Apple Watch for Golf

[ParHunter]

Trackmygolf is excellent. Uses the watch GPS and updates yardages much faster than FunGolf. Doesn't have hazards, or course info still... been asking for a while. Can either use a standard mode to keep score or auto track. It'll record every swing automatically and allow you to edit the club etc while walking away or later in the round. Works great just irritating to delete practice swings.

 

Once FunGolf downloads the course to the phone at the start of the round I'll go back. Until then, it needs the iPhone to load each hole and constantly seeks the iPhone gps.

FunGolf's new update does just that. You might want to check it out. They also brought back the front/center/back distance when you tap on the 'centre' distance it will switch from the green view with centre distance to the front/centre/back display.

[RLL33]

I just got the new Apple Watch 3, and I'm trying to find a GPS app for it this week. I tried Track My Golf, and I don't know what it is, but's not a Golf GPS app in the standard sense. I'm in the middle of a back and forth Support thread with them, but apparently you have to enter any course you're playing manually before you play -- including distances from each color tee!!! (If I wanted to do that, I'd spend the time I spend playing golf making yardage books...) Their Support is awful, too. I get back cryptic responses like, "Read the instructions." For any concerned here, there is no basic instruction on how to start using the app for a first time... It's basically a brick on the AW-3. So I'm about to delete it and try one of the others like Golfshot.

 

FWIW, I've been using the both the Garmin S20 and the Vivo HR and like them very much. Just thought it would be nice if I could do everything from the AW. The Vivo in particular is fabulous. It's always giving you exact RT yardages, and you swipe right to see layups as well as a color rendering of each green. One button press to measure shot distance on any shot, too. Totally intuitive and non-distracting to use, and it also shows notifications from your iPhone in a small window superimposed at the top of the screen.

 

Any further app suggestions from anyone using the AW-3 would be appreciated. I don't need to keep score on the watch, but I do like to measure shot distances and get Fr/Ctr/Back readings to greens from anywhere.

 

Thx!

[Augustok]

I’m planning to buy a AW3 because my garmin is on last legs for same reason to have just one simple thing mostly for front back middle.. It doesn’t seem like the apps are good enough yet for the Apple Watch from reading all the comments on this topic. I’ve been waiting for the AW3 hoping for improvements. I also want an app that doesn’t use a lot of data because we no longer have unlimited on our Verizon plan. My comment not much use to you, it was too busy at my Apple store yesterday to buy the watch, but hope there are more comments soon. And after I do get it will try a few.

[aadadams]

I came from the Garmin S6 to the AW2, and I've had the same opinion about the level of performance of the available apps. I'm playing tomorrow, and will try out Fun Golf given the recent update. Sadly, you have to pay to get the features, I want... hazards, FMB, scoring and the like. I will buy a month of service to evaluate the app at $4.50 I think.

[RLL33]

Yeah, I popped for Golf Shot Plus and will be trying it out this weekend.

 

BTW, FWIW, here is an exact transcript of the last message I received from the Track My Golf "support" people:

 

"We not what more to say, the app description explains the features and functions the app provides clearly."

[aadadams]

Wow, now that's anti-customer service!

[Atlantagolf]

That maybe the difference - I will try keeping Bluetooth on and only rely on the watch GPS when I venture away from the cart.

 

per Golfshot - you're supposed to turn OFF the bluetooth from your iPhone but leave it ON your AW so it uses your AW GPS while walking to your ball and not your iPhone.

 

https://golfshotgps....ory/apple-watch

 

I have tried that for several rounds now and the AW goes to sleep and looses sat connection. Sometimes it is close to a minute before it gains signal. VERY FRUSTRATING. I am used to a Garmin watch where all I have to do is glance down to get the yardage.

[jpdx]

That maybe the difference - I will try keeping Bluetooth on and only rely on the watch GPS when I venture away from the cart.

 

per Golfshot - you're supposed to turn OFF the bluetooth from your iPhone but leave it ON your AW so it uses your AW GPS while walking to your ball and not your iPhone.

 

https://golfshotgps....ory/apple-watch

 

I have tried that for several rounds now and the AW goes to sleep and looses sat connection. Sometimes it is close to a minute before it gains signal. VERY FRUSTRATING. I am used to a Garmin watch where all I have to do is glance down to get the yardage.

 

Do you mean it goes back to the clock face? Set your settings to last app used. I use hole 19 without the phone and although a little slower, it works fine. Ive used it over seas with no issues other than a few second delay, With phone on airplane mode

[Atlantagolf]

That maybe the difference - I will try keeping Bluetooth on and only rely on the watch GPS when I venture away from the cart.

