Tag: game golf

WITB – June 2017

My very first WITB post was written in September of 2015 before I left for the WAGT National Championship in Pennsylvania. Since then a lot has changed. In fact, nothing from that bag remains in play for me today, including the bag itself! All fourteen clubs have changed, I got a new staff bag from the WAGT and I’ve even switched golf balls.

I love to tinker with equipment, but being a low handicap golfer with a self-taught swing means that in order to play my best I need custom fit clubs. This makes testing new clubs a bit of a challenge. Variations in a shaft’s weight, kickpoint and flex can send shots way offline if not fit properly. I’ve worked hard with my amazing club builder to get every club in my bag set up perfectly for my game, and I can’t tell you how important it is for your game to have your clubs properly tuned and fitted by a competent club fitter.

Now – Let’s dive into my golf bag(s) and talk about my clubs, and how they’re set up as well as my favorite gadgets and gizmos that help me play golf.

My Golf Bags, Accessories & Favorite Gadgets

While I would prefer to walk, I play golf using a motorized cart most of the time since it is mandatory at many Florida golf courses, and most of my golf buddies are too lazy to walk with me at the courses that allow it. For that reason, I alternate between a custom 10.5″ Burton USA staff bag I got when I qualified to represent Team USA at the World Amateur Golfer’s Championship in 2015 and a new Sun Mountain 4.5 LS carry bag.

I’ve only had the Sun Mountain 4.5 LS carry bag for a few months, but I’m a big fan of the innovative design and efficient use of space. It’s the heaviest of Sun Mountain’s carry options, but also adapts well to life on a golf cart and holds everything I need to bring with me with ease. My Burton “Team USA” staff bag is huge and heavy, but I can pack it with everything I’ll need for tournament golf like some snacks, 32oz sports drinks, extra towels, rain gear and more. Despite the large size, I can shoehorn it nicely into my Club Glove Last Bag travel case and go anywhere in the world with it easily. So far I’ve logged over 20,000 miles of international travel on in without incident.

I like to have as much information as possible when playing, so I frequently combine the use of a GPS distance device with a laser rangefinder to get accurate yardage information and help plotting my way around the course. To that end, my distance measuring devices of choice are the SkyCaddie TOUCH and the Leupold GX-5i³ laser rangefinder. Both devices are one of the best available in each category, and function flawlessly. Adding Frogger Golf’s Latch-It rangefinder strap makes using the rangefinder that much easier, and the Latch-It ecosystem is my favorite new golf gadget in years. While I haven’t posted a round with it in a while, GAME GOLF is still a fun and easy way to track stats and help you improve. Since most of my clubs have changed, I plan to start using GAME GOLF again this summer to see how the newer clubs perform compared to the older ones.

Driver – Ping G LS-TEC 9°

Ping gave us one of the best drivers in the game a few years ago when they introduced the G30 and G30 LS-TEC drivers. I was fortunate to see amazing accuracy gains of 30% with it while still getting more distance over my old driver. Also fortunate for me, Ping later introduced the G LS-TEC driver that I now use. It is fitted with the Ping Tour 80 shaft in X-Flex, which is a custom option. They updated the head and made it sound a little different, but I haven’t gotten enough data to know if it’s really longer and straighter as they claim. Either way, I hit it great and recommend it for anyone that wants the best blend of distance with accuracy and forgiveness.

Fairway Woods – Tour Edge Exotics EX10 Beta

My recent struggle to find the perfect three-wood has been well documented, but when Tour Edge came out with the Exotics CB Pro f2 last year thought I had found my new fairway howitzer. It is a very high performance, versatile three wood that averages almost 260 yards and I couldn’t be happier with it. But – Tour Edge being one of the leading golf club companies when it comes to technology, they took some of the best design features from previous fairway wood designs and combined them using new a manufacturing process and created the Exotics EX10 and EX10 beta fairways. I immediately ordered the EX10 beta in 13 degrees with the new Project X HZRDUS Black shaft. I had my club fitter tweak it to my specs with a spine-alignment and swing weight adjustment, re-gripped it with my preferred Golf Pride MCC Plus4 grips and it is now ready for prime time. It’s very new and I’ve only played 18 holes with it so far, but the results have been impressive and I’ve already hit some tee shots with it to places I’ve never seen before. I can’t wait to try it out on the launch monitor.

