Golf Guru

[pjccjp]

Great comment by Darryl of Golf Guru. As a proud owner of my Guru. I have had the color unit for several weeks now and all I can say is it's great. I have to attest to the fact that their customer support is excellent. I ordered on a Monday, Wednesday I noticed on their site one of the 27 hole courses I play was not available for download. I contacted tech support and requested the 27 holes to be mapped. Friday afternoon I received my unit and Friday night received an email from Guru support letting me know the course is available for download. Now that is great customer service. Wonderful unit and the color is crisp...

 

cheers,

 

How are the tracking stats on the unit? Their website is very sparse when it comes to information about this. There is one small picture in their brochure area, but that is it. Does it track a number of stats, or just what is pictured on their website? Thanks

 

Right now, they are pretty basic, score, FIR yes or no, GIR yes or no, # of putts. Based on the xml files that are created it looks like there might be plans to capture much more but I am only speculating.

 

 

Thanks - I would really like to buy this unit, but stats would be a major factor in my decision, and others are ahead of them on this. I wonder if anyone knows what their timing is on enhancements. I emailed them a question on this late yesterday but have not heard anything back yet.

[JayManMtl]

Very interesting discussion.

 

I'm in the market of buying a unit and was able to get lots of information here... the Guru usually receiving good reviews.

 

My problems are, living in Montreal, that a grand total of 11 courses are mapped in Quebec - none of the 20 or so venues that I go to regularly... and also, I don't seem to be able to find one unit here, I would love to play with and test one before buying (thus, not looking to buy one online before knowing if it's helpful to me).

 

Mr. Cornish, are there plans, in the near future, to expand to Canada - and more precisely to Quebec (mapping and distribution wise)?

 

Regards.

[307golf]

Gee, where'd Buff go???:)

[phil75070]

Very interesting discussion.

 

I'm in the market of buying a unit and was able to get lots of information here... the Guru usually receiving good reviews.

 

My problems are, living in Montreal, that a grand total of 11 courses are mapped in Quebec - none of the 20 or so venues that I go to regularly... and also, I don't seem to be able to find one unit here, I would love to play with and test one before buying (thus, not looking to buy one online before knowing if it's helpful to me).

 

Mr. Cornish, are there plans, in the near future, to expand to Canada - and more precisely to Quebec (mapping and distribution wise)?

 

Regards.

 

I don't think Mr. Cornish typically monitors forums like this. Apparently, someone (not me, BTW) mentioned to him the misleading information that an individual was posting about his company and he chose to respond to that. So I am taking the liberty to make a couple of suggestions.

 

1) The do have a 30 day money back, total customer satisfaction guarantee that you could take advantage of to evaluate a unit.

 

2) With regard to courses, they are very responsive to mapping requests with the first request being done within about 7-10 calendar days (assuming the availability of aerial/satellite photos and other course information). They have also been similarly responsive to subsequent course map requests. You being in Montreal, you could probably have them map all ofthe courses you are interested in (within reason) by the next time you can play golf! :)

[dcornish]

Well, as everyone warned me, once you start with a forum, it is difficult to stop and it is definitely time consuming :-) . That said, it appears that it is a great way to hear from and communicate with our our current and prospective customers as well as our (very few) detractors, so I guess it will have to become a regular part of my weekly routine. I will also be posting everything I post here (with a link back to GolfWRX) along with other updates from GPS Golf Guru on the President's Blog on the GPS Golf Guru website. As Scott-C so eloquently pointed out, in the age of the internet, there is more than one way to skin the marketing cat ;-).

 

Now, to answer JayManMtl's question, the GPS Golf Guru team will be expanding our efforts in Canada dramatically in 2009. One of the problems that have had in Quebec is that the aerial imagery of many of the courses was of poor quality. We recently found a new source of imagery that should help address this. We are introducing several other new programs in the near future that will add significantly to the availability of courses in our course database. As an example, we have already signed up several Affiliates in Montreal, and we are working with them to address any courses that we still don't have aerial imagery for. We will continue to map courses with aerial imagery through the winter, and once the snow clears in spring, I think you will find that any Canadian courses that we can not address with aerial imagery will very quickly addressed by our Members and Member Affiliates.

 

The Guru was designed from the outset to be 1) easilly extensible and 2) accurate enough to map courses completely. This is both a result of, and an enabler for our customer driven continuous improvement efforts. We listen to our customer, we deliver what we think our customers want, we repeat the process......while we may not hit it exactly with the first shot, we are committed to continue the process until we get it exactly right.