 

per Golfshot - you're supposed to turn OFF the bluetooth from your iPhone but leave it ON your AW so it uses your AW GPS while walking to your ball and not your iPhone.

 

https://golfshotgps....ory/apple-watch

 

I have tried that for several rounds now and the AW goes to sleep and looses sat connection. Sometimes it is close to a minute before it gains signal. VERY FRUSTRATING. I am used to a Garmin watch where all I have to do is glance down to get the yardage.

 

Do you mean it goes back to the clock face? Set your settings to last app used. I use hole 19 without the phone and although a little slower, it works fine. Ive used it over seas with no issues other than a few second delay, With phone on airplane mode

 

No it doesn't go back to the watch, it comes up in the application. But it then has to reestablish connection to the SAT signal which takes several seconds. I am looking for a fix/option that keeps the SAT on/established.

[TScottTX]

That maybe the difference - I will try keeping Bluetooth on and only rely on the watch GPS when I venture away from the cart.

 

per Golfshot - you're supposed to turn OFF the bluetooth from your iPhone but leave it ON your AW so it uses your AW GPS while walking to your ball and not your iPhone.

 

https://golfshotgps....ory/apple-watch

 

I have tried that for several rounds now and the AW goes to sleep and looses sat connection. Sometimes it is close to a minute before it gains signal. VERY FRUSTRATING. I am used to a Garmin watch where all I have to do is glance down to get the yardage.

 

Do you mean it goes back to the clock face? Set your settings to last app used. I use hole 19 without the phone and although a little slower, it works fine. Ive used it over seas with no issues other than a few second delay, With phone on airplane mode

 

No it doesn't go back to the watch, it comes up in the application. But it then has to reestablish connection to the SAT signal which takes several seconds. I am looking for a fix/option that keeps the SAT on/established.

 

Give Fun Golf GPS a try. Less than a second to reestablish SAT, standalone app on AW S3 Cellular - no iPhone needed and great vector maps of the hole you are playing allowing measurement to any point on the hole. 18 holes today on LTE, 2 phone calls, email and a couple of messages and finished with 34% battery. Current version is having trouble on some par 3's but they say will be fixed soon.

[aadadams]

I'd echo the Fun Golf suggestion. I've only played one round with it on a course that was undergoing renovation but the app did quite well. Yardages popped up within a few seconds of looking at the watch. Managing score, hazard distances and etc was very easy... Though I had to get used to using the crown for manipulations. Rather than buy the month, I bought the year on the off chance that I'd like it... kinda glad I did but am still very curious about Golfshot.

[ParHunter]

Current version is having trouble on some par 3's but they say will be fixed soon.

 

I noticed that the other day on the first par 3 our our course. The distance looked okay but it wasn't showing a green. Is that the problem you are talking about?

[TScottTX]

Current version is having trouble on some par 3's but they say will be fixed soon.

 

I noticed that the other day on the first par 3 our our course. The distance looked okay but it wasn't showing a green. Is that the problem you are talking about?

 

Yes, for me the distance shown was actually the back tee distances rather from where I was standing. I contacted them and they said a fix was underway.

[Atlantagolf]

Give Fun Golf GPS a try. Less than a second to reestablish SAT, standalone app on AW S3 Cellular - no iPhone needed and great vector maps of the hole you are playing allowing measurement to any point on the hole. 18 holes today on LTE, 2 phone calls, email and a couple of messages and finished with 34% battery. Current version is having trouble on some par 3's but they say will be fixed soon.

 

 

Is there a version for the AW 2?

[RLL33]

Can you turn off the score keeping in Fun Golf?

 

I'll be trying Golf Shot Plus again this weekend. It worked fine with my AW3, but I really don't need the score keeping, I prefer to keep a scorecard, and you apparently can't turn that function off, at least in the current version of the app. Too bad because the graphics and accuracy work great with the AW3.

[TScottTX]

Give Fun Golf GPS a try. Less than a second to reestablish SAT, standalone app on AW S3 Cellular - no iPhone needed and great vector maps of the hole you are playing allowing measurement to any point on the hole. 18 holes today on LTE, 2 phone calls, email and a couple of messages and finished with 34% battery. Current version is having trouble on some par 3's but they say will be fixed soon.

 

 

Is there a version for the AW 2?

