If you select Practice, you can choose between a driving range or chip & putt practice. Great review. Why is that? /* Content Template: Single Post - end */ As in Practice Mode, each of your shots will display the standard data parameters including distance and spin. Ill look not only at how well it measures ball and swing data, but also at its usability and simulation capabilities. Do you plan to just hit balls into a net and view your data, or do you plan to have a full-on golf simulator setup where you play virtual rounds? The golf ball you hit should be clean and white, and it should always be placed on the projected red dot. For that, youll need a solid hitting mat and net. There is a closest to the pin challenge, which will help sharpen your iron play. document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id", "abd5bdff7748c8b8571049b15ba60a05" );document.getElementById("i59f7f13e4").setAttribute( "id", "comment" ); A relevant ad is run on the sidebar in order to support the upkeep of Golfstead. Before the SkyTrak was released onto the market, there was a void in the personal launch monitor and simulator space. Look for x sold labels, feedback/reviews, or make sure the listing photo is an actual photo taken by the seller and not a stock photo. I believe if you can get an accurate representation of your ball flight, carry distances, and spin rates, then you will have plenty of feedback for your practice sessions at home. Whats your experience? So I had to get creative. Do you think that is worth the extra money that it seems to require? The Play & Improve gives you access to everything in the Game Improvement Plan plus full integration with World Golf Tour (WGT). This mode is not only a great way to practice your driving and precision with your irons, but its also a bit more fun than a simple driving range session. This feature allows you to get detailed information about the clubs in your bag, including how far you hit them on average, their dispersions, and how the performance of one club relates to the performance of other clubs. */ /* ----------------------------------------- */, My new book, The Four Foundations of Golf, is now available on Amazon , Golf Formats: Alternatives to Stroke Play. In this review, I am going to try and help you understand the benefits and potential drawbacks. /* Content Template: Single Post - start */ The few gripes I have with the software are: All things considered, E6 CONNECT remains a top simulation option for the SkyTrak, and many would argue its the best option. For the past several years, I have been looking to create a cost-effective home golf simulator setup. display:block; Since 2019, SkyTrak has been compatible with Swing Catalyst, a video analysis software that has been praised by coaches around the world as well as PGA Tour pros including Justin Rose, Matt Kuchar, and Ian Poulter. They need more space to see the ball launch some would say as much as 23 feet. You can purchase the SkyTrak launch monitor with the game improvement package from Shop Indoor Golf. However, the SkyTrak gave us carry yardages that were exactly what we would expect on the golf course. Youll be able to view your ball flight and data from a single camera angle, but thats about it. Thirdly, you should avoid using the SkyTrak outdoors if possible. Bag Mapping gives you a very valuable insight into your overall game. If it wasnt for the eBay buyer protection, I would have lost a lot of money, so be cautious of eBay sellers. Glad youre happy with it. Golfers, Dont Take the Whole Bottle of Aspirin! This will give the camera system a clearer point of reference to give you an accurate spin reading. In the end, itll save you a lot of money and go a long way towards improving your game. You will understand the typical yardage that your wedge will fly for each swing length. Cant get it to reliably connect to computer seems to have dropped the password again and have not been able to contact Skytrak .1600 not well spent. Here is the list of products I got, with the costs. You can use the SkyTrak with a 3D practice range at no extra cost, but yes, if you want anything else, youll have to pay extra. This includes the eBay Partner Network and the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. In my opinion, its an overload for most recreational golfers. There are occasions where it will not register (I found that very infrequent, though). Solving this puzzle is what makes SkyTrak such a valuable game-improvement tool. Lets go to Settings. If youre looking online, the place I would recommend is Rain or Shine Golf. Stay tuned for my follow-up article, How to Convince Your Wife You Need to Buy a SkyTrak.. The first month that I had SkyTrak, I only used it for the practice features. One of their main limitations is that they struggle with indoor use. Whether you plan on hitting indoors or outdoors, take out your longest club (driver) and ensure that you have enough clearance to make a full swing. I have a skytrak think the money would be better spent on pro lessons. It was developed for recreational golfers. To me, this is the main reason to buy SkyTrak. Fortunately, I was able to convince my wife that since I run a golf site, it needed to be the space for my simulator. .code-block-2:nth-of-type(even) { Each of these softwares has its own features, modes, and games. Its almost addictive. The short game sucks. They are great. For example, if you hit an 8-iron, it may compare your launch angle, spin and descent angle to optimal ranges of around 16-24, 7200-8460 RPM, and 42-47, respectively. If you wanted to go with a projector, things could get a bit more expensive. They also have released a skills assessment challenge. Its challenging to visualize how far you need to