 

Note that most of the competition do not have a SmartGreen function, or do not allow you to map the perimeter of the green, so you will not get this function unless the course is mapped by the device provider. As a business model, we at GPS Golf Guru believe that this is bad for both the company and the user. Courses make changes to the course layout all the time. As a user, when the course makes a change to a green or a hazard, do you want to wait for the company to send someone out to the course and update the map? You can download a course map from our database and then modify it to meet your needs. These and many other features in the GPS Golf Guru were customer driven.

 

The GPS Golf Guru software is designed to make it extremely easy for users to upgrade their software: just plug in your GPS Golf Guru, open the Guru Utility and it will ask you if you would like the update. We are committed to continuing to improve our software, our hardware and our web experience, and we make these improvements available as transparently and cost effectively as possible to our existing customers.

 

As Phil75070 rightly points out, there is no best gps golf device for every customer at this time. There may NEVER be a "best gps golf device" for all users because often the requirements of different users are conflicting. Phil75070 also points out that it took us a while to get the mapping software right, but we got there within about 4 months of releasing the first version to our beta testers. The update to this new software was released FREE OF CHARGE to all of existing GPS Golf Guru users.

 

While there may never be a "best gps golf device" for every golfer, the goal of the Team at GPS Golf Guru is to become the BEST GPS GOLF DEVICE PROVIDER for every golfer in the world, bar none. We understand that this will require disciplined adherence to the principal of customer driven continuous improvement and it will require multiple products. We believe that this is achievable, and everything we do is directed at that goal. We will make mistakes, but we trust that our customers will see that we will always correct those mistakes and, in spite of our missteps, we are committed to, and making progress toward, better meeting their needs.

 

As an example, we recently introduced a Color upgrade program to our Grayscale Guru users. While we could not afford to offer this free of charge, the program was a real hit with our existing customers, so much so that it used up most of our supply of color Guru's for several months. This definitely hurt our new sales and our margins, but we believe it was the right thing to do for our existing customers, and that is our first priority. If our existing customers are happy, then we feel it will be easier to find new customers and to eventually sell additional products and services to those existing customers.

 

Sorry for rambling on, but I hope this addresses JayManMtl's questions and concerns, and thanks JayMan for the interest in GPS Golf Guru.

 

Darryl Cornish

President, Assistant Pro Inc.

Maker of the GPS Golf Guru

[dcornish]

P.S. to JayManMtl,

 

I love the Sam Snead quote......now I finally understand what I am doing wrong ;-).

 

Darryl C.

[eruption]

Mr. Cornish,

 

I paid for the color upgrade option and have had great results with both units. I've ended up keeping both units. I usually loan the greyscale unit to partners. It take about 2 holes before the guys figure out the basic features.

 

I know of 3 players that I've loaned my extra unit to, that have ended up purchasing a Guru.

 

Anyway, it's a great unit and I'll be keeping both the greyscale and color unit.

 

Kevin Hamilton

Marietta, GA

[JayManMtl]

Now, to answer JayManMtl's question, the GPS Golf Guru team will be expanding our efforts in Canada dramatically in 2009. One of the problems that have had in Quebec is that the aerial imagery of many of the courses was of poor quality. We recently found a new source of imagery that should help address this. We are introducing several other new programs in the near future that will add significantly to the availability of courses in our course database. As an example, we have already signed up several Affiliates in Montreal, and we are working with them to address any courses that we still don't have aerial imagery for. We will continue to map courses with aerial imagery through the winter, and once the snow clears in spring, I think you will find that any Canadian courses that we can not address with aerial imagery will very quickly addressed by our Members and Member Affiliates.

 

Darryl Cornish

President, Assistant Pro Inc.

Maker of the GPS Golf Guru

 

Thank you very much for the quick answer. I can attest to the poor imagery quality in many of the Quebec areas (as I was trying to map completely my own course) - glad that your team found a new source to correct this. I will make sure to check back on your website before committing to a unit, all I can say right now is that 'pre-customer' service is top notch!

[Dave Player]

All,

 

Thanks for the great information in this forum, especially this thread and that other Mother-Of-All-Golf-GPS threads (entitled "GPS Golf Guru - Any thoughts on this?"). My Sky Caddie 2 subscription ran out late this summer and I've been debating whether to renew or buy a new one so I read this forum with great interest. I especially enjoyed the detailed analysis, comparisons, and criticisms by Phil7570. I'm grateful that you have the time and resources to buy every GPS unit on the market and that you're willing to share your experiences with the rest of us, Phil!

