skycaddie

[dannyo]

Is anyone out there using the SkyCaddie I see constantly be advertised on The Golf Channel?

I'm thinking about buying one but, would like to hear from someone already using one.

[mpkelley20]

I played last weekend with a guy who had one. I use a Nikon 500G rangefinder so we had a fun time compring results. What we learned is that the laser rangefinder was much better at getting exact yardages on our course becuse Skycaddie has not been istalled using the full features. He was only able to get distances to front, middle and back of the greens. With my rangefinder, we were able to map out any carry distances over water, bunkers, etc..

However, if the courses you play subscribe to the full Skycaddie mapping service and you download the course info from the skycaddie subscription site, it provides much more data similar to what I have to do manually each time with my rangefinder. It would save you time (but not money).

You should check out the Skycaddie website and see if any of your courses offer the service and at what level (basic, premium).

Eventually, I think most courses will subcribe (it will take years) and the equipment you can buy will be of better quality than the model out now. The current Skycaddie feels very cheap and I'd be afraid of breaking it.

[Montagle]

I use skycaddy and have found it to be more useful, tolerable, and just a whole lot more fun to be arounbd than the real caddy I hired recently at Bethpage. Wish he had some batteries I could have just removed. What a weird little person he was.

[Eric in NOVA]

I use my Skycaddie everywhere....if for no other reason than to measure the length of my shots. Its big advantage over a laser-rangefinder is that you don't have to see the green to know your yardage. If you shank a ball onto another fairway and your sight to the green is obstructed, Skycaddie will still tell you how far to the middle of the green. It's not a flimsy piece of equipment at all....it's pretty durable.

[mpkelley20]

I use my Skycaddie everywhere....if for no other reason than to measure the length of my shots. Its big advantage over a laser-rangefinder is that you don't have to see the green to know your yardage. If you shank a ball onto another fairway and your sight to the green is obstructed, Skycaddie will still tell you how far to the middle of the green. It's not a flimsy piece of equipment at all....it's pretty durable.

Very good points above. I guess since we can see the green on all of our shots it didn't come up but I can see the advantage of the Skycaddie in that type of situation when you can't see the green. It's good to hear that is is durable considering the price. My observation was from just trying it ot on a few holes and can't comment on the durability factor of it getting banged around a bit.. The guy I played with has had zero problems with it since he got it so that is good news.

I will probably pick one of these up later on when more courses in my area use it. Right now, there are so few courses that it would just collect dust as I don't have the patience to program it myself for every course I play.

[ezra76]

How do these things work? Do you have to play the course with it first and plot reference points for it on the green? I am thinking of getting either the GPS for my palm pilot or one of those. Will it take elevation changes into account too?

[thewanderer]

If your setting up a course that isn't in the system you take readings from the front, middle and back of the green. The SkyGolf2 doesn't take elevation into consideration.

On a separate note I've had my unit for about nine months now and I seem to be having a problem with the battery. Won't hold a charge. Go three holes and shuts off. I turn it back on and it goes off after two more holes. This is after being on the charger for several days. When I emailed customer support they suggested it could be better addressed if I called. After spending 35 minutes on hold today the system came back and said to leave a number and they would return the call. No call yet. I'm very suspect about the customer service part of their product.

[sidneysides]

Is there anything like this that you can install onto a Pocket PC with GPS?

[ender]

Has anyone had a problem with registering their skycaddie? I keep geting an error code. I've emailed support but nothing yet. Frustrating that i can't use my christmas present.

[Brock]

I got an SG3 for Christmas and have had no issues.... I even submitted a local course that already has GPS installed on every cart from a different company....and here it is 3 weeks later and they posted a fully mapped course that included all hazards, sprinkler heads, front-back-center of green, layup targets, obstacles, etc

I got mine a couple weeks before XMas and have found that if your local course is not mapped then they have an easy submission form to get it mapped.....and in meantime you can use the self-map options or those from others that have self-mapped and only covered the green.

I am always checking accuracy and with good satellite coverage it is right on the money if standing on a sprinkler head that says 192 and having SG3 say 192 is good...LOL

I have a buddy with laser rangefinder and he loves it..... I like the option most on skycaddie to show me hazards I might not see myself looking off tee on new courses.....and telling me a target in fairway to lay up on and how long a shot will be left afterward. The layup stuff is cool...


UPDATE: Rain and overcast all day nonstop...played SHADOW MOSS GC. Skycaddie performed flawlessly with full satellite coverage and all the hazards, layups, greens, etc were marked beautifully by SkyGolf for my use. Saved my ass a couple times when I was going to hit long off tee and saw that a ditch or water ran across fairway about where I usually carry so went to a 4i and dropped it in short...or when trying to clear a bunker knowing exactly how far I needed to carry a bunker. Rain, heavy clouds, fog, me dropping it on pavement....worked flawlessly. Well worth the money today...

