Your Course Flyover Is Marketing. Your Yardage Book Is the Product.

Nearly every club I work with has commissioned a flyover in the last five years. Far fewer have looked seriously at their yardage material in the same period, and the split in spending is usually about ten to one in the video's favour.

I understand why. The flyover is visible, it looks impressive on the homepage, and it is easy to show a committee. But it is a marketing asset aimed at people who have not yet arrived.

What members actually use

A green guide that shows the run-offs correctly gets used on every single round. It changes how people play the hole, which changes pace of play, which is the complaint most clubs are actually trying to fix.

The test for a good guide

• Can a mid-handicapper tell from the page where the miss is safe?
• Are the contours readable at arm's length in flat light?
• Does it survive rain and a back pocket?

That last one eliminates a surprising number of otherwise handsome designs.

Do both, in the right order

Commission the accurate base data first. A properly surveyed green complex feeds the guide, the signage and the flyover, and specialists like Golf.Graphics or VueMyGolf can produce all three from it. Commission the video first and you will usually pay twice, because flyover geometry rarely carries the precision a yardage book needs.