hit the ball, and it can get frustrating at times. This is sold separately. This includes: If you want more than just being able to practice on a range from one camera perspective, then youll need to upgrade to the Game Improvement Plan. Youll be able to get an excellentrepresentation of your ball flight, spin rates, and carry distances. Another thing to consider is a simulation studio. The shot reproduction is superb. It can be pretty tough to get the hang of putting, but its workable with practice. So if you have your buddies over, you are unable to compete against one another. Then ensure that you have at least 10 feet of length and 10 feet of width in your space. If you want to access more simulation software options, you should plan to use a PC. But I have also seen that from other commercial launch monitors as well. As for contacting SkyTrak, there are live chat, phone, text and email options, so keep trying and Im sure youll be able to get through. To access the simulation features, you need to pay $199/yr, but I did not find it an outrageous amount of money. There are several features in the game improvement package that can help with this. So beware, you might get sucked into hours of golf (is that a bad thing?). Are you interested in the SkyTrak? Secondly, many of the problems people experience related to accuracy stem from an improper setup. I am using software version 3.0.2, which has many features that you would expect from commercial launch monitors. There is one major limitation, though, that all of you should expect. The Practice Mode is the core feature of the SkyTrak that will allow you to hit shots on a virtual driving range. This is essentially everything you need to build a higher-end simulation setup. Like many of you, I scoured all the options out there. /*.logged-in .non-logged-in-ad-block { } SkyTrak has filled a nice little niche in the marketplace. These dedicated simulation options are much more powerful than what is offered on the Play & Improve Plan alone, but they only cost a couple hundred dollars more per year. Some other practice range features unlocked by the Game Improvement package are: After each shot, a tracer will simulate your ball flight. I believe the quality of the software is what makes theunit so valuable. After 4-5 shots, it was quite evident that the FlightScope was struggling. With the Wedge Matrix feature, you select four wedges (normally pitching wedge, gap wedge, sand wedge and lob wedge) and swing each club at four different lengths: 1/4, 1/2, 3/4, and full swing. A Game Improvement Package is available that costs $2,244.90. Also, what is your maximum budget? There are several ways to pair the SkyTrak with your PC you can use a direct USB cable connection, connect to a wireless network router, or use a direct Wi-Fi connection. If indoor use is not an option, it can work well outdoors but needs to be kept out of direct sunlight. If you have the Game Improvement package, youll have access to a lot more features. 8, Aviara, Gleneagles, and Troon North. That being said, you start getting used to it, and it becomes part of the deal. Great information thank you. display:none !important; He is the author of the bestselling book 101 Mistakes All Golfers Make (and how to fix them). High-speed capture is supported up to 500 fps. Its worth noting that if you have a PC, SkyTrak has tons of integrations with leading simulation companies like TruGolf, another strong point of this product. Ill choose the Aviara Golf Club. This was not a surprise because I experienced the same thing on much more elaborate simulator setups I have used in the past. camera angle selection (down the line, follow the ball, etc. My main challenge was that I needed to keep the main play space open when I wasnt hitting balls. The SkyTrak is currently available with seven different simulation packages: E6 CONNECT, The Golf Club 2019, WGT Golf, Creative Golf, Fitness Golf, ProTee Play, and Golfisimo. If youre looking for a discount on a used unit, you may be able to find a good deal on eBay. However, having zero feedback on what direction the ball goes and how far it travels can create a guessing game. It can work, but there are better options for outdoor launch monitors such as the Mevo Plus. Shots that you would have no difficulty with on the golf course can easily get knocked back and forth over the green, turning an easy par or bogey into a quadruple-bogey really fast. } Are you looking for specific club parameters? Personally, I did not find this to be a nuisance at all. Overall, getting to play some of the best golf courses in the world in HD graphics is incredibly fun. The Basic Plan comes with: If all you want to do is see your swing data on the range and dont care about minigames or course play, the Basic package should suffice. Released in late 2014, the SkyTrak was the first accurate launch monitor to hit the market that cost less than $5,000 and was accessible to the average golfer. But it was interesting to see just how well the SkyTrak performed in an indoor application, which is what many golfers are looking for. .non-logged-in-ad-block { It takes anywhere from 4-7 seconds for your swing to register. Thats not to say recreational golfers are not using their products, but they are much more expensive and offer far more information. Before you play, its important to make sure that you correctly calibrate the center as the SkyTrak sees it. It gives you access to: I would say that in most cases, its better to stay on the Game Improvement Plan without upgrading to Play & Improve. 