Many professionals improve their game by analysing shot data on course to get an honest view of where things need work. There are plenty of Apps and gadgets that can provide essential data for amateurs, it might not be to the same level as the PGA TOUR’s Shotlink system, but enough to see roughly what is going on with. In this issue we look at the latest Shot Scope V3, the GPS watch with dynamic yardages and statistic platform for just $195 RRP.
It’s the slimmed down version of their V2 which was great at providing distances and tracking shots, but it was a little on the bulky side.
The V3 benefits
At just 10mm thick and 60% smaller than the V2 the new compact design is more like a compact smart watch. The rubber strap and buckle does not dig or rub when playing, neither does it slide and you can easily forget you are wearing it!
GPS Setting up
First you need to download the App and select the course you are playing. Thankfully there are 36,000 courses on the system , so you would be pretty unfortunate to find one not on the list, especially in the UAE. Be patient for the course to load.
The yardages are accurate and easy to read but the V2 provides the distance to both the front and back of both greens and hazards. This is an excellent feature, as range finders just give you an single number. Knowing what number you need to lay up to or clear is a huge bonus. Equally some greens in the UAE can play two clubs different depending on the pin position. So the same calculation can be applied to approach shots.
Shot tracking feature
The V2 comes with 16 plugs to screw into the top of the grip on each of your club. Each plug is individually etched so you can align it to the correct club. The fitting is a little awkward depending on the grip but pairing each club to the App is straight forward.
On course tracking
Once you have selected the course all you need to remember is to hit PinCollect as you pick the ball out of each hole, as this is how you record the pin position for each hole. It then tracks all your shots, scores and data with each club used during the round.
Data
You can go crazy analysing every aspect of your game after each round and just see where things need some improvement. It’s best to play a number of rounds to get series of averages to work on. I found it interesting to see that out of all the fairways I missed 83% were lost left. I also made par more from 150-120 yards than I managed from 120 and 50!
Verdict
At the price of just $195 this is a great piece of kit and simple to use. It’s just a quick effective guide and though the yardages are probably not as pin point accurate as the leading range finders it’s certainly good enough for me. The key feature is the distance in regards to the front and back of fairway bunkers. It sometimes fails to pick up on every shot, so don’t rely on it for a scorecard. So make sure that pencil is in the bag!
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