Hybrids/Long Irons – Srixon Z H45 & U45

I got my Srixon Z H45 hybrid and Z U45 utility irons back in 2015 and from the first ball I knew I had something special in my hands. Even though it is marked with a number two, the Z H45 hybrid has 16 degrees of loft which makes it more of a one iron. As a result, it hits low, piercing bullets which makes it great for use off the tee, but not very versatile for approach shots. Depending on the course, this club may be swapped for a 50 degree gap wedge. It is fitted with an amazingly consistent Aerotech hls880 hybrid shaft.

I have two Srixon Z U45 long irons in the bag – The 20º and 23º models, which are my three iron and four iron. I absolutely love hitting these clubs. Forget about traditional long irons, these utilities are amazingly easy to hit while being more versatile and just as forgiving as a hybrid. My only regret is not replacing my old long irons with utilities like these much sooner.

Irons – Srixon Z745 (5-PW)

My irons are the 2015 model year Srixon Z745 cavity back forged irons. They replaced my Cleveland CG16 Tour Concept irons from 2010. The Srixon irons have a little less offset than the Cleveland irons which took a wee bit of adjustment for me, but I adapted to the new clubs quickly. I’ve been playing Aerotech Steelfiber shafts in my irons for over 5 years and I saw no reason to change with these clubs. I fitted them with the Steelfiber i110 constant weight shafts. There’s nothing like the feel you get from a forged iron with a graphite shaft, and with Aerotech you get that awesome graphite feel with the consistency and control of steel. I keep saying it over and over, but Aerotech really does make the best shafts in golf.

Wedges – Hopkins CJ1 (54 & 60)

When Greg Hopkins left Cleveland Golf in 2012, took one of Cleveland’s lead designers with him and formed Hopkins Golf, I became an instant fan. What Hopkins was doing essentially was selling a Cleveland look-alike wedge cast from soft 8620 steel direct to the customer that you could customize with various grind options and plenty of paint fill and stamping choices. I got a raw lob wedge with the channel grind and fell in love instantly. Sadly, Hopkins Golf seems to have shut down operations since mid 2016, so I took to the interwebs to find some and discovered a website that had the discontinued wedges I wanted in stock, so I ordered two for $60 each.

The other change I made in my wedges was going to a softer shaft. After consulting with my club fitter, we decided it would be best for me to switch from a Dynamic Gold X100 to the softer S400 that is so popular on tour. After a half-dozen rounds with the new wedges I’m glad I did and a little peeved that I didn’t so it years ago. At least now I have a three-wedge setup that works well for most situations. I still swap the 2 hybrid or 3 iron out for a SCOR 50º gap wedge on occasion if the course demands it, and will be replacing the SCOR 50º with a Hopkins 50º soon for a matching set.

Putter – Scotty Cameron Select Newport 2 Notchback Dual Balance

The most important club in my bag is the putter. It is also the club I struggle with the most, and as a result it becomes the club that changes most often. I have a bad habit of changing putters whenever I have a bad day on the greens, and these frequent putter changes only compound the problem by hurting consistency. I suppose that’s one of the drawbacks of being a golf blogger and having a couple dozen putters in the garage, all fighting for my attention.

When I really think about it, I’m being unnecessarily hard on myself because my putting statistics are very good compared to other players of my ability, but that’s the point – I’m trying to improve, not be average. Using a tool like GAME GOLF has shown me that I need to make more putts in the 5-15 foot scoring range. I think just sticking with one putter will help, so that’s my goal.

GAME GOLF Putting Stats

The putter I’ll be sticking with is a good one, even if the name is way too long and complicated – In my bag is the Scotty Cameron Select Newport 2 Notchback Dual Balance. It is like the standard Newport 2 Notchback but measures 38 inches long, has a 50 gram back-weight in the handle and features a larger head with an additional 50 grams of weight – hence the name Dual Balance. The idea with all the extra weight is to help slow down your stroke and eliminate the small muscles that tend to sabotage putting strokes. I love the heft and balance of this putter and if it’s a Scotty you know it rolls the ball well. My only gripe with Scotty Cameron is that they tend to have more loft (3.5º) than I like in a putter.

