Garmin Approach G80

[moosehead222]

Thank you David.      Does "Target Practice" give an option for Carry Only?  I looked in the manual and unfortunately I do not think so.  I want to zero in on my distances and it would be perfect with Carry Only.   I guess I could calculate based on working with it without being in the "Target Practice" mode to understand how many yards it adds per club / per distance then subtract that..   Bottom line, the product looks pretty awesome.

[moosehead222]

Software Updates -- Do we think that Garmin would push software updates in the future to add small features?  For example, if "Target Practice" mode only gives Distance and Carry now, would they ever push a feature to make this selectable Carry Only in the future?  I know they could but based on their product history what do you think?   I do not have any experience with Garmin products.  Thank you.

[ZipinZ]

**March 25th** … went out to the range to work on my Tempo, the system suggests 3.0 is ideal, the closest I get is 2.9.

 

I’m not sure my G80’s “Tempo Training” mode and the “Warm-Up” mode are recording properly, the two modes don’t get the same numbers the closest I get is 2.8 while in Warm-Up it has recorded a few 2.9’s when I slow down my S/S, does this make sense ???? I bought a used 45” Orange Whip, maybe that will help me a bit. I’m still enjoying my G80, I believe it’s helped my game, played Escena yesterday, great day 82F, no wind & broke 80 for the first time this year, a couple of birdies helped, my longest drive 286 yds on Hole 9, I was happy with a 79 from the gold/blue T’s. Going back to the range tomorrow and hope to play my last round on Thursday before we depart for home. Looking forward to even more G80 field testing on my home course which is 3,100 ft vs Palm Springs at 480 ft above sea level.

 

A few pic’s …. and it wasn't easy to upload them on the new platform.

 

Cheer’s :)

 

David

 

 

 

 

 

**In Tempo Mode the best I can do is 2.8 regardless how slow or fast I swing.**

 

 

**In Warm-up Mode the slower S/S record my best tempo 2.9. need to work on my lag.**

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[ZipinZ]

> @moosehead222 said:

> Thank you David.      Does "Target Practice" give an option for Carry Only?  I looked in the manual and unfortunately I do not think so.  I want to zero in on my distances and it would be perfect with Carry Only.   I guess I could calculate based on working with it without being in the "Target Practice" mode to understand how many yards it adds per club / per distance then subtract that..   Bottom line, the product looks pretty awesome.

 

> @moosehead222 said:

> Software Updates -- Do we think that Garmin would push software updates in the future to add small features? For example, if "Target Practice" mode only gives Distance and Carry now, would they ever push a feature to make this selectable Carry Only in the future? I know they could but based on their product history what do you think? I do not have any experience with Garmin products. Thank you.

 

 

Hi .... MH222 I believe your findings are correct, it calculates both carry & roll, which on short irons/wedges it shouldn't be all that much. That said, I recall reading someplace that you can adjust the roll to increase it for your particular situation or course. Will have to review my stuff and see if I can find that info, it may help those like me who's home course is significantly higher in elevation at 3100 ft. In my case I need to hit at least 1 extra club and grip down a bit here in Palm Springs vs my home track. More to follow.

 

Regarding your second post/question ... I'm not sure what Garmin have planned for future software updates, I would think what your hoping for would come in a future new & improved G90 release.

 

D.

 

[ZipinZ]

**Setting the Roll Factor - Cut/Paste from Manual**

 

The device calculates your shot distance using carry plus roll. The roll factor varies due to differences in balls, clubs, and surface conditions, as well as ball spin and launch angle. These factors cannot be detected by the device. If you are not getting the distance result you expect, you can adjust the roll factor.

 

Select an option:

 

From the home screen, select a radar practice mode - Warm-Up or Game.

NOTE: This setting is not available for all practice modes.

 

Press the radar button.

Select > Set Roll Factor.

Use the slider to increase or decrease your roll.

 

 

A pic of the Warm-Up Set Roll screen ... I'll turn it off and hit a few and then turn it to max Roll and do a comparison and update accordingly.

 

D.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[ZipinZ]

**March 26th **... back out on the range, adjusted the "Roll Factor" to Off or 0 then turned it up to full or 100% hit both 9i full swing & 8i grip down a bit to a 150 yd White Flag, I watched were my balls ended up and the G80 was close to the pin, didn't notice all that much difference in my final numbers with or without the roll. I used my Orange Whip and I believe it helped me with my swing, I slowed it down a bit and finally recorded my first 3.0's on my Tempo .... got to like improvements!