[neverman]

Except you can get any one of several other devices and not have to pay for Natalie Gulbis, Butch Harmon and Peter Jacobson retirement plans. I get the same data, unlimited courses for free (for life) and great service. Every course I had to ask for was mapped within 2weeks and I got a call back from service letting me know my courses were updated and if I needed anything else!!!

No, I wasn't called by Natalie.

[poe4soul]

Which device are you using?

[neverman]

Golfbuddy+

Can be bought at many Golf Courses. Mine sold me one for a steep discount. I think I paid $259 for the best model they make and they threw in a round of Golf and 10 range tokens. Golfbuddys' web site is hard to find but I've linked it before.

Hell let me try again, http://www.golfbuddyusa.com/en/main/

[Brock]

not bashing it....just guys complaining about a $20 subscription fee to download new courses as reason they went for a different model...but we will spend that much on a box of balls or more...LOL. Not to mention how many guys I have seen with more than two complete sets of clubs....or buy new drivers every 6 months...or new wedges ever 2 months or on their fourth Scotty Cameron putter. LOL One of the most expensive sports out there per person and quibbling over the difference in downloading courses mapped by reviewing overhead imagery for FREE versus paying someone 20 bucks a year to mapp them with surveying equipment. hhahahahahaha

I would like to have three of them on a course together to compare....if anyone in my area has one other than the SkyCaddie and wants to play a round and compare them and then do some notes for others to review later...just let me know. Side by side comparison on accuracy, ease of use, menus, buttons, screen display, information displayed, types of items marked, etc......by someone that does not get anything from magazine, golf club company or the manufacturers.

Most important thing is for you to be happy with what you paid for....as I am sure they are all about 80% the same...it is the small differences in price, name, display, course mapping, etc that causes us to buy one over the other. Good Luck

[lorenzoinoc]

I've held back on the Sky Caddie discussion but I might as well pass along my experience. I had the original purchased around two years ago. I like the concept and green layout mode, but accuracy was a problem. The readings were usually off several yards, but occasionally 5-10. Others I ran into who had the unit had different experiences. Some seemed to get accurate units, others had my experience. New versions of software didn't fix the problem. The newer units may have eliminated the problem for all I know, but I moved to a laser and am alot happier. If you have a S. Caddie, you might check the distances if you haven't already. If the current versions are laser accurate now, I'd consider buying one for the green layout mode and target/hazard capabilities which are great.

[neverman]

It's not only the subscription...... it's the initial outlay of moola that's penal. Find a new SG-4 or better for less than $300. My unit has intelligreen and hazards etc. The only thing it doesn't have is sprinklers... I can't imagine why I'd want sprinklers as I verif my accurracy at tee boxes or yardage plates.

SkyCaddies win by marketing, good for them... bad for us (Golfers).

[poe4soul]

Uncorrected navigational gps units are only accurate to < 3 meters if you are receiving the WAAS correction.
Here is an explanation of WAAS. http://www8.garmin.com/aboutGPS/waas.html

If you are not receiving WAAS it more likely that your are +/- 10 meters. The only way a gps system can work for golf is with the WAAS correction or if the system allowed for the course to broadcast a correction. It would not surprise me it the units on golf carts are using a corrected position broadcast from the golf course but this is not the case with sky caddie type systems since they allow the individual to map greens and hazards. For this reason I've gone back and forth between purchasing a range finder or the GPS. I wish the GPS units gave a positional accuracy so at least you knew when the device was not receiving a WAAS satellite.

[lorenzoinoc]

Uncorrected navigational gps units are only accurate to < 3 meters if you are receiving the WAAS correction.
Here is an explanation of WAAS. http://www8.garmin.com/aboutGPS/waas.html

If you are not receiving WAAS it more likely that your are +/- 10 meters. The only way a gps system can work for golf is with the WAAS correction or if the system allowed for the course to broadcast a correction. It would not surprise me it the units on golf carts are using a corrected position broadcast from the golf course but this is not the case with sky caddie type systems since they allow the individual to map greens and hazards. For this reason I've gone back and forth between purchasing a range finder or the GPS. I wish the GPS units gave a positional accuracy so at least you knew when the device was not receiving a WAAS satellite.

Well there you go. I like having accuracy to the yard.

[dorkman53]

Well there you go. I like having accuracy to the yard.

Agreed. Whereas a laser rangefinder doesn't get the distance to the start of bunkers and hazards like a GPS unit, I am accurate with my Nikon 500 to within a yard for flagstick location and the far end of bunkers, and that's more accurate than I am......

[lorenzoinoc]

The only thing it doesn't have is sprinklers... I can't imagine why I'd want sprinklers as I verif my accurracy at tee boxes or yardage plates.

I wouldn't want sprinklers. I'd have to wear my rain gear when near the unit.

