by Jason P., Director of Engineering at Shotzoom
Updated: 2/22/18
In version 3.14 and 5.14 of Golfshot and Golfshot Plus we’ve added the ability to enable “Workout Mode” on Apple Watch Series 2 and 3. This allows for the Apple Watch to keep the GPS active even when Golfshot isn’t on the screen – enabling quicker GPS updates when returning to Golfshot. The consequence to this gain is that the battery of the Apple Watch will drain quicker. This setting can be enabled/disabled using the setting “Watch GPS Always On” under the “GPS, Scoring, Caddie” setting. We should note that even with this setting enabled, the Apple Watch will still use the iPhone’s GPS by default – only switching to this mode when the Apple Watch breaks connection with your iPhone.
Here’s a deeper look into the hardware and operation of each Watch to understand it’s current technical limits.
Apple Watch Series 1
The Apple Watch® Series 1 doesn’t have an onboard GPS chip. This means it utilizes the iPhone as its sole location provider. Whatever the iPhone is seeing in terms of location is what the Apple Watch will see and use. Additionally, if you turn off your iPhone or break the connection no more GPS information will be sent or found on Apple Watch 1.
Apple Watch Series 2 or 3
The Apple Watch® Series 2 introduced an onboard GPS chip and Apple Watch Series 3 continues to have this hardware. This allows the Apple Watch 2 and 3 to provide GPS updates without having to be connected to the iPhone. For the sake of battery life, the Apple Watch Series 2 and 3 will utilize the iPhone’s GPS when it’s connected and available. Once disconnected from the iPhone GPS, the Series 2 and 3 will utilize its own internal GPS until a connection to the iPhone is re-established.
So when using Golfshot or Golfshot Plus on the course this leaves you with 3 primary ways to play #yourbestgolf with Apple Watch:
Playing with your iPhone in your pocket
Series 1, 2 and 3 Apple Watch users will see the iPhone’s GPS being reported on the Apple Watch
Playing with your iPhone in your cart
Series 1, 2 and 3 Apple Watch users will see the iPhone’s GPS being displayed while the device is in range. This means if you move 5-10 yards away from the golf cart, you’ll still be displaying the location of your iPhone in the golf cart.
If the connection to the device is severed, Series 1 users will get no further updates while Series 2 and 3 users will see the onboard GPS location until the connection to the iPhone is re-established.
Playing with your Apple Watch disconnected from your iPhone
Series 1 users will be able to see basic hole information and score on the Apple Watch but no GPS updates will be received.
Series 2 and 3 users will receive GPS data from the onboard GPS chip on Apple Watch and will utilize that until connection is re-established.
In short, there are many ways to use Golfshot in tandem with the Apple Watch Series 1 or 2 or 3. Understanding the technical workings of the GPS on your Apple Watch can help you choose the best setting and experience to play your best golf.
A note on battery life…
Battery life is a huge focus for us at Golfshot because a golf app that can’t last a full round isn’t a tool worth using. There are ways for the Apple Watch Series 2 and 3 GPS to be constantly running and always up to date. But the sacrifice of doing this is a battery life that has been unable to finish a round of golf in the most ideal scenarios.
Make sure to download the latest versions of Golfshot and Golfshot Plus for Apple Watch stability and performance improvements. For questions or feedback, please email us at support@golfshot.com.
I asked a specific question as to why there were discrepancies between my Apple Watch 1 and my phone of as much as fifteen to twenty yards. This generic response as to how the watch is supposed to work does not answer my specific question. So no help here.
Hi Lane, if you contact our support team, support@golfshot.com they can give you a more specific answer to your questions!
I have an Apple Watch Series 1 and am not able to read the display in Golfshot when I’m open the golf course. Any suggestions or fixes in later watch series?
Please reach out to support@golfshot.com so they can look into your account and give you some troubleshooting tips!
I can’t get a full game in regarding battery life used usually around the 12th hole..all I want is distance.
Please check out these battery saving tips from our support team: https://shotzoom.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000942913-What-is-the-best-way-to-utilize-my-Apple-Watch-with-iPhone-for-accurate-GPS-distances-
just got a new apple phone 10 and i have apple watch 3. Cant seem to get the app on the watch to work. It stays on the screen that says ” play golf start or resume a round on your iphone”. I have resumed and tried starting a new round. Any suggestions? Thanks
Hi Frank, we’re sorry to hear that! Please email our support team, support@golfshot.com and they will be able to help you out!