 

I ordered my color Golf Guru last night and can't wait to get it. I chose the Guru for all of the reasons, features and "Pros" highlighted about the Guru in this forum, especially the ability to customize course targets, the score-keeping and stats features with its link to a USGA handicap site, and the customer service reputation that the company has earned. As Phil has pointed out so well, there is not a single perfect GPS that fits everyone, but as a tech gadget geek and someone who appreciates quality and value, from what I've gathered from these forums the Golf Guru will suit me perfectly.

 

I must say though, what really tipped the scales for me were the comments made in this forum by Darryl Cornish, the president of GG. I really appreciate his direct approach and the customer-centric and continuous-improvement philosophies upon which he runs his business. I think it's safe to say that his company is here to stay for a while. Incidentally, I completely enjoyed the calm and thorough verbal smack-down he gave to the bloviater who posted the kind of unfounded and inflamatory claims that have no place in any intelligent discussion, debate, or forum - please, there's enough empty-headed drama in the world!

 

I'll be posting my impressions of my new Golf Guru as soon as we get some decent weather here.

 

Carpe Diem!

 

Dave Player

**********************************

Index: 6

Taylormade R7 Superquad

Mizuno F-60

Ping G5 hybrid 21 deg

Mizuno MP-57 4-P w/ Rifle X-factor 5.5

Cleveland CG-14 wedges (51, 56, & 60 deg)

Odyssey Sabertooth

GOLF GURU COLOR!

**********************************

[don golferinpa]

Addressing those considering purchasing a gps. I purchased the guru last September, and here is my critique about this device:

 

It has never failed to receive a gps signal. I've played 15 rounds with it, each at different courses, the signals were even received inside the clubhouse.

 

there were a few flaws in the program pertaining to adding targets(bunkers, hazards, markers, etc) to downloaded courses. I was unable to save them. This was fixed within 2 weeks, and now works flawlessly.

 

The yardages were accurate to the greens within a yard or 2.

 

When I started they had 70% of the 40 plus courses I desired. I requested 1 or 2 a week, and even asked them to remapped some courses that didn't have any midrange targets, and all of my courses are now mapped. I could have mapped some myself, but I play different courses each week, and might only play a course 3 times a year. All of my map requests, I'd estimate about 12 were done within a reasonable amount of time, except for 2 course, where the satillite images were poor. They were eventually done.

 

Their maps that I requested were extremely thorough. More targets that needed per hole. Par 3's only have greens. Some of the stock maps contained minimal targets.

 

2 mapped courses I discovered while playing had the adjacent holes tees as the green, so you had about 50 yards on a par 4 to each. I contacted them, and they fixed them within a week.

 

I enjoy the fact I can move the pin on the green and obtain the distance. This is very helpful on courses that have large greens. Some courses provide a pin location sheet, so you can move your pin without looking at the green.

Also, the screen shows the green relative to your location, so once you mark the pin location on the screen, if your ball is in a valley or below a hill, that obstructs your vision, you can go to your ball and the cursor shows line to the green. Now the gps assumes you are facing the green, so you have to measure this.

 

Their customer service is superb. Never worked or seen a better customer service team. Amanda is the ideal customer service rep-concerned, honest, responsive, knowledgeable, and friendly. Darryl is a very customer-oriented, amenable executive, who enjoys talking to people.

 

The gps holds 40 courses. 20 are downloaded, and 20 are mapped. you can save some of the downloaded to self-mapped, which changes the course surname to "My course name", but you don't necessarily have to add targets for these courses.

 

I own the greyscale model, and it works fine in bright sunlight or cloudy and early evening.

 

When I was having problems, I spoke with Darryl for over an hour, and I was very impressed with his committment to excellence of his company's product and service, as well as his understanding and willingness to please his customers.

They treat their customers like favorite relatives.

I had a defective course, that couldn't be deleted, so they offered and swapped another guru at their expense.

 

My critical concerns of the product:

1. the screen is at the bottom. This can be cumbersome and annoying. Used to screens at the top with other handheld devices, and sometimes your thumb blocks the screen while pressing keys. The lower screen reason, according to Darryl, was to separate the gps receiver from the screen and keep it at the top of unit to enhance signal strength. Darryl indicated that even at the bottom, the signal is still strong. They will be testing flipping the existing guru screens in the spring. I can't wait until this becomes effective.