The Golf Ball

Last but certainly not least, since our last WITB post I have a new golf ball. In 2000 Titleist introduced the legendary Pro V1 golf ball and killed my beloved Titleist Tour Prestige and Tour Professional, effectively ending the wound golf ball era. In the coming years I struggled mightily adjusting to the new solid core golf balls. Eventually I found the Srixon Z-UR balls in 2005 and most recently played with the Srixon Z-Star & Z-Star XV until early 2016.

In early 2016 at the PGA Show in Orlando I met with the folks from Bridgestone to talk about their new B330 line and came away impressed. After a few rounds of testing the new B330, I switched. I ordered a case of the B330 balls with my logo, and an additional ten dozen without a logo so I’m set with enough golf balls to last me several years. The B33o is very similar to the Z-Star XV I used to play, but spins a bit more around the greens and flies a bit straighter in the wind. It’s very durable for a “tour” ball and I’ve been very happy with it so far.

June 13, 2017
GAME GOLF Launches New Tracking App

One of our favorite golf gadgets – GAME GOLF – is getting a new mobile app! The popular game tracking device functions by using GPS and sensors in each club to collect information about every shot you take on the course and present the player with detailed statistics about their game after the round. Now, the new app will allow golfers to collect the same stats as the current wearable device and access the GAME GOLF platform in real-time, for free.

The App provides golfers with an aerial view of each hole, distances to key locations using the GPS Rangefinder feature, and the ability to “tag” each shot by selecting the club used. You’ll be able to see greens in regulation, fairways hit, scrambling percentage, putts per hole, club distances and more. Golfers can view their platform profile and data on their mobile device or at GAMEGOLF.com.

The GAME GOLF tracking app is available for free in the Apple iTunes Store and Google Play Store.