Same problem but it is now Jan 6th
Hi Fred, Please email our support team, support@golfshot.com. This article may not be up to date so we apolgize for that, but our support team is available on weekdays and can help you out with any questions.
Why dont you answer the questions here rather than say contact support
Hi Suzy, Our support team handles technical questions, along with bug issues and fixes and glitches. Most questions are better off answered by them as they are the experts in this matter. By emailing our support team, or submitting a ticket, it not only gives our users a clear answer, but it also helps our support team and developers to gather all issues and bugs so they can ensure everything is taken care of for the time being, and in the future.
I purchased an Apple Watch Series 2 with Golfshot Plus when Golfshot REQUIRED the iPhone to be close by (essentially in your pocket). There was an unacceptable lag in communication between the watch and the phone. I would raise my wrist for the required illumination of the phone screen, and the distance would not be correct. After a second or two, the distance updated. With a dedicated golf watch, the distance is always immediate (unless one is in motion). I returned the Apple Watch, as this was the main reason I had purchased it. What I would really like to know, especially with the Apple Watch 4, is can I use Golfshot for IMMEDIATE correct yardage when I raise my wrist? If not, I’ll stick with a Garmin or dedicated golf GPS watch
Hi Paul, Please reach out to our support team and they will be able to assist you with your questions, support@golfshot.com , thank you!
Did you get an answer? This is exactly the same question I have.
Please email support@golfshot.com with any technical questions, thank you!
Hi, My wife and I have new Apple Watch series 4 watches. Mine worked fine but hers would not swipe left to access the scoring input and other features.
Any advice.
Also how do you go back on the watch to change score ?
Hi Jay, please reach out to our support team support@golfshot.com and they can help you out with that!
I have send some complaints in regards to the Golfshot pro app in function with the apple watch 3 to the support team and followed their instructions. Unfortunately, I have today bought a new Golfwatch.
The distance measuring with the Apple watch 3 is a lot of times way off.
As instructed by the support team, I did reset and calibrate the watch several times. however, when I experiencing that the watch is giving me time after time the wrong measurement it’s really frustrating. 10 and 20 % off the real meters is a lot on the golf course. This is on different golf courses.
This means that I will no longer use the golf pro app. for this, which I found really a pity because I liked the Golfshot pro app and their functions a lot.
Hi, I have iPhone XS and Apple watch 4. It works perfect together. But how can I enter “x”, “0” or “-“ in the scorecard (when I did not finished hole on stableford)? There is only chance to enter 1-20. Thanks Jan
Please let our support team know, and they can help you. Support@golfshot.com
How do you get this to work, my watch downloads imagery and that’s all it does.
Nothing works can’t swipe the watch.
Just upgraded the app to plus £40 for the watch.
Got to the course and could use it.
Hi Scott, Please submit a ticket for our support team here: https://play.golfshot.com/contact and they will be able to help you out!
Hi how do I do my scores on the Apple Watch 3 ??? Or do I have to do my scores on my iPhone all the time ??
Many thanks
Check out our support page here: https://shotzoom.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/sections/360000205534-Apple-Watch-
If you’re still having issues, reach out to our support team, support@golfshot.com
Like the app very much. Sometimes, after starting the round the graphic detail on my iPhone is white and I can move the curser but do not see any hole details. Any advice?
Sounds like a small technical issue, our support team will be the best to take care of it, email them at support@golfshot.com and perhaps a screenshot of what you’re seeing and they can help!
Okay so I am trying the pro version of this and I played a round today. It worked great except after I was at the hole and hit my ball and sometimes talked for a few minutes the GPS at the bottom of the watch would go red. And this is with the phone in my pocket. This also happened if I was tracking my shot and it took a while to get to my ball. I could close the app on my Watch and restart it on the watch and the GPS would then reset to green but it’s so annoying having to close the app out everytime to continue. Please help
Hi Chris, please shoot an email to support@golfshot.com and they can troubleshoot this issue. We ask any technical issues be asked directly to themes they can keep up with all bugs/issues and work with our developers for solutions, thank you!
Hi.
I purchased an Apple Watch 5 for the golf shot app paired with an iPhone 11.
Using it linked to my iPhone or using the watch GPS on my watch, I wasn’t able to finish the round without the battery going dead.