 

David

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Norboo]

Does it have spin rate?

[PingPoncho]

anyone compare G80 to SC300? which is better for the money and more accurate?

 

Not many reviews out there for the G80

[gunmetal]

> @wishiwasgood said:

> Kmac wrote:

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> I dont think altitude has anything to do with it. I mean I could be wrong here but altitude is affecting the actual ball and its flight for total distance and the unit is not seeing the entire ball flight and where it lands. No? Its just making calculations based on what it read from your swing. Id keep it and try again. Maybe inside and see what happens.

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> These results were inside. My assumption is the same, it takes flight characteristics from 1st couple of yards and calculate cary and roll, but the calculation takes raw numbers and calculate distance based on sea level and does not account for altitude increased distance due to air density. Maybe those 1st few yards is enough to account for air density, maybe a scientist would know.

>

>

>

> Anyways I was out yesterday on a range with just the unit, numbers were more accurate the shorter the shot, -2-3 yards to marker on shots less than 80 yards. on shots 80-140 -5yards and on anything above that it was short about 10 yards hard to know for sure based on far the target was.

 

It get's really messy trying to adjust for local conditions as elevation is one of many factors including temperature, humidity, and wind that all play a role. I live at 5000' in eastern Idaho. When I go play in Washington, Oregon, or California my 170 yard 7 iron goes about 155 ish - I just do the math - then do all the add backs for temp, wind, etc. I would still think the unit could be extremely helpful for establishing proper gapping and just practicing. I suppose if you use it in conjunction with the Garmin Connect app on the course it'll give you very accurate distances as you walk to and from your ball. Just my thoughts.

[swoosh21]

I'm not sure if this has been discussed, but what type of technology is used to measure ball speed?

[puresurfr]

ive been using this unit with a GC2 at the same time and the ball speeds are almost always identical....the estimated roll and carry is pretty good too but the GC80 cannot account for thinner low spin shots that go really far on GC2, it estimates based on normal solid hits...so if you hit the ball square with proper spin, the estimate will be very close to the GC2 numbers.

I am very impressed with this unit and the numbers come up much faster than GC2, I trust it enough that I rarely look at the GC2 except when I am trying to determine backspin of my driver combos

[RTEM5746]

When you're using target mode on this it can only measure how far you've hit it? It doesn't know that you've carried it 150 yards but also 150 yards left or right?

[ZipinZ]

May 08th .... made it back home to Central Alberta, suffered through 2 spring snow storms, it finally melted and got out for a walk as a single on my home course today for my first round since Palm Springs. Not many people out & got to do some further testing of my G80, unfortunately forgot the camera, so no actual course pic's. Started with the GPS mode, it's great, much better than any old Garmin Watch, numbers are easy to see/read, and accurate within 1 yd of my Garmin S5 and about the same as confirmed with my Bushnell Pro 7 Lazer.

 

After the first couple of holes while on the T-Box I went back to the Menu & entered the Warm Up mode which activates the Radar/Launch Monitor, put the unit down 12" from my ball and hit my drive into the wind, the following registered S/S = 98 mph, carry/roll = 253 yds. Hit the Measure Distance button and walked to my ball it was 252 yds down the fairway, was impressed 1 yd difference.

 

While pushing buttons & arrows I had an **"A-Ha Moment"** the unit actually has the option of **"Carry & Roll" & "Carry Only", as well a split screen with both "Carry & Carry/Roll",** didn't read or see this in the manual before ... see pic's below. You can adjust the amount of "Roll" based on coures conditions. I turned mine down to about 25% due to the wet spring conditions. Then I set it to the Split Screen on a 150 yd Par 3, hit 8i into the wind, made a good swing ended up about 10 ft left of the pin at 148 yds confirmed with my S5, there was a deep davit in soft green and sucked the ball back about 3 feet. The unit registered 143 yd "Carry" and 154 yd "Carry & Roll" the G80 had no idea I was hitting into the wind nor did it know I spun it back, nevertheless, the results were close enough for me.