[neverman]

They kind of give an idea of how accurate they'll be (regardless the type of satellite) by how many satellites they currently are locked onto. For instance if I'm receiving 6-7 satellites for a current position (triangulation) I'm pretty certain of the accuracy on my reading for that instant.

Again, good for blind shots, hazards where a Nikon won't help, forced carries etc. You can even enter the yardage to a favorite tree. Awesome for walking off shot distances. I OFTEN walk off what my 7iron etc. flew. INVALUABLE GOLF TOY!!! Everyone I know with one never goes without again.

They all pretty much use the same engine, get one that's water-proof rechargeable or not depending on your preference and by price or form factor (the SG's are nicer for display size and button tacticity). Made up word? So what.

I have never had a problem reading my 3 distances on mine. They are always present and legible.

[lorenzoinoc]

They kind of give an idea of how accurate they'll be (regardless the type of satellite) by how many satellites they currently are locked onto. For instance if I'm receiving 6-7 satellites for a current position (triangulation) I'm pretty certain of the accuracy on my reading for that instant.

Again, good for blind shots, hazards where a Nikon won't help, forced carries etc. You can even enter the yardage to a favorite tree. Awesome for walking off shot distances. I OFTEN walk off what my 7iron etc. flew. INVALUABLE GOLF TOY!!! Everyone I know with one never goes without again.

They all pretty much use the same engine, get one that's water-proof rechargeable or not depending on your preference and by price or form factor (the SG's are nicer for display size and button tacticity). Made up word? So what.

I have never had a problem reading my 3 distances on mine. They are always present and legible.

If you're ok with 3-10 meter error.

[neverman]

It's nowhere near that, I've used one extensively and I've only found one course where I questioned the yardage. People map their mountain biking rides to topographical maps with great accuracy as proven by trail overlays afterward.

Sure they may not guarantee accuracy for liability reasons or whatever but they're damn accurate most of the time in real use. I'd say within a yard or two and I'm damn fine with that.

[neverman]

Uncorrected navigational gps units are only accurate to < 3 meters if you are receiving the WAAS correction.
Here is an explanation of WAAS. http://www8.garmin.com/aboutGPS/waas.html

If you are not receiving WAAS it more likely that your are +/- 10 meters. The only way a gps system can work for golf is with the WAAS correction or if the system allowed for the course to broadcast a correction. It would not surprise me it the units on golf carts are using a corrected position broadcast from the golf course but this is not the case with sky caddie type systems since they allow the individual to map greens and hazards. For this reason I've gone back and forth between purchasing a range finder or the GPS. I wish the GPS units gave a positional accuracy so at least you knew when the device was not receiving a WAAS satellite.

Or if the course is mapped locally with the same system... sure it's a standard day with a certain level of ionospheric activity... but how much will that vary day to day?

What they're doing and talking about is the ability of a global system to locate where you are anywhere in the world. If you take those same systems plot (map) a local area, record the data and enter those cooridnates in a database the results wll be very dependable.

[lorenzoinoc]

It's nowhere near that, I've used one extensively and I've only found one course where I questioned the yardage. People map their mountain biking rides to topographical maps with great accuracy as proven by trail overlays afterward.

Sure they may not guarantee accuracy for liability reasons or whatever but they're damn accurate most of the time in real use. I'd say within a yard or two and I'm damn fine with that.

If the very people that sell the system acknowledge 3-10 meters error, you can be assured it's at least that. And my experience concurrs.

[neverman]

Sure, at worst. Anywhere in the world. My use has shown very accurate results most likely due to mapping the locations by hand. It's not like they blind drop you out of a helicopter in the middle of who knows whereand ask "where are you now?"

[dorkman53]

If the very people that sell the system acknowledge 3-10 meters error, you can be assured it's at least that. And my experience concurrs.

If a system is accurate within a yard or two, it will be "more accurate than I am" and suit my purposes completely. The laser systems fall into that category. If a reading is truly up to 8-10 yards wrong, that's about a club off, and would make me uncomfortable with club selection. I think I'll stick with my rangefinder for now.

[Brock]

I have used GPS for nearly 20 years.....and a lot indicates level of accuracy obtainable but now that the codes were released by Clinton era you can get them within a couple feet.

The trick is knowing that it takes a min of 2 but preferrable for 3 satellites to get a reading....the fewer the satellites viewable the worse the accuracy. If you get 4-6 birds visible then there is no reason your readings should not be within a foot or two at most if the course was professionally mapped. Also the items on the course are mapped and logged....the only thing the birds are doing is saying where YOU are in relation to those items identified during the mapping. If done accurately every sprinkler, marker, bunker, pond, tee is done and over....wont change unless course layout or dsign changes. The unknown factor is your position...and with 4 or more birds visible you can determine it much greater accuracy than your golf game would need no matter how much you might fluff your index

GPS are great tools when used properly...under proper conditions. I have routinelly stood on ydg markers on a course and had it dead on....also had it off by 5-10 yards but every time it was due to poor satellite coverage not the abilties of the unit.