April 16, 2015
2015 PGA Show – Best New Accessories
Ogio Silencer Golf Bag

Perhaps the most diverse and interesting group of products at the annual PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando is the accessories category. We see all kinds of electronics, soft goods, golf bags and various other products that it is hard to narrow the list down to just a few standouts. 2015 was no exception as we were able to sample quite a number of cool gadgets. Here are the ones that stood out in the crowd:
- Arccos Golf – Arccos Golf is a game analysis platform that allows golfers to capture information about their swing, club performance and statistics in real time via a set of sensors installed to each club that connect to your phone or tablet via bluetooth. The amount of data collected can be overwhelming, but the mobile app and website help to dissect the information and pinpoint areas that need improvement. Easy to use and priced competitively, Arccos should be a big hit with the tech-savvy golfer looking for advanced stats and game tracking.
- Golfersskin Sunscreen – Hopefully the sun is out most of the time when you play golf. After all, enjoying time outdoors is partly why we play. Too much time in the sun however, and you can develop sunburns or even skin cancer. Most sunscreens are oily and messy, but Golfersskin was developed specifically for golfers to be easy to apply without hurting your grip on the club. It’s not oily or slick and cleans up easily, while protecting from the sun as well as any sunscreen out there. It’s also fragrance free so it won’t attract bugs.
- Izzo Swammi GT – There are many cool rangefinders and GPS devices on the market, and you can spend upwards of $600 on the latest models. That’s what makes the $199 Izzo Swami GT so attractive. It provides quick and accurate GPS yardages for over 30,000 courses, plus it includes game tracking technology using NFC sensors similar to GAME GOLF. It’s a simple, easy to use device with no frills.
- Ogio Silencer Golf Bag – Ogio has been making very high quality products for as long as I’ve known about them. Their golf bags are among the most functional, stylish and durable on the market. The new Ogio Silencer golf bags have a great feature that locks each club so that they don’t bang together while being transported. This not only saves the clubs from bag nicks and bag wear, but also cuts down on noise. In fact, the Silencer system keeps the clubs locked in the bag even upside down.
- Golf Pride MCC Plus4 Grips – There hasn’t been much change in golf grips for decades, because there really isn’t much you can do within the rules and, frankly, rubber is rubber! Golf Pride has been one of the leaders in golf grips for decades and are widely used on all professional tours around the world. What most pros do that most amateur golfer don’t do however, is build up the grips with additional tape for less taper under the right hand. The new Golf Pride MCC Plus4 grips feature a larger lower hand and new softer rubber material. They have a 4.6% larger lower hand diameter than the Original MCC. The larger diameter of the Plus4 encourages lighter grip pressure, reduced tension and just feels better to me. The lower hand has a soft rubber compound ideal for enhanced feel and the upper hand material is a soft compound with brushed cotton cord.
- Switchgrips Putter Grips – Changing grips is a pain and can be expensive, especially for putters. Switchgrips has taken the grip world by storm by letting people change their grips without cutting and installing a new one every time. With their proprietary under listing and interchangeable grips, if you want a change simply loosen with the torx wrench, pull the old one off and slide and twist a new one it into place. Grips come in different colors, sizes and materials, including rubber, leather and exotics like Alligator and Ostrich.
- Ernest ES14 Launch Monitor – Launch monitors are all the rage for club fitting these days, and even golf telecasts on TV use them to show viewers information about tee shots. While the ones used by golf pros and high-end fitters can cost upwards of $40,000, Ernest Sports has a few models that cost under $500. Sure, the expensive units from Trackman and FlightScope are able to track the entire ball flight using military grade doppler radar, but the Ernest Sports ES14 is still able to give you all the information you need like club speed, ball speed, spin, launch angle, carry distance and smash factor, all in a compact package that fits in your golf bag. Oh yeah, and you don’t have to sell your car to buy one either.
- Jan Craig Head Covers – The most basic of golf accessories, the head cover is often overlooked by many golfers when spending their hard earned dollars. Any time you buy a new driver or fairway wood you get a head cover, but those clubs are also the clubs that are most frequently stolen, along with putters. They are easy targets for thieves with their bright colors and easy-to-identify designs. Jan Craig makes premium hand-knit 100% worsted wool head covers that look great and mask your clubs’ brand to help deter thieves, but they are also beautiful and guaranteed for life. They’ve been around since the early 1960’s so they aren’t “new”, but they may be new to you! If you were paying attention to the past two Ryder Cups, you may have noticed that those cool looking head covers the US team was using were made by Jan Craig. These are simply the best made head covers you can buy. They are perfect for an old-school guy like me, and the fact that you can designing your own knit head covers on their website to suit your tastes is the icing on the cake for me.
Jan Craig Headcovers
February 25, 2015
5 Trends To Watch In 2015
A new year is upon us, and in the golf world that means one thing – The annual PGA Merchandise Show is right around the corner. Held in Orlando, Florida every year, the show brings together thousands of golf industry insiders, manufacturers, professionals and buyers to share ideas, display new technology and conduct business. The state of the golf industry as a whole is usually a hot topic at the show, and this year will be no exception. Here are a few things we’ll be keeping an eye on for 2015.