 

The 2 golfers behind caught up to me so that was the end of Launch Monitor testing, went back to GPS Mode and enjoyed the remained of the round, finished with the same ball, shot 39/41- 80/Blues. I use a push cart, walked 5.1 miles & determined I need some sort of a mounting bracket to secure the G80 to my cart handle, the one provided is at the wrong angle and a PIA. When I finished I noticed the battery was down to 85%, much better than my S5 watch.

 

In conclusion, I'm finding the unit's Launch Monitor numbers are pretty close to the actual distance numbers I was hitting the ball today, it will be interesting to see how it performs under summer conditions when the fairways are firm and you get more roll out.

 

Still lovin my G80.

 

David

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[MPSgolfs]

This one checks all the boxes for me: basic launch monitor, measures tempo, practice games, GPS capabilities. I just worry it will be too large for me to consistently use on the course for GPS. My plan is to keep it in my left front pocket or right back pocket. I know I won't use it if it's not on my person.

[ZipinZ]

**MPSgolfs** .... I believe it would be a bit uncomfortable in a shirt pocket, its got some weight to it. The unit comes with a protective plastic sleeve/case & clip, it would fit in your back pocket easily or clip to you bag. I decided to secure mine to my push cart.

 

D.

 

 

[ZipinZ]

Went to the local golf store and found a decent GPS / Cell phone mount/bracket for a push cart. Used a couple of cable snap ties to secure it to the handle, lots of adjustment and easy to view. Included a few pic's of the GPS screens on Hole #1 of my home course (Sylvan), something else I found out, the unit allows you to move the pin to the front or back of the green and adjusts the distance accordingly ... nice feature.

 

D.

 

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[MPSgolfs]

> @Zip-in-Z said:

> Went to the local golf store and found a decent GPS / Cell phone mount/bracket for a push cart. Used a couple of cable snap ties to secure it to the handle, lots of adjustment and easy to view. Included a few pic's of the GPS screens on Hole #1 of my home course (Sylvan), something else I found out, the unit allows you to move the pin to the front or back of the green and adjusts the distance accordingly ... nice feature.

>

Awesome set up! I have a clicgear 3.5 that I should use more often. I'd definitely like attaching it like yours.

[ZipinZ]

May 10th .... walked 18 today, was experimenting a bit more with the GPS feature and using the screen that enlarges the "Green" and shows the pin location, default is always center pin. I was moving it to were the actual pin was located ie front right "Red Flag" back left "Blue Flag" of the green and it adjusted the distance based on were I put it. To compare I lazer'd the pin with my Bushnell Pro 7 it was only a yard or so different than the G80, was impressed once again. I really didn't use my Lazer much during the round, due to the accuracy of the G80.

 

Another bonus worth mentioning, it wasn't necessary to charge up the G80 after my first round the other day the battery level was at "82%". Today it was only down to "69%" still not necessary to recharge. As a comparison my Garmin S5 watch had 54% power remaining and it's on the charger now. The only feature the G80 doesn't have and it should is an Odometer, the S5 has one and mine said I walked 5.3 miles today, felt good to be back out walking on the course and I missed the smell of fresh cut grass, too. Perhaps Garmin will upgrade their software and include the Odometer feature on the G80 sometime in the future. Trust this helps others considering the G80 over other brands.

Cheers

David

 

A few pic's ....

 

 

**Easy to move the pin with a swipe of the finger.**

 

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**69% - Battery Life after two full days walking the course.**

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[ZipinZ]

May 13th .... walked 18 with my push cart, knocked my G80 out of my mount/bracket & it hit the ground, fortunately it's shock resistant, no damage, need to MacGyver a fix so this doesn't happen again. Third round with out charging, battery indicator is at 53% should be able to get 1 perhaps 2 more rounds before the battery dies. Still amazed how accurate the G80 is when I move the pin from Center to either Front or Back Flag ... used my Lazer only a couple of times to confirm the actual distance and it was within 1-2 yds. The G80 did it's job, played well today, had a kick in Birdie and missed a couple that should of dropped but lipped out, never lost a ball & broke 80, a bonus.