 

Yes, same version. Only difference is you would need iPhone to initially download the course info. After that, leave phone at home or turn bluetooth off to use the GPS from the watch.

[TScottTX]

Can you turn off the score keeping in Fun Golf?

 

 

Keep score if you want otherwise it automatically tracks you on the course - lift wrist and get yardages for the hole you are on.

[RLL33]

Can you turn off the score keeping in Fun Golf?

 

 

Keep score if you want otherwise it automatically tracks you on the course - lift wrist and get yardages for the hole you are on.

 

Thank you! Got Fun Golf and used it yesterday. It's exactly what I've been looking for. Works perfectly on the AW3 -- it's quick, accurate, doesn't use much battery, and most importantly, I love the interface. It auto advances to next hole and doesn't force you to use it to keep score. Just give you distances, and the scroll feature allows you to zero in on any target precisely and intuitively without all the button hassle. It doesn't distract you from your game with its technology. It just quietly gives you exactly what you need. Great app for the AW golfer!

[jaycoyoyo]

Can you turn off the score keeping in Fun Golf?

 

 

Keep score if you want otherwise it automatically tracks you on the course - lift wrist and get yardages for the hole you are on.

 

Thank you! Got Fun Golf and used it yesterday. It's exactly what I've been looking for. Works perfectly on the AW3 -- it's quick, accurate, doesn't use much battery, and most importantly, I love the interface. It auto advances to next hole and doesn't force you to use it to keep score. Just give you distances, and the scroll feature allows you to zero in on any target precisely and intuitively without all the button hassle. It doesn't distract you from your game with its technology. It just quietly gives you exactly what you need. Great app for the AW golfer!

 

Do you have an AW3 with Cellular or just GPS?

 

Thanks

-Jay

[RLL33]

Cellular.

[jpdx]

downloaded and tried to use Fun Golf. I couldn't even download the course I was on. I think it's worth noting it's not a free app, and there is no free trial.

[aadadams]

I have an AW2 with Fun Golf, I have to download the course on my phone, but have not had an issue where I could not get the course. Right after downloading the app there was a period where the phone and watch versions were not in sync... IE the phone new that I'd bought the app but the watch didn't... the issue self sorted with time... Other than that smooth sailing...

 

Edit: I went out this Sunday and had the worst of the par 3 issues and now have a better understanding of earlier reports of this issue. Standing on a par three the distance was 3 - 7 times longer than the hole and there was no image of the green (just black background).

[bill1710]

I am using the Apple Watch series 2 with my arccos 360 and it works perfectly.

[AmpliFIRE]

Do any of these apps track your handicap as well?

[Minarets]

Been using a AW 0 since they came out with hole 19. Just upgraded to a AW 3 (no LTE). Hoping it’s even faster. It’s GPS only. So does that mean I still need the phone with me? Or can the watch tell me the distance without the phone?

[jpdx]

Been using a AW 0 since they came out with hole 19. Just upgraded to a AW 3 (no LTE). Hoping it’s even faster. It’s GPS only. So does that mean I still need the phone with me? Or can the watch tell me the distance without the phone?

 

Must start round with phone. Doesn't need phone for distances after round loaded. Aw2 here, but I'm sure aw3 would be the same. Distances still load faster with phone though on the aw2

[Minarets]

Been using a AW 0 since they came out with hole 19. Just upgraded to a AW 3 (no LTE). Hoping its even faster. Its GPS only. So does that mean I still need the phone with me? Or can the watch tell me the distance without the phone?

 

Must start round with phone. Doesn't need phone for distances after round loaded. Aw2 here, but I'm sure aw3 would be the same. Distances still load faster with phone though on the aw2

thanks

[Augustok]

I finally bought the AW3 the other day and used it today with The Grint app. Did not work well. Hardly ever was close to correct distance. Did switch to the next hole fine. Scoring was easy. Plan to try another app next time I play.

[Augustok]

Today I tried Fun Golf and it couldn’t even find my course, so I gave The Grint another try. Maybe I walk too fast, but it didn’t find the distances fast enough for me. Next I will try some other app. on Thursday.

[ParHunter]

Today I tried Fun Golf and it couldn’t even find my course, so I gave The Grint another try. Maybe I walk too fast, but it didn’t find the distances fast enough for me. Next I will try some other app. on Thursday.

Strange with FunGolf. Did you buy a subscription? The stupid thing with FunGolf is that you can download the app for free but you can't download a course unless you bought the subscription. They should have a trial phase. You can check the supported courses here: http://www.fungolf.com/en/courses_catalog