- Performance Analysis and Game-Tracking Technology – It started a few years ago but now this new segment of the golf market has taken off. Advancements in GPS, accelerometers, bluetooth and smart phone technology has allowed developers to bring dozens of new game tracking devices to market. One of the best I’ve used is GAME GOLF. Using sensors on each club and GPS to track your location, this little device gives you all kinds of stats about your game and helps identify points of weakness. It also has a cool social media angle to it that allows you to share your results with friends. Another is Arccos Golf, which uses bluetooth sensors on the clubs to give you real-time information about your swing. Expect more advancements and new products in this category for 2015.
- The Death of Anchored Putters – As the 2016 ban on anchored putting approaches, professional golfers all over the world will have to abandon the long putter. More specifically, they’ll have to abandon the anchored putting method many of them have used for years. Some may switch to a conventional putter, others may try the arm-lock method Matt Kuchar made famous, and still more may move to counter-balanced putters, which were born out of the anchoring ban. You can expect to see products that allow you to convert conventional putters to arm-lock models and more counter-balanced options. As an opponent of the anchoring ban, I think many recreational golfers will simply ignore the rule and continue to play golf with their long putters rather than deal with back issues and yipped putts.
- How to Grow Golf – In years past we’ve seen various industry initiatives come about that proposed changes to the game to increase participation and keep players interested in golf. A couple of years ago the PGA of America announced Golf 2.0. They paraded Jack Nicklaus out to be their spokesman and talked about programs like “Get Golf Ready” and “Play Golf America”, but consumers weren’t listening. Last year we saw a rebranding of Golf 2.0 called Hack Golf. Led by Taylor Made Golf CEO Mark King, they threw out ideas to grow golf and increase participation. A year later, these initiatives have mostly failed to attract new players to the game, but they did spawn a couple of abominations like Foot Golf (Imagine slipping on some knickers, which are mandatory to wear for tournaments and kicking a soccer ball around a golf course) and WhipGolf, which has players throw the ball around the course with some sort of apparatus on your arm. While some suggestions the group had were interesting, (like mixing things up occasionally with 8 to 15-inch cups instead of the standard 4 1/4″ hole size) most of their ideas never had a chance. More importantly, the Hack Golf movement lost their champion. Mark King left Taylor Made Golf in the wake of massive layoffs and restructuring to become the head of adidas North America, and basically left Hack Golf adrift in a vast ocean of apathy. Personally, I don’t think anything is wrong with golf, and it doesn’t need to grow. The ongoing contraction in the sales of equipment, number of courses and people playing the game makes sense, given the unsustainable growth golf experienced in the last 20 years and guerilla marketing employed by golf companies to sell drivers.
- Decline of Golf Media – There’s no stopping the media juggernaut these days. We live in the age of social media, 24/7 cable “infotainment” and TMZ. In my opinion the influence of modern media has had a very negative impact on golf. I’ve spoken about this subject before, and I don’t see things getting better very soon. Traditional golf publications like Golf Magazine, Golf Digest and Golf Channel have lost their way in search of eyeballs and page views to drive advertising revenue and stay profitable. These outlets seem to have eschewed golf instruction and real journalism for paid advertorials and “fitness” articles showcasing ladies in tight yoga pants. Perhaps they forgot that women play golf too, and they don’t care to see women objectified all over their pages and social media channels? I’ve ended my subscriptions to Golf Magazine and Golf Digest, and can barely watch the Golf Channel since NBC Universal took over. Maybe one day they’ll figure out that golf instruction shows don’t need to feature a woman making swings in a shirt that is a couple sizes too small for her. And don’t even get me started on the Back9Network – the TLC of golf programming. Sadly, this “Sex sells, and when all else fails, talk about Tiger” approach will probably continue in 2015. Even some golf bloggers aren’t immune to this overload of sex in golf in search of web traffic. Thankfully, Golfweek is still around and actually still covers golf.
- New Equipment – 2015 promises every golfer at least two things when it comes to equipment. More distance!! More Accuracy!! Ok, now that we got the message from the marketing department of every single golf manufacturer, we can focus on the real news. If you bought your current driver in the last 2 years, that shiny new Taylor Made R15, Callaway Big Bertha Alpha, Titleist 915D2 or Ping G30 driver probably won’t give you more distance or accuracy. Sorry to burst your bubble, but hey – I just saved you $400! Actually, I just got the Ping G30 and think it’s the best driver I’ve hit in years, but that’s a story for another day. There will be the usual assortment of new drivers, woods, irons and wedges in 2015, but what I’m really looking forward to is the rebirth of the Ben Hogan Golf Company led by the very capable guidance of Terry Koehler and the new company from GoDaddy founder Jim Parsons, called Parsons Extreme Golf. Mr Koehler is the brain behind the most versatile and best performing wedges I’ve ever owned, and he’s bringing his considerable talents to the Ben Hogan Company to resurrect this great brand. I don’t have any idea about how much Jim Parsons knows about golf, but I know he’s a marketing genius and is no stranger to the “sex sells” approach with his over the top GoDaddy.com Super Bowl commercials, so we’ll wait and see what his new ultra-premium golf clubs look like with great anticipation. I hope they live up to the hype, but given my history in golf over the last 25 years I’m not holding my breath.
January 12, 2015
Game Golf – Review