101 Mistakes All Golfers Make is your complete guide to golf. You have to pay $99/year to access these features, which may rub some people wrong. The virtual driving range will get boring pretty quickly without it. Here is a brief video of one of my friends hitting a ball and then the shot registering: I cant reasonably tell you whether or not you should shell out several thousand dollars. You might want to purchase a protective case ($149 extra). The software also has some incredibly useful settings that you can play with. Its an excellent practice experience, but many golfers may feel its not necessary to them beyond what the default SkyTrak practice functionality provides. This includes the launch monitor, Play & Improve Plan (1 year, renewable), and official SkyTrak metal protective case. Check out our deals for Practical Golf readers! Well, you can get a taste of how WGT works with SkyTrak here: The core SkyTrak unit costs $1,995 USD. I was deciding what kind of setup I would use, so I was actually using my iPhone to access the virtual driving range. But it mostly serves as a playroom for our children. From the main menu, select Play Golf and add as many extra players as you want. This is not just a SkyTrak problem; its a problem with all golf simulators. Since SkyTrak has been out for several years, there have been plenty of people who have tested it against Foresight, Trackman, and Flightscope. The major complaint some people have had with SkyTrak is the delay in data. Long story short SkyTrak is an excellent practice tool. Once that decision was made, I could now do simulation through the World Golf Tour. Gaps that are too large or too small will be brought to your attention. The Game Improvement Plan is all you need to upgrade to a full simulation plan like E6 or TGC. After each shot, you can view graphs of your trajectory and dispersion. Thats 100 percent my fault not duing proper research. The only case where choosing the Play & Improve Plan would make sense is if youre satisfied with the WGT integration and you arent willing to spend a couple more hundred dollars on a full-fledged simulation. World Golf Tour is incredibly fun with SkyTrak. Just FYI, the FlightScope Mevo+ with the Pro Package will give you club data including face angle. For as little as $200 per year for the Play & Improve Plan, you can play a full 18-hole round of golf (and see your detailed shot data) without having to get out to the course. SkyTrak has been on the market for several years now. The Net Return Mini ProPackage Net, Side Barriers & Roll Up Turf ($1049). } Where E6 CONNECT really shines is in its flexible practice modes: driving range, chipping and putting. Once you do that, the shot reproductions should be pretty well on the money. A SkyTrak Tee Off Package is available that costs $2,244.90. In addition, special cameras can be purchased to use with Swing Catalyst such as the Dragon USB. top: 250px; After reading your review I will be purchasing this unit. How does the SkyTrak perform? I decided that I was not going to get a PC because of space limitations. The courses available to you will depend on the package you get, but some of the basic courses are Pinehurst No. I certainly wouldnt recommend doing it if that money was supposed to go to your childrens college fund! The SkyTrak launch monitor was released in November 2014 to fill this void, priced at $1,995. This feature is similar to Bag Mapping. Detailed setup instructions are found in the SkyTrak user guide, but there are a few more important things I want to cover in this section. To be honest, the SkyTrak is more of a golf simulator than a launch monitor. However, Par2Pro gave it a shot, and you can check out this video, which shows pretty solid results from SkyTrak. I tested the SkyTrak against the FlightScope Xi Tour to see what would happen. Since Foresight also uses high-speed cameras to capture ball data, it needs to be in a similar position as SkyTrak relative to the ball. Swing Catalyst allows you to set up cameras (up to four depending on the license) and capture your swing from multiple different angles. During and after the skills assessment, you can view detailed information about your shots. If you are a reader of this site, you know that I believe the best practice sessions feature randomization and playing games that put pressure and meaning on each shot. Additionally, the ability to play a simulated golf course only requires ball data. For those of you who are interested in OptiShot, this is a hugestep up in accuracy. Here, you can adjust general settings, the environment, system config, and calibration based on your simulator dimensions. If you dont have the budget for a $10,000 $70,000 home golf simulator, then you can get very close to what those offer with a setup for under $5,000. Theyve done a fantastic job of clearly displaying data in a meaningful way. You can choose between an annual subscription to the basic or expanded plans, or a one-time purchase of the software. After the initial setup where you specify an intended gap (distance between clubs), the software takes you through a range session where you hit each club. Based on all of the research I did for my home golf simulator guide, SkyTrak was the product that enticed me the most. Now, choose your course. Tell us about it in the comments below. Im hitting balls almost every day and looking forward to firing up the unit whenever I get a chance. Ive actually found myself wanting to fire up WGT instead of the practice range. Click the button below or scroll down to the bottom of my review to see my final verdict! E6 CONNECT is available with PC and iOS, but Ill be using the PC version in this tour. You can spot weaknesses, flaws, or undesirable results in your wedge game that you can subsequently work on. The Shot Optimizer can be a big help in dialing in your clubs. Its not to say that FlightScope is an inferior product. The pricing options for