Any advice??
Hi there, here are some battery saving tips: https://shotzoom.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000959354-How-long-should-I-expect-my-Apple-Watch-battery-to-last-while-using-Golfshot-
I need to keep Bluetooth active on my iPhone for other tasks it is performing at the same time. So it will just default to the iPhone location instead of the watch location? Or is there another work-around?
Hi, please email our support team support@golfshot.com for more information on this, they will be your best technical go to!
Ok Thanks
What are the best practices to track Active Calories burned while golfing using the Golfshot Pro app and newest Apple Watch. I’ve been getting mixed results where sometimes it tracks exercise minutes and active calories and sometimes it doesn’t track any calories at all.
The Apple Watch activity function gathers all exercise and fitness data, Golfshot imports this data and displays it in app. If you have further questions or issues with this function, please reach out to support@golfshot.com and they can dig in further!
I have an Apple Watch Series 1
Started round and imagery syncs – however on my watch, all that is displayed is 999 yards and does not match the correct yardage shown on the phone
Please reach out to our support team, support@golfshot.com and they can look into your account and help troubleshoot this!
What is resolution for this problem, I have the same problem, with mu iwatch after sync course with iphone
Please email support@golfshot.com all the t4echnical I can help with is what is in the FAQ’s regarding syncing imagery, if those do not work our support team can troubleshoot!
I am having the exact same issue with Apple Watch SE 44mm. Please let me know how to fix this.
I have sent mail to support, but no response from them.
Hi Martin, support will respond within 48 business hours. Please ensure you sent mail to support@golfshot.com and please check your spam/junk folders. Thank you!
I have an Apple Watch 6 and iPhone 12. When I try to use Golfshot on the watch all I get is a picture and one number (yardage). Pressing and holding the screen only gives an option to choose a hole. Am I doing something wrong? I would like a bit more info. Swiping does not give me anything else.
Please visit our support page: https://shotzoom.zendesk.com It sounds like you may need to uninstall and reinstall for updates, if you still have issues please contact support@golfshot.com and they can look at your account to find any issues!
Hi,
I have just changed my Iphone to a 12 pro Max and am using Golfshot with Apple watch 6. I have used this combination successfully to gain yardages. To my horror however, I have discovered each time I complete a round my phone has been drained of power. This was never an issue with my previous Iphone and Apple watch. What settings have changed?
That’s odd! If you haven’t already, please be sure you have updated your phone’s software to the latest version of iOS. To update your operating system, please visit Settings > General > Software Update. If that does not work, please email support@golfshot.com so they can check into your account and assist you!
Last year, I figured out a way to make the Golf Shot app draw power from my phone instead of my Apple Watch. It was a godsend. The reason I like it this way is that instead of my Apple Watch losing 75% of its battery life from a round of golf, it drew from my phone which I had hooked up to a portable battery pack so that it never lost any of its charge. However, this year, I got a new Iphone and now Golf Shot is drawing power from the watch instead of the phone. Can you advise me what I can do to get power to draw from the iphone once again? Please note my new email address below. It used to be paulbria@optonline.net which is still active if you want to send a response there.
I’m not quite sure I’m following, please email our support team, support@golfshot.com so they can assist in this better!
I have the same issue. Got a new phone (IPhone 12) and suddenly my watch 2 dies after 5 – 6 holes, with the old phone it still made it through the day despite a round of golf and does so today without using Golfshot. So it is definitely not the phone battery. Tried both GPS on and off on the watch, makes no difference.
Here are some battery saving tips, if you’re still having trouble please reach out to support@golfshot.com, I’m not sure what more they can assist with on a 2! https://shotzoom.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000959354-How-long-should-I-expect-my-Apple-Watch-battery-to-last-while-using-Golfshot-Auto-Shot-Tracking-use-
I have iPhone 13 and Apple Watch (Model – A2292 – version 7.6.2 (18U80). I have gone through setting up “Auto Shot tracking”. It was not tracking any shots for a while, but surprisingly, a couple of rounds ago, it tracked 10 shots of a round and most distances were correct. Then I played 2 more rounds and it tracked nothing. Not sure what I have to do to get it going. I have already sent an email to support about a week ago but have not heard back.
I have reached out to support and looks like they have responded to you a few times, please check your spam/junk settings for these!