For the last few years I’ve observed what I think is a transformation in the golf industry. I believe that innovation and technology has hit a wall with regards to equipment, largely because of the limits on performance imposed by golf’s governing bodies. Nowhere is this more evident than in the golf ball market. Having tested “tour” level golf balls from just about every major manufacturer in the last 6 months, I concluded that they all perform about the same. I started seeing this trend while participating in Golf Digest’s annual “Hot List” testing. Some of the best performing golf balls we tried often turned out to be the cheaper versions of “tour” level balls that cost significantly less.

This lack of innovation in the equipment market has led entrepreneurs to think outside the box and come up with new game improvement technology over the last half decade or so. The market is now flooded with swing trackers, launch monitors and distance measurement devices. One of these new products is called GAME GOLF, and it is the world’s first automatic shot tracking system according to creators of the device.

GAME GOLF is a GPS-enabled game tracking device that you wear on your belt. It comes with sensors (or tags) that you attach to your clubs by screwing them into the hole in the top of your grips. They provide 18 tags in case you have some other clubs rotating in and out of the bag on occasion. To use the device, you simply turn it on and go. GAME GOLF comes pre-loaded with over 35,000 courses and finds the course you are playing automatically. From there, you simply pick your club, tag the device and hit your shot. GAME GOLF will record your location, club selection, shot results, distance and more as you play your way around the course.

When you get home simply attach the GAME GOLF unit to your computer via the included USB cable and upload your round to the web. From there the GAME GOLF website will show you a map of your round via satellite imagery, statistics for the round, distances for each shot and much more. During the upload process you can edit your round details in case you forgot to tag a shot here and there, or if the GPS was a little off from your location. You have full control before your round becomes official and you save it.

One of the great features of GAME GOLF is the social aspect of the platform. Once your round is posted, you can share the results on Facebook and Twitter. Other players using GAME GOLF that follow you will get notifications of your round and can comment on it. There is also a nifty challenge feature that lets you and other golfers using GAME GOLF to compare stats over a number of rounds for bragging rights. In a sense, there’s no hiding your game’s deficiencies with this thing! After 4 or 5 rounds you’ll start to see where your game needs the most improvement, and if you share, so will your opponents.

Let’s take a closer look at GAME GOLF, how it works, what I liked about it, what I don’t like and what’s in store for the near future…

How It Works

I don’t mean to over-simplify this, but it really is almost foolproof to use GAME GOLF. The main tracking unit weighs next to nothing and attaches to your belt. It only has one button to turn it on or off. There’s no screen or controls to worry about. You simply put it on, turn it on and play golf. There is one sensor assigned to each club in your bag from the driver down to your putter, with a few extra wildcard tags thrown in for extra hybrids or whatever.

When you turn on the unit, the GPS sensors find your location and the devices loads the golf course automatically. When you get to the first tee and tag the device with your driver, it locates you via GPS and is smart enough to know where you are. From there it awaits your next tag. When you arrive at your tee shot and tag the club you will use for your approach shot, it calculates the distance your tee shot traveled from the last tag and uses GPS location to determine if you hit the fairway, rough, bunker, etc. In a way, the GAME GOLF device is like having someone follow you around and track your statistics in real time. As you play your round, the device uses the info it gathers to track stats like drive distance, fairways hit, greens hit, average putts per green, scrambling percentage and more.

When you get home you’ll plug the unit into your PC using a USB cable and upload the round to the GAME GOLF web portal. From there you can check the round to make sure the score is correct, edit your shots for greater accuracy and add the shots you may have forgotten to tag in the process of playing. Once your edits are finished you’ll “sign” your round which makes it official, and it is posted for the whole world to see. From there you can share the round with friends and compete in challenges with other GAME GOLF users.

