ezLocator Helps Golfers Play a New Course Every Day

ezLocator Helps Golfers Play a New Course Every Day

-Superintendents Have A New Tool to Please Players-

Superintendents across the country have found an innovative technology-based software program that has made their jobs of setting pins a lot easier.  The ezLocator, developed by Texan Jon Schultz has revolutionized how pin placements are managed, eliminating the shortcomings of restrictive systems as the quadrant or front, back and middle.  After a GPS system locates all the possible placements on each green, the information is entered in a program and with a click of a button the superintendent can get the job done, allowing the members of the club to enjoy tournament quality pin sheets each time they play.

Schultz, a member at the Dallas Athletic Club, developed the system after chats with other members of his weekend golf group at the club bar.  “It seemed they always played the same pin positions and that all the golfers wanted a tournament like experience every time they teed off,” said Schultz.  From his experience as a top amateur player, a caddie, a tournament chairman, he began developing a system that was easy to use by the superintendent and would enhance the member’s experience.  A test program was conducted at the Dallas Athletic Club that evolved into a unique software application that is on the market today.

When a club or golf course decides to utilize ezLocator, a staff member from Playbooks For Golf visits the course and identifies all the possible hole locations on every green.  Using GPS technology, each green is mapped to find all the possible pin locations. The data is then uploaded into the ezLocator website for easy internet access.  Now the green superintendent can select and place the hole in a new area of the green every day.

Kevin Nettles, superintendent at the Dallas Athletic Club is definitely an advocate of the system.  “There’s nothing like it on the market,” Nettles said.  “Players absolutely love the system and it has allowed me to manage the greens from a stress point.  I can isolate certain areas of the greens when necessary and save certain locations for special events.”

EzLocator is now being used at over 25 clubs and courses across the U.S., including the host site of the 2013 U.S. Open, Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, PA – a club so steeped in tradition that it was surprising to some when Matt Shaffer, director of grounds at Merion, decided to include ezLocator in his program.

"Merion's a difficult golf course to take care of," Shaffer said. "This makes it easier.  By looking at our pin sheets and seeing what kind of play we're getting, we can set things up accordingly and avoid making certain mistakes. And it allows us to water better.”

"We bring a lot of things into this, from topography to maintenance to a whole management program," said Schultz, whose concept is being reviewed by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. "When you do it manually, using the quadrant system, you'd see pins in the same place over and over.  And sometimes, they'd be in the wrong place. We just wanted to improve that process.  It pretty much sells itself.”

"When you're starting out with a business, you want to be identified with the best of the best.  If it works at Merion, I can't imagine a better endorsement. We're optimizing pin locations, based on the characteristics of the greens from our database. We weigh all the factors.  It's an age-old problem.”

"I think it's definitely going to give Merion an opportunity to put itself in the best possible position, said Shaffer.  “It'll give the USGA a lot more flexibility.  I think the players may actually see the difference.”

For more information on ezLocator, please visit the company’s website at www.goezlocator.com or call Jon Schultz at 972-231-4040.