 

2. marking shot distances from the fairway. this might be a combination of me and the procedure. You have to select your club, knowing your distance before marking your drive's final distance. My tendancy is to mark the drive then, the next screen asks for the club selection without showing distance. You have to back out again, re-save your tee shot, and then re-select your next club, which is redundant, distracting, and deters from playing and concentrating on your next shot. I'll suggest a fix and see if this can be changed, so the distance continues to appear after you mark your drive distance, and are asked to enter the club selection.

 

Obviously, neither of these concerns are serious deterrents from utilizing the guru's functions to enhance your game.

I believe it has saved me countless wrong club decisions, whereas I'm on the dance floor, putting rather than chipping and hoping to one putt to save par. Also it has opened my eyes on my true striking distance, especially for iron shots. Marking shots and distance confirms or denies a course's yard markage as accurate.

 

Incidentally, the guru can even give you a relative distance on putts, if you can manipulate the pin properly. On non-green targets, once you are within 50 yds of a target, that target disappears from your screen list of targets.

 

I purchased a blackberry case to house the guru, that I clip to my front belt, and it isn't intrusive, receives a strong signal, and is safer than strapped to the bag.

 

I've played 2 full rounds without charging, and have left it in the garage in sub freezing weather between rounds, however, I prefer not to take a chance on a third round. Why should I when it charges within an hour.

 

Overall, I can't imagine a better gps unit for the money.

[Golf238]

Happy New Year My Dear Golfing Friends,

 

Having been blessed this Christmas with the color Guru and not wanting to seem like a fool with it the first time on the course figuring it out, and with the ability to build your own course, I have built a test course in my neighborhood. Just set up a couple of holes walking down the street and build a few test targets. Then I testing the modifying course mode and the marking mode, now I feel better about taking it to the course the first time without feeling like a newbie. I even get a single from inside my house and know how far the mailbox is from the kitchen, for whatever that is worth.

 

Not for sure about the other GPS devices but from all I read (Side Note: this form was great to help me make a smart decision) the Guru is the best and will only get better with time.

 

Thanks again for all your input and may you all have fine golfing in 2009.

[Pilk]

My mommy bought me a Golf Buddy from BB for Christmas (I'm 49 :rolleyes: ) which is something I thought about getting for myself. I looked it over and, as always, had to do my own research. I'm glad I did. I came across the Golf Guru (color) on this sight. I returned the Golf Buddy and picked this unit up. I loaded all my local courses in a matter of 10 minutes from loading the software from the website to checking out my local course. I now know my living room is 245 yards to #13 green. :D :D . I'm impressed by the intuitive controls although some little things confused me at first. But with a little effort things became very quick and easy. Haven't had it on the course but my boys are already eyeballin' it...as usual. Anyway, I appreciate the reviews and the contribution of the company head. I've always enjoyed those companies that take the high road.

[Old Lefty]

Bought the Guru when I lost my Sky Caddie3.5 and I have to tell you, couldn't be more pleased. Accuracy is excellant. I play in different states around the country and each time I have requested a course to be mapped it took less than 72 hrs. Worth the money I like the idea of charging from the PC, also the ability to keep score and track GIR / DIR is a real plus. You shouldn't knock something until you try it. . .

[Stern100]

My bud just got a Guru. Is there a way to just use the mark feature without setting club and location?

 

We haven't been able to play since he got it, we're waiting for it to get up to 30 or more degrees here in the east.

[bunks10]

I've been reading various posts regarding the Golf Guru. I'm the person that is not interested in going out and editing or mapping courses. I want a unit that when you turn it on it shows the course your at, automatically proceeds to the next hole and has all the basic to/carry hazard distances preloaded. I've noticed in earlier posts that there were many problems with courses not having hazard distances...only front, middle, back green distances. This unit may not be for me as I typically go to Myrtle beach each year and play courses never played or played only once. I will not know until I get to that course whether the appropriate hazards are entered for that particular course. So, I guess my question is whether the Golf Guru company has updated all their courses in their database to include necessary hazard distances?? I currently own the older version of the Golflogix (which so far has given necessary hazard distances on any downloaded courses) and am looking to get the 08 model or maybe the Golf Guru.

[kmdmb]

Mine had hazards marked well on the Florida courses we played. I would think that would apply to all courses.

[golfgame]

My bud just got a Guru. Is there a way to just use the mark feature without setting club and location?

 

We haven't been able to play since he got it, we're waiting for it to get up to 30 or more degrees here in the east.