[Cruisin1966]

> @Zip-in-Z said:

> May 13th .... walked 18 with my push cart, knocked my G80 out of my mount/bracket & it hit the ground, fortunately it's shock resistant, no damage, need to MacGyver a fix so this doesn't happen again. Third round with out charging, battery indicator is at 53% should be able to get 1 perhaps 2 more rounds before the battery dies. Still amazed how accurate the G80 is when I move the pin from Center to either Front or Back Flag ... used my Lazer only a couple of times to confirm the actual distance and it was within 1-2 yds. The G80 did it's job, played well today, had a kick in Birdie and missed a couple that should of dropped but lipped out, never lost a ball & broke 80, a bonus.

 

Nice. Can't wait to get mine out on the range for practice. Congrats on the score

[HiTrajLoSpin]

Lots to like about the G80, but I'm very disappointed in its scorekeeping capabilities (or lack thereof). Scorecards are NOT saved on the device itself, but are instead sent via bluetooth to the Garmin Golf app on your phone using a SAVE option; once they're sent to the app, there's no way to retrieve them for review on the G80 itself. Moreover, the app doesn't indicate if the fairway was hit and how many putts were taken on each hole, it just shows the scores for each hole; for crying out loud even my old G6 stored all my previous scorecards, along with data regarding fairways hit and putts required on each hole, on the device itself. It should be a simple software mod to remedy this.

[swoosh21]

> @TNGolfGeek said:

> Lots to like about the G80, but I'm very disappointed in its scorekeeping capabilities (or lack thereof). Scorecards are NOT saved on the device itself, but are instead sent via bluetooth to the Garmin Golf app on your phone using a SAVE option; once they're sent to the app, there's no way to retrieve them for review on the G80 itself. Moreover, the app doesn't indicate if the fairway was hit and how many putts were taken on each hole, it just shows the scores for each hole; for crying out loud even my old G6 stored all my previous scorecards, along with data regarding fairways hit and putts required on each hole, on the device itself. It should be a simple software mod to remedy this.

 

That sounds like an easy software update for Garmin to do. Hopefully they will do that. I'll stick with my Fenix 5 for now.

[ZipinZ]

Sent Garmin Support an e-mail wondering why the G80 didn't have an "Odometer" feature and could it be added in a software update, they responded in 3 days ..... as follows.

Not the answer I was hoping for.

D.

 

From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]]

Sent: Saturday, May 18, 2019 8:27 AM

Subject: Re: Approach® G80 - Why No Odometer

 

Hello David,

The odometer feature has never been an option for our handheld devices.

Thank you for choosing Garmin,

Joe

Product Support

Garmin International

 

[dbdors]

> @Zip-in-Z said:

> Sent Garmin Support an e-mail wondering why the G80 didn't have an "Odometer" feature and could it be added in a software update, they responded in 3 days ..... as follows.

> Not the answer I was hoping for.

> D.

>

> From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]]

> Sent: Saturday, May 18, 2019 8:27 AM

> Subject: Re: Approach® G80 - Why No Odometer

>

> Hello David,

> The odometer feature has never been an option for our handheld devices.

> Thank you for choosing Garmin,

> Joe

> Product Support

> Garmin International

>

Maybe I miss understand what you are looking for and what they meant , but if I keep score (acknowledge every hole) my G8 tells me the distance traveled. I use it after to measure my walking and activity.

Last two courses played, see the "Distance Traveled"

[ZipinZ]

> @dbdors said:

> > @Zip-in-Z said:

> > Sent Garmin Support an e-mail wondering why the G80 didn't have an "Odometer" feature and could it be added in a software update, they responded in 3 days ..... as follows.

> > Not the answer I was hoping for.

> > D.

> >

> > From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]]

> > Sent: Saturday, May 18, 2019 8:27 AM

> > Subject: Re: Approach® G80 - Why No Odometer

> >

> > Hello David,

> > The odometer feature has never been an option for our handheld devices.

> > Thank you for choosing Garmin,

> > Joe

> > Product Support

> > Garmin International

> >

> Maybe I miss understand what you are looking for and what they meant , but if I keep score (acknowledge every hole) my G8 tells me the distance traveled. I use it after to measure my walking and activity.

> Last two courses played, see the "Distance Traveled"

 

 

 

**Dbdors**, tks for the info .... looks like your G8 has the feature I was looking for in my new G80. I looked at the manual and enabling the Statistics Tracking feature under Scoring, will see if the G80 works similar to your unit and tracks distance travelled.

 

Tks

 

D.

