Golf Views

How would you like to have your very own professional caddy, that can give you detailed course information no matter where you play?

The SkyGolf SkyCaddie SG5 is for golfers who want advanced features, a large color display and a long-lasting rechargeable battery. SkyGolf’s advanced GPS technology is integrated with the very best Swiss engineering to provide unmatched reliability. The SG5 includes SkyGolf’s patented IntelliGreen® technology, enabling golfers to measure the full depth and shape of the green from any angle of approach and shows distances for all targets and hazards on any of SkyGolf’s many thousands of professionally mapped courses. Its vibrant color display features automatic backlighting to ensure easy readability indoors and outdoors.

Look and Feel

The SkyCaddie SG5 is very compact, weighing only 5.5 Ounces and easily fits into your palm for single handed operation. The black matte, textured, water resistant case allows you to grip the SkyCaddie easily and without having to worry about the unit slipping out of your hand, even while wearing a glove. The buttons on the SkyCaddie SG5 are easy to operate and have a nice tactile feel. Navigation is primarily done using one of the seven main buttons on the front of the unit. A 4 way scroll pad with the look and feel of a golf ball is used to scroll (up/down/left/right), this is especially helpful when navigating through the lists of targets. The LCD screen is extremely bright, both indoors and out, thanks to the automatic backlighting of the color 220 x 176 pixel display. In my tests I was able to view the screen easily in direct sun light, with little or no glare.

Operating the SkyCaddie SG5

The following steps need to be performed in order to use the SkyCaddie for the first time:

Install software (Available for MAC and PC)from the supplied disc or via the Skygolf website; I opted to get the latest version from the website for MAC. I did have a minor glitch syncing to the courses I had added to my playlist using the SkyCaddie Desktop Software with my SkyCaddie SG5 GPS. A single email to SkyCaddie technical support and the issue was resolved in under an hour. I was impressed with the quick and responsive customer service. Also, rest assured that the technical support is not outsourced to another country.

Create a SkyCaddie Account
Fill in your account login information and select the appropriate membership level for the yearly plan you wish to purchase. You have a choice of the following options:

Membership Level Birdie         Eagle         Double Eagle
Cost per Year $29.95         $49.95        $59.95
Coverage Sub-Regional Regional      World
Number of SkyCourses 10                10                10
Number of Playlists 5                  10                10

I opted for the Eagle plan which allows me to select from unlimited amount of courses in the SkyCaddie GPS database across the United States; store up to 10 course in my SkyVault playlist, have a maximum of 10 courses on my SkyCaddie, and maximum of 5 user-recorded courses on the SkyCaddie.

Load your Courses

Easily browse thousands (17000+) of courses by name, city, and state. Just go to http://www.skygolfgps.com/SG_SkyVault_SearchCourses.aspx Choose your region (i.e. United States, select your  State, and enter the name of the course you are looking for. Don’t know the name of the course your looking for? You can also browse the course directory alphabetically by city. The user interface is really easy to use and I like the search options  for adding a course to my playlist. Once you find the course you want to add to your playlist, just select the course and click on the ‘Add to Playlist’ button. The final step is synchronizing the SkyCaddie Desktop with your unit. It is easily done by hooking up the SkyCaddie to your computer via the supplied mini-USB cable then selecting the DirectConnect button to begin synchronization. This is a  painless process and quite easy to do in a matter of minutes. After synchronization is complete, you are now ready to go play golf. Depending on the type of subscription plan you choose, you can put up to 10 courses from your playlist onto your SkyCaddie GPS. If for some reason you are unable to find a golf course in the SkyCourses Database of courses, you can map it yourself using the SkyCaddie SG5 and upload it to share with other SkyCaddie members. I did not get to test this function out, because all the courses I play are already in the SkyCourses database. But the SkyCaddie SG5 does come with detailed instructions on mapping your own course.

Performance

The unit works flawlessly. After you turn on the unit the SkyCaddie boots up in less than a minute. When you select one of the courses you have downloaded to the SkyCaddie you are prompted to choose the hole to start on and that’s it. You are now ready to take advantage of SkyCaddie SG5 GPS. The simplicity of the unit is what makes this GPS stand above other GPS units on the market. SkyGolf’s exclusive IntelliGreen technology gives you an eagle’s view of each hole from anywhere on the course. During my tests at Wildfire Golf Club in Scottdale, Arizona,I was able to get yardage information to the center of the green from a dogleg on the course without being able to see the pin. This was extremely useful information, and something you would not be able to do with a laser rangefinder. In addition to the front and back yardages to the center of the green, you can also get the safe distance to either layup in front of, or fly right over, any hazard on the course. This detailed information can lead to better course management skills and an overall lower score. When you finish each hole the SkyCaddie automatically advances to the next hole on the course and updates the yardage information as you approach the tee box. In the event you forget to turn on the SkyCaddie when you begin your round of golf, you can always click on the ‘Select Hole to Play’ button on the unit to choose your hole.

The SkyCaddie SG5 comes with a rechargeable lithium battery that claims 14 hours of battery life. In my tests of the SkyCaddie SG5 over the past 3 weeks I’ve been able to play 6 rounds of golf with about three-quarters of the battery life remaining. So it’s safe to say you can easily get 14 hours of battery life as advertised from one full charge.

Want to know how far you have hit your ball? That’s easily accomplished by pushing the ‘Mark Ball’ icon on the SG5. Simply press the button from where you hit your shot and hit the ‘Mark Ball’ button again from where your ball has landed. SkyCaddie will tell you exactly how far the ball has traveled. I loved using this feature, because it gave me a more accurate measurement of how far I hit my shots without having to use the sprinkler head markers as measurement gauge.

30 Day Satisfaction Guarantee

SkyCaddie comes with a generous 30 day satisfaction guarantee. SkyCaddie is so confident it will improve your game, they guarantee that if you play at least three rounds with the SkyCaddie within 30 days, and you don’t agree that it helps you play better, play faster, and have more fun, you can return it for a refund (excluding shipping and handling).

I found a few minor drawbacks to the SkyCaddie SG5, one is that you need to download the courses in advance onto the unit instead of on-the fly via some sort of radio link. On my recent trip to Arizona, I loaded up the Boulders South Course on my unit. But when I got to the course, they had closed the South Course so I played the North Course instead. Since I did not download the Boulders North Course to my SkyCaddie, I was unable to use the unit. It would be nice, if in the future they made it possible to download the courses directly to the SkyCaddie via an internal device, without having to synchronize them with a computer. Or if it could download the course onto your unit based on your location as determined by the SkyCaddie satellites. Another minor drawback that I found, was not being able to keep score on the SkyCaddie SG5. While at times I did think this would have been useful, I feel that it was probably a smart decision on SkyCaddie’s part to leave that functionality off. The SkyCaddie SG5 is intended to give you course information to play smarter and faster golf, not waste time entering your score at the end of each hole. I would think such a feature might slow you down.

I’ve really enjoyed using the SkyCaddie SG5 and will definitely recommend it as an invaluable, easy to use product. You really can’t go wrong with the SkyCaddie SG5. Now if it could only help me with my golf swing….

SkyCaddie SG5 Retails for $429.95