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What’s new? How much does it cost? And how does it perform? Hannah Holden brings you the low down on the new Shot Scope X5 GPS watch
Shot Scope are back with an upgrade to their V3 watch. The new X5 GPS combines the best GPS information with shot-tracking capability so you can dial in your performance on and off the golf course.
This watch offers the best of both worlds giving up GPS yardages to the green and hazards as well as providing shot tracking data.
This is perfect for tracking your statistics out on the course, so you can see where you need to improve and get cracking working on your game.
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Aesthetically, this Shot Scope watch is a big step up from what we saw with the previous V3 offering. I think the new round shaping is much smarter but also has a sportier feel. The edging is a scratch resistant ceramic bezel which contrasts really nicely with the black screen and wristband.
I also like the introduction of some non golf features such as the new step counter.
Compared to the previous Shot Scope V3 this did feel bigger on the wrist when I first put this in play but I just moved this slightly further up my arm to compensate. The bigger sizing has enabled Shot Scope to make this touchscreen which gives us lots more functionality and ease of use as you don’t have to navigate with numerous buttons.
The set-up of the watch is very intuitive so it doesn’t take long to get this from the box out onto the golf course.
As with the previous V3 model, you can choose to use this is straight GPS mode or with shot tracking enabled. Over 40,000 golf courses are pre-loaded onto the watch, so finding the course you are playing is quick and simple.
The main screen of X5 displays yardages to the front, middle and back of the green. These are dynamic yardages so the numbers are adjusted depending on which angle you end up approaching the green. This is extremely helpful if you are taking a slightly more scenic route to the green.
You can also get a green view to see the shaping and move the pin to the correct location if you wish.
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You can also clearly see yardages to all hazards on the hole. I really like how you get a distance to the front and carry distances to get over hazards. The diagrams really simply demonstrate what side of the hole each hazard is on. You can easily scroll up and down the list to see the hazards at every distance.
This is the first time Shot Scope have brought out a touchscreen watch, and at first, I found it slightly fiddly to navigate around. This has become easier the more I’ve used the watch and with some additional firmware updates.
With other touchscreen watches, I have sometimes struggled with the screen changing when it accidentally gets knocked. Shot Scope have added an auto-lock feature to prevent this from happening which is very handy but can take a few seconds to turn off. Since I first started using this, I have noticed they have changed the functionality to make it quicker. You can use the scroll wheel or press on the screen to unlock. If you don’t want the screen to lock at all, you can change this in the settings.
For me, the most beneficial part of the X5 watch has to be the performance tracking. This GPS golf watch comes with 16 tags to be plugged in the end of your golf clubs. This allows for hands-free, and even better, phone-free stats collection out on the golf course. As you hit each shot, the watch and tag work together to plot your location on an overhead golf course map.
You do have to go in at the end of your round and edit each hole in the Shot Scope app to check it is correct. But a full round takes about 10 minutes maximum to edit, which is really worth it for the amount of information you are getting back. I have collected statistics on numerous different platforms over the last ten years and this is undoubtedly the quickest and easiest to use. They also have a new coaching platform allowing you to share your data with your golf coach so they can see how you are performing on the golf course and give you better drills and tips to work on.
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I have to say I noticed the 2nd generation of tracking tags seemed much more reliable on the putting green which is definitely a big upgrade as this was the only area that didn’t quite seem perfect in the V3 model.
Once you have inputted your data, you can review over a hundred different statistics, including strokes gained measurements on each part of your game. I really like that you can compare all aspects of your game to different handicap ranges to see where you can improve. I also really like the visuals showing your misses.
Aesthetically, this Shot Scope watch is definitely something you can wear on and off the golf course, especially with the new options on watch faces so you can give this an individual feel. I would say if I were to wear this off the course all the time, I would probably want some extra functionality that you tend to see in other health and fitness watches. For now I think I will just wear this on the golf course.
Overall this is an impressive piece of kit that will undoubtedly help anyone’s golf game. Shot Scope are continuously updating the watch firmware and the app software so the data you are collecting and the GPS data you see on the course is only getting better.
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Available: Now
RRP: £279.99
Colours: Black, Blue, Grey, White, Black/Slate
More Information: Shot Scope website
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