Ernest Sports ES Tour Plus Launch Monitor

[Badshaft]

I bought the unit and have only had one session with it, so I wanted to start with that and give first impressions with a few updates along the way as I use it.

·     I looked over all the options out there and saw some issues with every one of them – Whether it was Lead times, shipping, support, cost or other things that I took in consideration.

·     I had read the saga from the ES 16 issues from other places - But from what I gathered from my research, Ernest owned up to it – and they did the best they could to make it right albeit it was a rocky road. Ernest still has consequences from it-

·     What drew me in to this item; was for the price and what you get for that price compared to others. – Ernest advertises 26 data points- for a fraction of what other units cost with that type of data- My goal is game improvement and meaningful practice into a net- With my IPad for now- (Looking for graphic improvements though)·  

   Almost all my practice is at home under cover so the ES Tour Plus was a good option for me. It has limited features outside- If I have outside practice, I would use something else. The infrared light skews the units readings outdoors.

·     Bonus was it is compatible with Golf simulation providers- I’m not a sim player-YET lol- it seems intriguing. Ernest said that TGC has around 1000 courses including Augusta -Maybe in due time-

·     Customer Service – WoW- Impeccable! Every time I have called; someone has picked up the phone – No phone tag and answered all my questions. Fast shipping with 2 week turnaround from order to my door.

·     Another added bonus which I find admirable is; they have sourced almost the whole unit from inside the United States. Very few components are from the outside the US. The battery charger is one of them from outside. lol

·     Set up – This is my first Launch monitor so I am unfamiliar with how they work- But after working through the process this should be quick and easy to set up start practice. Calibration – I couldn’t get the unit to cal at first – Turns out when I called the company. There was a small issue with the instructions. After that no issues-

·     The App is easy to use and get started – Very intuitive and very basic so it really worked for me just getting started.

·     I took about 75 shots and the unit picked up every one- I didn’t see anything that I wouldn’t see on the course. When I pulled – it showed a pull – when I fanned it showed that also, everything that I felt in my swing – It seemed to pick it up and the club data showed how crappy I was swinging as best I could tell- To be honest I was more focused on the monitor than fixing any swing flaws at that moment-

·     There is a lot of data to absorb- and to be honest I have to get a better understanding of it. But the basic stuff looked accurate- Carry Distance, Club Head Speed, Smash Factor Ball speed, launch all looked normal to what I’ve seen on other equipment and on the course- But that isn’t definitive-

[ChitownM2]

What is the cost of the unit and have you compared the data that it gives to a trackman or foresight? I'd be real curious to see how accurate it is as that seems to be the knock on almost every personal launch monitor out there that can be had at a reasonable price.

[Badshaft]

2700...Which for the data you get -As their slogan states "Best bang for the buck" ...

I haven't compared it with anything else - Those other monitors you mentioned are $10K to $20K which to me doesn't make it reasonable for my use-

But what I can tell you is I've hit over 800 balls with the launch monitor and on well struck shots it is very close to what I see on the course or maybe just a bit shy on the launch monitor side; except the driver. The driver seems more shy than what I see on the course- but that could be because our course conditions are really dry right now. I'm going to try another driver and see if there is a difference.

One of the knocks beforehand was it would not pick up the ball- I haven't found that to be the case- Other than 2 balls that were hit so bad (pulled and topped) it has picked up every shot.

It does have some limitations - But I knew those going in - Limited data outdoors- which I was OK with -

This has a microphone trigger when you strike the ball so, they have said fat shots aren't accurate - So I consider it OK thing that it promotes ball contact first -

My goal is game improvement - And it has shown me a few flaws in my swing - So far I am happy with the results.

I have not tried the wedge's yet-

I am looking into some of the Sim stuff with TGC 2019 which this is compatible with. That is looking more and more interesting.

 

 

[Luckydog31]

Would you buy it again?  I may order this tomorrow as they have a deal.  I’m a little concerned about using this as a teaching tool with the fat shot thing.  The wife is learning to play golf and I wanted to help a few others get into the sport.  There is just so little info out about this.  Any more info is appreciated.  

[Badshaft]

I'll put it like this - I don't regret my purchase at all - I'm up over a thousand balls now- and I consider it has given me a fair readings.

Let me address a few things -

- There is a new Youtube vid with a guy that unboxed it- Fresh and he gives it a fair shake In my opinion  - He posted in another sim forum and there are a few people that have issues, one of them is not being able to take a practice swing - The unit has a microphone trigger, so if you take a practice swing and hit the mat it activates the unit and throws the unit off-

I don't have an issue because my practice swing is hitting the ball...I don't take a practice swing before I strike the ball - I practice with a ball- That is why I bought the thing

 

The fat shot using the Launch monitor- It is not an issue for me because I discount that data anyway  - When you hit a fat shot on a mat it is a false positive - Fat shots on a mat - ricochets your club head into the ball and gets a better result than on real grass- If you are on a course and hit a fat shot there is no telling what will happen- it could just go a few feet depending on how bad it is - I only put real value into my good shots - I don't put value into fat shots - The unit promotes ball first contact as the golfer should also.

There is data when you hit a fat shot- The fatter you hit the worse the data - The closer you get good contact the better the data - It seems pretty close to what I see on the course-

 

The only issue I am having is using Driver/3 Wood- The unit read the my swing/ball data - But the data seems less than what I see on the course-By several yds- driver especially- But I really haven't had time to call and look into it either - So to be fair it could be something I'm doing or my set-up.

 

I have not tried the wedge play chipping features- No help there-

 

It has really helped my game tremendously  and I am working on getting a shoestring simulator w TGC 2019 put together. So it has got me motivated to add on to what I have and it does not cost $10k-20K for the Launch Monitor-

 

[Luckydog31]

Thanks for the info.,  it’s just a little concerning how few reviews there are out there on it. I feel the Skytrak may give better data on fat shots but I feel club path and face angle make up for that.  

[Badshaft]

I can't give any comparisons to other launch monitors - But it seems like I get good data for fat shots-

But really not sure what good data should be for a fat shot, a shot hit fat is a mis-hit...??

Skytrak has a lot of info out there-

 

There is a new Youtube with the same guy comparing driver with a Uneekor unit that cost $10k. 

[hammersia]

Blimey their range of products is confusing. It’s another really interesting launch monitor option, but looking at their website if this is the “tour” option what is their “ES 20/20 perfect vision” product? That one doesn’t even seem to have a price on it.

Anyway I will check out some review videos lol.

[autronicdsm]

Anyone else got one and can share some feedback? Seems like hardware is pretty good (radar + camera) on paper at least, but not a lot of info on these forums.