So if we are going to talk about a 3-10m thresshold of 9-30 feet difference you also got to realize exactly what you are getting.

SG3 is possible for $275 so cost is no more than any other device really especially if you dont have to pay shipping....GOOD LUCK

[macmai]

You definitely want to get if (if you haven't already). This is the best golf toy I've ever purchased for myself. The time you save on getting yardage readings, and the confidence you gain on knowing you have an accurate yardage is priceless. Remember, that's not just yardages to the green, but to hazards and trouble. I played Wente Vineyards in CA for the first time (not an easy course mind you). With the SkyCaddie, I had course knowledge that I wouldn't have normally had as a first-time player. Shot a 91, which for me is a great score in general much less a difficult course played for the first time (straight off an airplain too! ). Anyway, if you have the dough, this is a definite "must have". Cheers and Happy New Year!

[SwingHarder]

I got a skycaddie as a wedding gift. Only had a couple chances to use it before the snow flew, but I have no complaints. The accuracy in my experience was always within a yard of the plates, as long as you waited a couple seconds for it to get a solid reading; don't expect accuracy while you're walking. Great for figuring out driving distance and distance over hazards.

[poe4soul]

This is a misconception. The distances will very depending on the number of satellites and their respective configuration. The satellites change about every 4 hours due to there orbits. Also remember the signal passes through more ionosphere the closer the satellite gets to the horizon. The ionosphere is also charged by solar activity. More activity as teh sun gets higher in the sky. (The best time to use gps is during the night but not so good for golfing.) In the survey gear they report the dilution of precision either expressed in position (PDOP) or in Geometry (GDOP). The PDOP and GDOP are similar but the PDOP takes into account time (clock) errors. The survey grade equipment will also report the RMS (root mean square) value. GPS calculations use matrix algebra and the final best solutions has error and is report as an RMS value which gives you a certainty of the values given. All GPS calculations use this method and should be available to the user but I'm sure this is a marketing call to not display accuracy and to keep the system simple to use.

I'm not sure how the companies are mapping the courses but I have hunch they are using GIS and aerial photos like google earth but with better data (paid for data). If they are using GPS they are probably using a survey grade GPS system. This would allow the mapper to get positions to within +/-5 cm's of world positions. If you use the sky caddie type system with the possible errors stated on each observation then the distance errors could be doubled but they might also be offset.

If you have good number of satellites and a WAAS satellite then your distance will be plenty fine for golf. But if your in a tight course or in a canyon especially with southerly obstructions then you might not be getting an accurate position.

In the survey industry GPS is jokingly referred as good positions sometimes.

[poe4soul]

You cannot get a position using GPS with less than 4 satellites. There are 4 unknowns x,y,z and time. On the 5th satellite you have one check for the position. Some systems will not display a position until the 5th satellite is received.

I personally think they are great tools for golf but I don't know if I want to bring any technology like this will me out on the course. Similar to leaving the cell phone in the car.

[neverman]

The best use for me is when I'm offline or take a different path to a green than MY fairway... Great to know those distances, for me and my buddies who I frequently give distances to after finding their ball.

[frankdmann]

I've had my SG3 since the beginning of October. Allow me to share a few thoughts about it:

1. Battery - I initially decided to purchase my SG3 after playing with several people that had SG2's and loved them. About half of the people I talked to that had the SG2's said that they had to send the unit back to sky golf to get the proprietary battery replaced. That was one of the factors that I considered when purchasing the SG3. It's the only unit that uses standard batteries (2 AA's).

I've found that a set of fresh Energizer's or Duracell's will last 2 rounds and about an hour on the range. A set of cheap batteries (Delco's or others) will last about 22 holes. I usually use a set of rechargeables, which will get me through a round, but will be exhausted at the end of it, and I have a backup pack of Energizers in my bag. The SG3 has a battery indicator that is very accurate in telling you how much juice you have left. I've found that once the "Low Battery" indicator goes off, you have about 9 holes left before it dies (with the regular Duracell batteries).

I'm not sure if Sky Golf has worked out their battery issues with the SG4 or not. The SG4 is pretty much identical to the SG3, save for the proprietary battery pack.

2. Accuracy - I live in Vegas, and I've found that my SG3 is very accurate (always sunny but mountains CAN block you view of satellites sometimes), though in Boulder City where you're surrounded by mountains, it can be as much as 7 yards off. Still, seven yards is 21 feet, which still leaves me on the green or on the fringe if I hit a decent shot (I'm a 25 handicap and pretty much aim for the center of the green on all shots over 70 yards).

