5 Nike have officially launched their NG360 golf app in Europe.
The Apple-only application (it is free to download on your iPod, iPad or iPhone) has been incredibly popular in the USA, and was named one of iTunes’ top 10 essential sports apps.
In a nutshell, NG360 is a simple, effective, and free way to track your scores, understand your stats, and improve your skills.
It works very quickly and is extremely easy to operate.
Indeed, once the app is switched on and you’ve found the course you are playing (it is pre-loaded with 5,000 in Europe), filling in details is child’s play.
Simply indicate where your tee shot went, put in your score and number of putts, and it does the rest.
It is just as quick as using a scorecard and, in my opinion, is much less hassle. So much so that I plan to use it instead of paper from now on unless in a competition.
It is by no means in-depth when it comes to your statistics – only fairways hit and missed, greens in regulation, and putts are tracked – but Nike valued simplicity and speed highly and they’ve clearly achieved both.
Overall, it still provides you with a much clearer picture of what happened in your round – it tells you where you miss the fairway most, recommends equipment and driver settings (if you carry an adjustable model), and even awards trophies based on how you perform.
Unfortunately, when testing it the first time around, I only managed to win the bounce-back, which is given to players following a double-bogey with a par or better!Â
It is just as quick as using a scorecard and, in my opinion, is much less hassle. So much so that I plan to use it instead of paper from now on unless in a competition. Arguably the most valuable feature to the club golfer, though, is the extensive catalogue of video tips from Nike’s Tour staff.
Whether you want to learn how to exercise for golf with Paul Casey, or lash a driver like Charl Schwartzel, the app is brimming with free content that is undoubtedly going to save you shots.
You can also record your swing and compare it to some of the world’s best players.
Additionally, there is a competitive element. If all your golfing friends are using the app, your stats and average scores are presented in a leaderboard.
This not only gives context to your achievements, but also motivates you to do better than your friends. You can also compare swings with one-another.
In short, this is arguably the best golf app ever to hit the market. Not only is it incredible useful, it is easy to operate and won’t cost you a penny.
Don’t be surprised if future versions contain GPS navigation, too – that really would be a game-changer.
To download the app, go to the iTunes store on your Apple device or visit the App store on your computer.