I saw your post and was curious about that also so I posed that question to support. this is their answer.

 

The club and lie table will come up when you press the mark button, but you do not have to select either. You can just press the mark button again to start the mark. You can always go back later and add a club and lie if you wanted to do so at a later time. This can be done by selecting menu and then edit marks.

[Ladygolfer1967]

If you want a comparsion of how each unit works refer to the January 2009 issue of Golf Digest. They have rated each of the GPS units out there and the SkyCaddie was the only unit to recieve a "Gold Star Rating".

[jwknow]

If you want a comparsion of how each unit works refer to the January 2009 issue of Golf Digest. They have rated each of the GPS units out there and the SkyCaddie was the only unit to recieve a "Gold Star Rating".

 

I looked on the Golf Digest website and they didn't list the Golf Guru. Looks like they didn't evaluate it. Did they rate/evaluate it in the magazine?

 

JW

[mgags]

I looked on the Golf Digest website and they didn't list the Golf Guru. Looks like they didn't evaluate it. Did they rate/evaluate it in the magazine?

 

JW

 

 

No I do not believe they did. When researching GPS units I would not even consider using that article as good research. They did not compare all options for GPS units and it was a very 'bland' comparision.

 

You can get much better info (whether it be Golf Guru, Skycaddie, etc) here on the boards and elsewhere on the net.

[kmdmb]

Magazine reviews are directly related to how much advertising income each company generates. Forums are the place to get true info.

[cristphoto]

"I hope that this addresses Mr. Brad Buff's concerns and those of any current or future Guru Users who read this forum. As I mentioned earlier, anyone that would like clarification on any of these or other questions or concerns is free to call GPS Golf Guru sales for customer support. We do answer the phone, and yes, I may even answer it myself ;-)."

I appreciate the candor and info you shared. I'm retired, work part time at a golf course (died and gone to Heaven), and play golf at many different courses with my friends. I thought a GPS was just what I needed and purchased one. I had a SkyCaddie 2.5 and ended up getting rid of the unit. The problem was one of my friends purchased the same unit. When we would ride in the cart both units would give different readings (often 10-15 yards difference). We upgraded the firmware but the issue was still there. He sent his unit back to SkyCaddie and they said it was fine. I just lost trust in the unit. I then sold mine and purchased a Callaway/Nikon 550 laser unit that works fine and is highly accurate - I just leave it in my bag always ready for action. I do however miss the convenience of a GPS. After reading your fair reply on this forum I plan on ordering a Golf Guru on Monday. As an ex-businessman, I like your style and hope your company survives this economic slump.

[cristphoto]

"Magazine reviews are directly related to how much advertising income each company generates. Forums are the place to get true info."

Amen to that. I read that report and it was basically just a re-hash of each companies ads. They didn't give any meaningfull measurements. The statement "The best device measured the yardage to within three yards 90 percent of the time" is about useless. The article didn't state which unit that was or state what the worst unit measured. I guess they didn't want to offend the advertisers.

[Bterry]

Well, you all have sold another. I received my new color golf guru unit today. I'll be trying it out in Florida 1st week of March. I was leaning toward the skycaddie, but Darryl sold me.

[mgags]

I just got my reburbed unit in the mail today!! I'm hoping to take it out this wkend. If I do, I'll review it afterwards.

[romang]

I bought the Golf Guru after my Skycaddie SG4 quit working about a month ago. I really like the GG and have not had any problems so far.

[Slappy McDuff]

I wanted to add that, as a newb here, hello all, I appreciate all the info that I got from this thread. I pulled the trigger on a color Guru and from all the positive comments here, feel good about the purchase. Thanks!

[romang]

I really like their customer support. I went and played a course this Sunday and found that the Golf Guru had not updated some recent changes

to the course so it was showing yardages to the old green locations on 2 holes. I contacted them Monday and by this afternoon, they had gone

and updated not only the 2 holes but said that they had added more targets. How great is that?

[Pery's M]

Looks like the Introductory price for the color golf guru is no longer available anymore. I also noticed that the spring clip holster cost more as well? I'm wondering if they changed the spring clip holster to fit the color gg better? Has anybody bought one of these for their color gg? Is it still slightly snug because the holster was from the greyscale? Does anybody have any better pics or model number of the holster they are willing to share?

[JMG_02]

If anyone is interested, I have a black/white golf guru in great shape that i'm willing to sell. It already has a scratch proof protective film on the screen, a carrying holster, charging cable, and car charger adapter.

 

PM me if interested.