I have found yardage markers on certain courses that are just plain off. This is usually because greens have been rebuilt (while yardage markers engraved on tee boxes haven't been touched).

Overall, I'm very pleased with the accuracy of the SG3. One thing that I never considered while playing is that even though I may be even with the 150 pole in the fairway, my distance is more than that when I'm laying in the rough because of the angle I have to the green. This is very useful to high handicapping hackers like me who find themselves in the rough 1/2 the time off the tee box.

3. Driving Ranges - On the ranges I practice, I've found that the SG3 gives me exact yardages to the poles. This helps a bunch since on my muni courses, the practice tees go back and forth constantly throughout the week and it's sometimes hard to tell exact yardage.

4. Shot distance - I've used the SG3 to calculate shot distance, and I keep a log of each shot I make on the course (which isn't as big of a pain as you might imagine). As an example, I thought that I hit my 3i hybrid about 185, but it turns out that I really hit it about 192, which is good to know. I also thought that I could push my 3w about 230, but found out that 220-225 is a more accurate distance. This was important to me because I when I found myself out about 215-220 on par 5's, I'd let up on the club. Now i can swing with confidence.

5. Targets - For some reason in Vegas, there are a lot of blind tee shots and blind holes. I don't know if it's just the lay of the land, or if group of designers got together to torture us, but it just seems that way (especially if you go to Mesquite). The SG3 shows you layup AND carry distances for the same hazard, direction of the hazard (L, R, or Center), etc. This helps soooo much in club selection, especially when you can't see the target.

Overall, I'm happy with my purchase, and I think it's helped me improve my game. (I was a 28 HC before I bought it). I've never had the opportunity to use a different GPS device or any of the high-tech range finders out there, so I can't give any useful comments on those. I imagine that everything has it's advantages/disadvantages, but I know that if you get a sky caddie, I'm sure you won't be disappointed.

[poe4soul]

Great review Frank. Welcome to GR!

Some of the distance might be off because they used to measure them with a distance wheel, or a tape, or a rope (if they didn't have the money for the other two) along the center of the fairway.

[The Purist]

I agree that was a nice review Frank.

I have a little different take on yardage finders. I think some people get a little too obsessed with knowing their exact yardages on the course, and with assigning exact yardages to their golf clubs. I may be more of a "feel" player, but the more "technical" I get on the golf course the worse I tend to play.

How many times have you been sitting exactly 150 out and thought "that seems further than 150", but you grab your 150 club anyway and end up short. I personally tend to play better when I allow my insticts to take over. I think your subconsciousness mind can calculate many more factors than just yardage when making a club selection. If you concentrate too much on yardage, you may not be taking into account other factors such as temperature, elevation, lie, wind, damp/dry, or how loose you are that day.

I read a book once that suggested playing a round of golf without looking at any yardage markers. I took the advice and I had one of my best distance control days. Try it.

[Horseballs]

I agree that was a nice review Frank.

I have a little different take on yardage finders. I think some people get a little too obsessed with knowing their exact yardages on the course, and with assigning exact yardages to their golf clubs. I may be more of a "feel" player, but the more "technical" I get on the golf course the worse I tend to play.

How many times have you been sitting exactly 150 out and thought "that seems further than 150", but you grab your 150 club anyway and end up short. I personally tend to play better when I allow my insticts to take over. I think your subconsciousness mind can calculate many more factors than just yardage when making a club selection. If you concentrate too much on yardage, you may not be taking into account other factors such as temperature, elevation, lie, wind, damp/dry, or how loose you are that day.

I read a book once that suggested playing a round of golf without looking at any yardage markers. I took the advice and I had one of my best distance control days. Try it.

You are truly The Purist. I agree to some extent. My home course has yardage on sprinklers plus plates at 100, 150, and 200. Unless my ball is right next to a sprinkler, I just guess the distance to the nearest plate and I'm usually within a yard or two. Feel all the way.

[neverman]

I'm pretty anal about my yardages. One advantage of the GPS systems is the distance to the front and back of the green. When a pin is up front it's awesome to know the yardage to start dancing. It also helps when coming in with a long iron which tends to release a bit more.

Well worth the price of admission compared to a around of Golf at a resort course.

My battery pack on the golfbuddy has lasted me all season since Fathers day. It's user replaceable and reasonably priced. One more reason to consider other options than Skycaddie. There are others such as igolf etc.

[frankdmann]

One advantage of the GPS systems is the distance to the front and back of the green. When a pin is up front it's awesome to know the yardage to start dancing. It also helps when coming in with a long iron which tends to release a bit more.

That's definitely the case. Don't know about your GPS, but the SG3 has a joystick that allows you to move a crosshairs-type target around the green shape, so you can *more* accurately see your distance to the pin.

Having front/back yardages on greens has really helped me out. Knowing that the center of the green is 150 away, but the back is 170, I can easily take out my 160 club out and be confident that I won't fly the green. I end up hitting more greens that way.

