, I might have a better choice for you next…
The ultimate laser for those who take their game seriously
- LINK-Enabled Technology for complete control of your game
- Slope with 'Elements' provides live weather-adjusted yardages
- Wind Speed and Directional Display for blindspot awareness
- PinSeeker with VisualJOLT offers precise target acquisition
- Integrated BITE Mount provides stable magnetic attachment to your cart
- A 600+ yard range will give you accuracy from anywhere on the course
New for 2025 is Bushnell’s A1 Slope.
It represents an acknowledgment on Bushnell’s part that, if there were a gap in their range, it’s in the slim design section of the market, and offering a product at the lower end of the price point spectrum.
The A1 Slope solves both of these problems by coming in at a more-than-reasonable cost and an ultra-compact yet mighty shaping. I wear a men’s medium glove, and the A1 Slope fits comfortably inside the palm of my hand, although truth be told, I would say it’s slightly too small for my personal preferences.
Where the A1 Slope does excel, though, is in being incredibly convenient for travel. While it does come with a carry case, I much prefer to slip this unit into one of the pockets of my bag to minimize any noise from the case knocking against my other accessories while walking.
I’ve even been able to store it in my pocket during a recent visit to the British Masters while covering the event – incredibly helpful when I want to check a hole’s length on the fly while chasing around Europe’s brightest stars!
The A1 Slope is also obviously named for its addition of Slope assistance from any lie. If you don’t know what Slope-enabled rangefinders do, it’s a clever little system that uses the gradient between you and the target to offer an alternate ‘Plays Like’ distance alongside the straight laser-to-target yardage being displayed.
While Slope isn’t tournament legal, even at an amateur level, Bushnell have an easy access button that can turn the feature off, so you don’t find yourself getting penalized in your next strokeplay event!
To finish, Bushnell have also included a removable soft sleeve that adds a layer of protection for the A1 laser, but more importantly, has their BITE magnets installed inside, letting you conveniently attach the compact model to almost any metallic surface.
As I said, I think the A1 Slope will suit the golfer looking for Bushnell’s signature clarity and speed when it comes to target acquisition performance, while not being overbearing in size. If you’re like me, however, and are happy to spend a little more for some additional tech, let me introduce you to my favorite model in the Bushnell Golf family.
Compact size, precise performance, premium quality
- Ultra-Compact Design provides pocket-sized convenience
- Tour-Trusted Slope Technology gives accurate distance from any location
- Bushnell's signature fast, accurate readings in a no-fuss package
- A high-performance tool that's as easy to carry as it is to use
The Bushnell Tour Hybrid rangefinder is my choice when it comes to their range of technology.
I appreciate the simplicity of the A1 Slope; the ruggedness of their baseline unit, the Tour V6; and the incredible LINK connectivity of the Pro X3+, but nothing works for my game like the Tour Hybrid.
For me, this model is a genuine game-changer and has made all the difference for the courses I play.
Yes, the Tour Hybrid still has all the bells and whistles that you’d expect from a high-end rangefinder. There’s 500+ yards of pinpoint accuracy, which is within a single yard of precision, even at that distance, and that’s still functional for play with Bushnell’s patented PinSeeker with the improved Visual JOLT technology.
When it locks on to a target, JOLT will release a vibration throughout the unit to let you know what you’re seeing for the distance is correct to the flagstick and not the trees behind the green. Visual JOLT takes this a step further by flashing up a red ring along the edges of the lens to give you even stronger confirmation.
The Tour Hybrid also comes with the integrated BITE mount, as we’ve spoken about with the other members of the Bushnell family, and the Slope-Switch option to become competition legal.
My love for this model, however, comes from its unique-within-the-range Onboard GPS mode and, trust me, you’ll love it just as quickly as I did!
With GPS-enabled, the top of the HUD in the rangefinder’s lens offers full Front/Middle/Back satellite-mapped positioning from anywhere on the course. In addition to that, both the exact measurement from the laser as well as the GPS distances are combined with the Slope percentage to give you a precise ‘Plays Like’ yardage without fail.
For someone who enjoys the features of GPS devices like watches and handhelds but prefers lasers for comfort, the combination that the Bushnell Tour Hybrid provides is perfection. I love having the best of both worlds available to me, and the speed at which the GPS function picks up its location is very speedy – great for fast play!
The Tour Hybrid has proven itself in every condition for me as well, making the hillier courses near me easy to navigate using my preferred distance measurement device.
It’s an impressively sleek product, and one that more than earns a place in an already stellar line-up from Bushnell.
Precise distance, wherever you are on-course
- Onboard GPS with Slope-adjustment offers game-changing performance
- Integrated magnetic BITE mount gives versatility for every style of golfer
- Outstanding 500+ Yard Laser Range comes with inside-a-yard precision
- PinSeeker with Visual JOLT provides confident target acquisition
- Slope-Switch Technology for competition-compliant settings
I think the models we’ve highlighted here re-emphasize just why Bushnell Golf continues to be the market leader in the rangefinder category.
Like we said from the start, they continue to innovate with every iteration and release cycle, providing new designs and technologies to every standard of golfer while maintaining the quality and integrity that is expected of the brand.
When you think ‘premium,’ Bushnell is the first name that comes to mind in the distance measurement market, and, thanks to this current line-up of product, they’ll be the ones having the last word in the category as well.
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Bushnell Golf are set for continued dominance of the rangefinder category with their latest generation
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Bushnell's A1 Slope is packed with technology for its size
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Bushnell's A1 Slope laser rangefinder is an ultra-compact alternative
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The A1 Slope from Bushnell comes with a removable magentic BITE sleeve
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The Bushnell A1 Slope rangefinder brings premium quality to simple design
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The Bushnell A1 Slope laser rangefinder is USB rechargeable
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Bushnell Golf has paired up with Foresight Sports to create LINK technology
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98.6% of PGA Tour professionals choose to play Bushnell Golf rangefinders
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Bushnell Golf's Pro X3+ with LINK is trusted by the best players in the game
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Bushnell Golf's Pro X3+ rangefinder comes with BITE magnetic mounting
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Bushnell Golf Pro X3+ Laser Rangefinder with LINK technology
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Slope functionality on the Bushnell Golf Pro X3+ rangefinder
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Mode selection is easy with the Bushnell Golf Pro X3+ laser rangefinder
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Magnetic BITE mounts on the Bushnell Tour Hybrid attach to virtually any surface you use on the course
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The magnetic BITE mount is easy to find with Bushnell Golf's Tour Hybrid laser rangefinder
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Bushnell's Tour Hybrid offers GPS flexibility alongside laser accuracy
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The navigation between settings is simple on the Bushnell Tour Hybrid
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The Bushnell Golf Tour Hybrid offers the best of both worlds when it comes to laser and GPS rangefinders
