App Review: Golfshot

Played my first 18 in over two weeks (the clubs didn't fit in the car on the family holiday), and put the free version of the Golfshot scoring and GPS app to work over my home course. What a great little app! Granted, I only scratched the surface of its functionality — accessing hole yardage and inputting my score and putts hole-by-hole — but my first impression of it was really good.

The iOS version of the app pairs well with the Apple Watch ... in fact, I don't think I touched my actual phone during the entire round except to field a text message or two. While playing a round, the Apple Watch displays your real-time yardage to the front, centre and back of the current green. Upon completion of each hole, simply swipe right on the face of the Watch to record score and putts, and advance to the next hole. Super handy. At the end of the round, the iPhone interface allows you to add advanced stats to your scorecard, send an email of your scorecard to yourself, and even post your score to the Golf Handicap Index Network.

The app was great, and I look forward to exploring it more in future rounds! On the other hand, my round today at Garrisons Lake wasn't so great ...

I struggled mightily with ball striking, especially early in the round and especially with anything longer than 7-iron. OK, I was downright abysmal off the tee (only four fairways, and average driver was only 150 yards with a wide dispersion). From what I could surmise, it was probably due to inconsistent stance and alignment in the early go. That, paired with some poor greenside play caused my score to balloon early (gross +9 through five), but I was able to think my way through the back nine effectively enough to stop the bleeding. Thankfully, my putting was better than average, so we got out with a 94.

We'll try again Monday.

Round Summary

Gross Score: 49-45—94 (net +5)

Pars: 4
Bogeys: 6
Doubles: 8

Fairways: 4/14
Greens: 2/18
Net Greens: 7/18

Putts: 30
Strokes Gained Putting: 4.36
Total Holed Putts: 64 feet
Longest Made Putt: 10 feet (I did make a 20-footer from the fringe on #14, but that doesn't count!)
Shortest Missed Putt: 6 feet

Match vs. Course Handicap: lost, 4 and 3 (1-3-0)

Differential: 25.4

Pending Handicap Index: 20.5 (no change)

Distance Walked: 5.8 miles (~12,600 steps)
Time: 3 hours, 1 minute
Maximum Heart Rate: 154 bpm

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