[dbdors]

> @Zip-in-Z said:

> > @dbdors said:

> > > @Zip-in-Z said:

> > > Sent Garmin Support an e-mail wondering why the G80 didn't have an "Odometer" feature and could it be added in a software update, they responded in 3 days ..... as follows.

> > > Not the answer I was hoping for.

> > > D.

> > >

> > > From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]]

> > > Sent: Saturday, May 18, 2019 8:27 AM

> > > Subject: Re: Approach® G80 - Why No Odometer

> > >

> > > Hello David,

> > > The odometer feature has never been an option for our handheld devices.

> > > Thank you for choosing Garmin,

> > > Joe

> > > Product Support

> > > Garmin International

> > >

> > Maybe I miss understand what you are looking for and what they meant , but if I keep score (acknowledge every hole) my G8 tells me the distance traveled. I use it after to measure my walking and activity.

> > Last two courses played, see the "Distance Traveled"

>

>

>

> **Dbdors**, tks for the info .... looks like your G8 has the feature I was looking for in my new G80. I looked at the manual and enabling the Statistics Tracking feature under Scoring, will see if the G80 works similar to your unit and tracks distance travelled.

>

> Tks

>

> D.

 

I would be completely shocked if the G80 didn't do the same. Send those pics back to Garmin.

[HiTrajLoSpin]

> @TNGolfGeek said:

> Lots to like about the G80, but I'm very disappointed in its scorekeeping capabilities (or lack thereof). Scorecards are NOT saved on the device itself, but are instead sent via bluetooth to the Garmin Golf app on your phone using a SAVE option; once they're sent to the app, there's no way to retrieve them for review on the G80 itself. Moreover, the app doesn't indicate if the fairway was hit and how many putts were taken on each hole, it just shows the scores for each hole; for crying out loud even my old G6 stored all my previous scorecards, along with data regarding fairways hit and putts required on each hole, on the device itself. It should be a simple software mod to remedy this.

 

FYI, I've now found a roundabout way to obtain from the Garmin Golf app if the fairway was hit, if the green was hit in reg, and how many putts were taken for each hole. After selecting a particular round (from the Scorecard option), a rudimentary scorecard is shown; one must then select the Edit Scorecard option, which will then allow you to scroll through all the holes individually to obtain the information indicated above. Not the most elegant way to find the information, but it works.

[SteveL1]

How accurate is it for dialing in short wedge shots? I’ve been working on dialing in two or three stock yardages for each of my wedges, and something like this could be very helpful if it’s indeed accurate.

[ZipinZ]

> @SteveL1 said:

> How accurate is it for dialing in short wedge shots? I’ve been working on dialing in two or three stock yardages for each of my wedges, and something like this could be very helpful if it’s indeed accurate.

 

**SteveL1** .... my wedge experimenting has mainly been on the range at the 100 YD flag, the G80 was close to my actual visual yardages. I didn't practice with the unit hitting to a 25 or 50 yd flag, that's more of a touch shot, perhaps that's something I'll try next time I'm out practicing. If this helps, cut & paste from the Spec's.

 

D.

 

**Radar Features**

Integrated launch monitor tracks club head speed, ball speed, smash factor, swing tempo, estimated distance

Carry distance accuracy: +/- 5 yards

Club head speed accuracy: +/- 5 mph

Ball speed accuracy: +/- 2 mph

Swing tempo accuracy: +/- 0.3

Practice and game modes include warm-up, virtual round, target practice, tempo training

Can be used indoors and outdoors

 

 

[ZipinZ]

May 22 .... Bty day, walked 18 and after enabling the Statistics Tracking feature under Scoring, I entered my hole scores into the system, after you enter the first hole the unit automatically takes you to the screen to complete strokes/putts after each hole and if you make Birdie or Boogie you have to adjust your numbers if you make par it ad's up the hole score for you. Started off shaky but turned it around on the back 9, I'm a 10 handicap and was fortunate to break 80, a couple of Birdies helped, played a Taylormade TP5 and it followed me home, was happy with my game and still very happy with the G80.

 

**Dbdors,** .... it appears the G80 doesn't have a Distance Calculator or Odometer, at least I couldn't see it when I ended the round ... that sucks.

 

After the round I connected the G80 to my PC and it automatically downloads & sync's today's Score Card into the Garmin Express program on my system. This is the screens & info it gathers.

 

Cheers

 

David