What I Like

GAME GOLF is easy to use. The stats you can gather using the device are plentiful and powerful to help you improve your game. Once you get about 10-12 rounds in the system you really start to see good numbers on average distance for each club in your bag and where you tend to miss with each club. For example, I’m hitting only 43% of the fairways with 34% of my misses going left and 22% missing right. This system is awesome at identifying where you need to improve and giving you some solid data to measure your progress.

The social aspect of GAME GOLF is also a great way to keep in touch with your buddies across the country or compare your game with the pros. Graeme McDowell and Lee Westwood frequently use GAME GOLF during their practice rounds and it’s easy to compare your stats to theirs. For example, my scrambling percentage is 53%, compared to 62% for McDowell and 65% for Westwood.

GAME GOLF was approved for use by the USGA, meaning that you can use it for handicap rounds and tournament rounds alike. The unit doesn’t provide any information to the user in real time so you cannot gain an unfair advantage by using it, unlike competing products which require the use of your phone with the sensors. Don’t get me started about phones on the golf course…

What I Don’t Like

The tagging process takes some getting used to. It is suggested that you change your pre-shot routine to include the tagging process, but I prefer tag the shot after I hit. That way I don’t have to change my routine at all. I simply hit my shot, then before putting my club away I’ll tag the shot and move on. On the putting green I like to tag the putt while marking my ball so I don’t have to worry about it later, and on tap-ins I’ll quickly tag it while reaching for the ball in the hole or add it later when I forget.

For the system to work properly you have to tag your club to the head unit to register the data. Failure to do so results in incomplete data when you upload your round. For example, if you tag your tee shot on a par 4 but forget to tag the second shot, then hit the green and two-putt for par, when you upload the round it’ll appear that you drove the green and two-putted for birdie. Thankfully you can edit your round and add the missing approach shot, but you’ll have to remember what club you hit and how far away you were. Forgetting to tag a shot happens most often on tap-in length putts, as I alluded to above. It’s pretty easy to add them in after the fact when editing your round, but unless you have a photographic memory of all the shots you take like I do you had better not miss too many tags or your round will be a mess to clean up.

There are two things that make GAME GOLF so easy for me to use: I’m a scratch handicap so I don’t take as many shot as the average golfer, thus fewer tags and less info to remember when editing a round, and I’m an IT professional so I am very computer savvy. For me, the editing process takes about 5-10 minutes for a round. I’ll go hole by hole and check everything for accuracy, adding shots I forgot to tag or the system didn’t register properly. For some users the process may take longer, especially at first.

More Observations

I played a round of golf at a mountain course in North Carolina that had been re-routed at some point, because when I tried to upload my round in GAME GOLF the scorecard was completely erroneous and the holes didn’t match up in the correct order. Armed with the course scorecard, I emailed the GAME GOLF support team and worked with them to correct the course layout and scorecard in their system. With a few emails back and forth we had the information updated and my round was accurate. The support staff seem to have their stuff together and are very responsive.

Prepare to check your ego at the door. The accuracy of measuring distance with GPS may be debatable, but so far with over 15 rounds in the system I can say that the average distances of almost every club in my bag are right about where they have been for years. Many people over-estimate how far they hit the golf ball, which is why most approach shots come up short. GAME GOLF may hurt your ego a bit when you realize that your average drive is 25 yards shorter than you think, but I’m here to give you actionable data to help improve your game, not stroke your ego. For the record, 24% of my approach shots taken from outside 100 yards come up short, compared to only 4% that go long.

What’s Next?

GAME GOLF is constantly evolving as a statistics and game tracking platform. The social aspects of it have just started to scratch the surface of their potential, and new features are going to be available via firmware updates to the device. As more people join the community, more opportunities arise for sharing of information and competing with one another. I would love to see some PGA Tour caddies using it to track their players’ stats during tournament play, and more pros on all tours take part in sharing rounds with the public. I could even see some kind of virtual golf tournaments take place using the platform. The possibilities are endless for this kind of technology.

GAME GOLF is available for $199 at golf retailers and online at www.gamegolf.com. Also check out my interview with the folks at GAME GOLF on their blog.

October 17, 2014