Of course, for you guys that AREN'T 25 handicappers like me, you can use the distances to aim for a shelf on the green, or aim for a point to leave yourself with an uphill put.

By the way, thanks for the welcomes, guys.

[neverman]

Yes, it's part of the intelligreen technology. I can move my pin position and I can get new readouts on those kidney shaped greens etc.

[Brock]

intelligreen and the layup from target are the two most used parts of it for me.....love it.

[Horseballs]

intelligreen and the layup from target are the two most used parts of it for me.....love it.

I could see the Skycaddies being good for layups. I hate when you hit a drive on a long par 5 and there is no yardage whatsoever on the sprinkler head. I know I'm not getting there in 2, but I'd like to know how far I've got to my favorite yardage (75-80 yards). There's a par 5 on a course I play that says "Not in your dreams". Hilarious, yet utterly unhelpful.

[Brock]

I was playing a course this week never been to.....long par 5 but you could cut the corner and save a stroke as you could see the fairway was open and wide all you had to do is clear two pine trees and a couple shorter oaks. my buddy is a good player and was going to go for it and I looked at skycaddie and it showed a water hazard running across right behind the turn and also a bunker on the inside of fairway right where he was going that were not visible from our view. I did not say anything and then hit my shot tight to corner but to left of the hazards...

he laughed and I told him it would be some **** if there were hazards there he got stuck in and lost all he thought he was gaining in bunker shot or drop from water hazard.

he turned corner and cussed me out as I laughed and told him he should have looked at skycaddie first......LOL I got my first par of day on that hole and he got his first bodey. LMMFAO

[mmdrake]

Wife got me one for bday last year.

Every round, every hole it is on.

May not use it every shot but the knowledge is there for distance.

Works really well for those 3/4 shots or edge shots to tight pins.

If your debating, buy this over the next driver or putter.
More saved shots.

[catman]

SG-5 questions:

rookie post: no flames please.

Prior to registering this morning I read through the entire thread, I think. I was looking for some information that I have not been successful in getting from SkyGolf. As noted, their support staff leaves a bit to be desired.

I recently purchased a SG-5 and am anxious to use it. ('am waiting on the snow to melt!)

Here are my questions, hopefully someone will be able to comment.

1) How many channel receiver is in it? All of my current and recent Garmin GPI have had 12-channel receivers and have had as many as 11 active satellites at one time - most often 7 to 9. Garmin says 3 satellites are needed for 2D positioning and 4 or more for 3D positioning. I believe that. Would SkyGolf have used less than 12 channels when the chips are so readily available? I hope not! Support took my e-mail address and promised they would get back to me with an answer to this. That was two weeks ago. No reply. Surprised?

2) Does anyone know what the mini-SD slot is for in the SG-5 behind the battery? Their support says there is no current support for it. I argue that they would not have spent the money to incorporate SD if they were not planning on using for anything. Just for grins, I ordered a mini-SD to put in and see what happens. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to store more than 10 courses?

Curious minds want to know.

[catman]

"Your SkyCaddie receives these signals simultaneously from as many as 12 satellites above the horizon to pinpoint your position."

Still looking for the answer to #2.

[lorenzoinoc]

"Your SkyCaddie receives these signals simultaneously from as many as 12 satellites above the horizon to pinpoint your position."

Still looking for the answer to #2.

According to a techo geek golf friend of mine, the sd slot is to enable SkyCaddie to spontaneously send a Skycaddie commercial to you at any moment while you're on the course. The good news is when that happens, Natalie Gulbis will be holding your unit and moving her lips.

[bjdrivers]

There's a par 5 on a course I play that says "Not in your dreams". Hilarious, yet utterly unhelpful.

I have one on my course that says "Only if you're Bubba Watson & Steve Elkington is nowhere in sight" I thought that was odd.

[catman]

lots of innuendo in there. :-)

[neverman]

10 courses is all a skycaddie holds at one time? That sucks. My little golfbuddy has over a 100 in it as of now and still has room. It's very nice to turn it on when we plan on playing a new track and see the course is already installed for me. It cme shipped that way and I don't pay a subscription EVER!!!!

[david_dicks]

Hey I actually know the answer to your question. The mini SD slot is there because Sky-Caddie doesn't make GPS units. They have a liscensing agreement for them. Ergo, the Sky-Caddie that you and I know and love is exactly the same chunk of hardware that you can buy in the camping and fishing sections of your local sporting goods store. Except some of those units ARE expandable, some are yellow or camo, and have different stuff programed into them.

Does that help?

[VictBrit]

I bought a Sky Caddie 2.5 recently, after reading a review on this golf cart website. Can't recommend it enough. My home course doesn;t have too many yardage markers inside 100 yds and the GPS is a godsend within this distance.

The only problem is that your playing partners will constantly be asking you for yardages.

[cotodad]

My first time on this bulletin board. I just have to vent at how disappointed I am in SkyCaddie. Their website is always down and their customer service is extremely disappointing. There is no explanation when the site is down. No one to call. No one to email. Annual fees are outrageous. Don't get international plan as most courses are not even on the damn thing. I am so upset that I bought their SG3. The next text is so that my review appears in Google Searches. "The SkyCaddie sucks." "Do not buy the SkyCaddie." "Review of SkyCaddie." "SkyCaddie opinion" "SkyCaddie Review" SG3 SG4 SG2 SG1. I have complained to this company for two years now and they had their chance to fix things for me.

[neverman]

Ok there big guy.... got it, not happy.

[Kiwi Player]

You are truly The Purist. I agree to some extent. My home course has yardage on sprinklers plus plates at 100, 150, and 200. Unless my ball is right next to a sprinkler, I just guess the distance to the nearest plate and I'm usually within a yard or two. Feel all the way.

This is a great thread that I must have missed (thanks for the link Neverman).

Here in NZ we work in meters and most courses have marker plates at 90, 135 & 180 which pretty much equates to 100, 150 & 200.

I have never used any kind of GPS system, except when sailing or hiking but definitely not on a golf course.

Like Horseballs I pretty much look where the nearest plate is and work out my distances from there but this weekend I am going to be playing 5 courses in three days Fri - Sun that will all have yardages/meterage on sprinkler heads all over the place. The guys I will be playing with tend to find the nearest sprinkler head and then pace out the distance to their ball to work out the EXACT yardage.

Oh brother, give me a break. As the Purist says, your subconscious mind can work out the distance and take in any additional variables such as wind, weather, how you're striking it that day etc.

For me personally the last thing I want to be doing on a golf course is fiddling around with an electronic gadget. I go on the golf course to get away from that sort of thing.

[neverman]

Oh brother, give me a break. As the Purist says, your subconscious mind can work out the distance and take in any additional variables such as wind, weather, how you're striking it that day etc.

For me personally the last thing I want to be doing on a golf course is fiddling around with an electronic gadget. I go on the golf course to get away from that sort of thing.

Not really much fiddling. My device is clipped to my speedcart, I glance at it to get my 3 numbers and plan my shot. I don't have to touch it at all. It's already on the right hole, displays the right info for that hole and keeps up with my walking pace just fine. I save the time most people use to locate a sprinkler head. They display meters or yards depending on what you set them up to do.

Instead of viewing it as a device, view it as a moving marker that's always pretty close to actually right. Let your subconscious deal with all those other demons that golfers always seem to have running around in their coconut.

[Kiwi Player]

Not really much fiddling. My device is clipped to my speedcart, I glance at it to get my 3 numbers and plan my shot. I don't have to touch it at all. It's already on the right hole, displays the right info for that hole and keeps up with my walking pace just fine. I save the time most people use to locate a sprinkler head. They display meters or yards depending on what you set them up to do.

Instead of viewing it as a device, view it as a moving marker that's always pretty close to actually right. Let your subconscious deal with all those other demons that golfers always seem to have running around in their coconut.

LOL fair enough!

The way you have described it makes it sound very handy.

[Kiwi Player]

Not really much fiddling. My device is clipped to my speedcart, I glance at it to get my 3 numbers and plan my shot. I don't have to touch it at all. It's already on the right hole, displays the right info for that hole and keeps up with my walking pace just fine. I save the time most people use to locate a sprinkler head. They display meters or yards depending on what you set them up to do.

Instead of viewing it as a device, view it as a moving marker that's always pretty close to actually right. Let your subconscious deal with all those other demons that golfers always seem to have running around in their coconut.

Just one question. Do you have to punch in what hole you are on when you are on the tee box?

Otherwise how will it know what yardages to give me when I spray my drive over into the next fairway? LOL

[FreddieScott]

HI .....

SkyCourses are mapped from the ground by skilled golfers and caddies who work on location with survey-grade equipment. The accuracy of our SkyCaddie provides the distance information you need to play your best.

[Pky6471]

I did a 3-month research on Golf GPS and Range Finder, I bought a Nikon Callaway LS1200 and have used it twice and I am very pleased with the RF. My golf partner has a SonoCaddie 300 GPS so we compare notes quite a bit. In general, both units are 3-5 yds difference to the greens (I can shoot at the flags and his can only tell distance to front/middle/back of a green). The biggest discrepancy in distance is when we compare the distance to clear troubles like creeks, wetland, bunkers... it could be as much as 10 yds. , and of course I trust my RF for a distance in that case.

I think either RF or GPS is OK, the reasons that I bought the RF are (1) I don't have to download courses software (2) RF don't eat battery like GPS does and IMO (3) RF is more accurate and more reliable... No matter what, enjoy what you have, it's good for club selection... If the Pros got help from Caddies then why we regular golfers can't get help from GPS or RF,,, In fact, we are at disadvantage because no one helps reading the greens for us, right?

[Kiwi Player]

... If the Pros got help from Caddies then why we regular golfers can't get help from GPS or RF,,, In fact, we are at disadvantage because no one helps reading the greens for us, right?

Yeah but there is only a few beers riding on the outcome of my matches. I guess if there was hundreds of thousands of $$$ involved I would want help too.

But seriously I can see how that thing would be useful when playing a new course for the 1st time but I know my yardages at my own course pretty well and know what club I need just from prior experience.

Are you planning to use it all the time at your home course?

[david_dicks]

I'm just going to pile on here. I have a SkyCaddie SG-4 for about 3 years now. My only complaint is that I should have bought the SG-3. The difference is mine is researchable and the SG-3 runs on common everyday AA batteries. I can play 3 to 4 rounds on my battery then I have to recharge. The important thing to remember is that the SkyCaddie’s have a limited number of courses it can hold, they also have a yearly fee to download new courses. However, I have a playing partner who has the Golf buddy and it sucks ass for a couple reasons. One, it doesn’t have the inteli-green feature, which allows you to shoot at the pins rather than just front, back and middle. Also the SkyCaddie is the only GPS device that is actually mapped on the course. The rest of them take a satellite photo and make some estimates as to the distance. The guy I play with who has the Golfbuddy is always asking me what my SkyCaddie says because his can’t be trusted. Seriously he and I used to get different distances all the time, so to settle the discussion we had our home course measure out some exact distances and sure enough my SkyCaddie was within a yard and a half every time, usually even closer. He was off as much as 12 yards…. That’s a club length to many of us. (On a side note my home course actually remarked a sprinkler head thanks to our little experiment.)
Anyway, the gist of my post is that if you want a rangefinder, I can’t help you. But if you are going to get a GPS device.
1) Get the SkyCaddie.
2) Get the one with replicable batteries.
3) Pay the yearly fee.
4) Deal with only holding 10 courses at a time. (It’s super fast to download them before going to a new course anyhow, especially if you travel with your laptop, but I’ve actually done it on the hotel lobby computer)

[bjdrivers]

is the skycaddie as accurate as a rangefinder? i don't see how GPS could possibly be as accurate.

although, the speed on my tomtom matches exactly to my pickup. our ford explorer is about 2mph off.

[david_dicks]

I don't know anything about the accuracy of a range finder. I can only tell you that the SkyCaddie is accurate to about a yard and a half or better.

[Pky6471]

Are you planning to use it all the time at your home course?[/QUOTE]

I carry my RF whenever I play golf, home course or not... I've used it for lay-up distance as well as shooting at the pins

[Pky6471]

If you shank a ball onto another fairway and your sight to the green is obstructed, Skycaddie will still tell you how far to the middle of the green. It's not a flimsy piece of equipment at all....it's pretty durable.

If you shank a ball onto another fairway, 99.9% chance that you can't shoot at the pin anyway, so it's a mute point... I found that my RF is very useful in "carry" distance or "lay-up" distance... Whether it's a RF or GPS, it gives you the confidence in club selection, no more guessing work.

[Horseballs]

Skycaddie is neat, bordering on superneat. I love Intellitee and the free Gulbis handjob I got with the SG3. I should have bucked for the free ATM you get with the SG5.

[bjdrivers]

Skycaddie is neat, bordering on superneat. I love Intellitee and the free Gulbis handjob I got with the SG3. I should have bucked for the free ATM you get with the SG5.

you should have splurged for the SG4. i'm not sure exactly what it comes with, but it involves camilo villegas & some super glue.

[dorkman53]

I agree that there are currently too many Skycaddie threads. I recommend that we all boycott all of them, immediately.

[Horseballs]

What's everyone's take on skycaddie today? I'm on the fence today.

[Kiwi Player]

What's everyone's take on skycaddie today? I'm on the fence today.

I'm leaning towards the view that Skycaddie is for slow playing, anal retentive no fun having choppers. True playas wouldn't be seen dead using one of these hack devices.

[Horseballs]

I'm leaning towards the view that Skycaddie is for slow playing, anal retentive no fun having choppers. True playas wouldn't be seen dead using one of these hack devices.

This sounds almost word for word like someone I know and trust.
You've convinced me. Skycaddie is the domain of choppers and choppers only. No true money-baller would gaze through one of those emasculating hack binoculars.

[Not a hacker]

I've heard they actually read the line and sink putts automatically these dyas too. Like Al Cerviks's putter in caddyshack.

[FreakOfNature]

I think SkyCaddie is going to be getting lots of Google hits to lots of pointless threads on GR.



FON