each vary considerably. display:none; position: fixed; The SkyTrak Game Improvement Plan gives you access to everything in the Basic Plan plus many additional features, challenges, and games. SkyTrak is actively advertised as an indoor launch monitor, and this is where it should be used when possible. Integration of the Swing Catalyst video analysis software with the SkyTrak costs $499/year or $49.50/month. The SkyTrak comes with the unit itself, a USB cable, and a wall charger. Note that a subscription to the SkyTrak Game Improvement Plan is required for Swing Catalyst integration. This means that the power button should face either towards the net or away from the net, depending on your handedness. If you go the Mac route, you need to run SkyTrak through an iPad. Golfstead is a participant in several affiliate programs and earns from qualifying purchases through affiliate links, which helps support the upkeep of the site. And you know what, that is completely fine. Jon Sherman is the owner ofPractical Golf, a website dedicated to being an honest resource for the everyday golfer who is looking to enjoy the game more, as well as improve. Ive always thought I would want the monitor to provide club head data. Since that time, it has been polished, enhanced, and augmented with the latest and greatest simulation plans. SkyTrak has to be level with the ball, which means you should have a mat large enough to stand on and place the unit. This serves two useful purposes: You can also view average totals, offline tendencies, and shot dispersions for each wedge. A full simulator set up with commercial launch monitors can easily set you back $15,000 $30,000. The only available simulator systems at the time had costs that were out of reach of most golfers. I strongly recommend hitting real golf balls with the SkyTrak instead of foam or plastic balls. It does this by taking you through a series of target sessions, each target being a certain distance out and calling for a specific club in the bag. You can find him on Twitter here - @practicalgolf, where he is happy to chat about golf with anyone. draw on the image with a wide range of drawing tools, play back the swing frame-by-frame or in slow motion, overlay multiple swings or compare them side-by-side, ball performance data (parameters listed above), access to various simulation plans like E6 and TGC, long drive, closest to the pin and target practice challenges (details in the game modes section), skills assessment, bag mapping and wedge matrix features, custom settings including humidity, turf conditions, and wind, progress tracking, charts and graphs for each club in the bag, the WGT closest-to-the-hole challenge on 18 WGT golf courses, Accuracy is extremely good once properly set up, Lots of very useful game-improvement features, Many of the simulation plans are expensive. This will allow you to choose the ideal club and swing length for each situation on the golf course. Backswing and downswing times are displayed, and your total swing duration is rated in terms of being too fast, ideal, or too slow. For example, you can adjust the simulator offset and set your distance to the screen. Comparing SkyTrak to Flightscope and Trackman can be a little tricky since those are radar-based systems. If possible, position your ball so that its logo/marking faces the SkyTrak. First, it comes with the Basic Practice Range Plan at no extra cost. .non-logged-in-ad-block { It would primarily be used indoors. The SkyTrak Play & Improve Plan is available in a package or as an upgrade to the Game Improvement Plan. I believe all of the information that the unit measures are adequate for golfers who are just looking to practice more effectively and have fun playing simulated golf courses without having to shell out a massive amount of money. Such is life! With the captured video, you can: Integration of Swing Catalyst with SkyTrak means that all the information obtained by the SkyTrak is available for viewing alongside the video clips. First, theres a noticeable shot delay (the time between the impact of your ball on the screen and the shot simulation) that you cant do much about. Thats a lot of money to most people. This is where I bought mine, and I recommend them as a resource. I myself wouldnt want to buy a used SkyTrak even if it did save me a few hundred bucks, but to each their own. The Mevo Plus with Pro Package measures club path and other club parameters. SkyTrak describes itself as a personal launch monitor that delivers instant and real-time 3D shot analysis and ball-flight data. Ive mainly considered Mevo+, SkyTrak, and Garmin R10. After each swing, I actually took the time to think about the quality of my shot and where I thought it would go. ), multi-coloured shot tracers for using different clubs, ability to adjust conditions such as wind, humidity, and turf firmness. At just over $3000, you can get theSkyTrak Indoor Training Package,which includes SkyTrak, a high-end net from Net Return, and a 6 x 10 roll-up turf. /* ----------------------------------------- */ I also purchased this stand so that I could clearly see my shots. I still believe it is better than not practicing at all. Here, you can do course play, practice, play games, play online, engage in events, or resume your most recent play. There are many SkyTrak studios available that include a net, screen, enclosure, and projector. They are the #1 dealer of the SkyTrak and they guarantee the lowest price. For more detailed setup instructions, information, and tips, see the SkyTrak user guide. If you have the budget for it and at least 8 feet of space behind you when setting up indoors, I recommend going for that. When you compare it to other launch monitors, there are a few things to be aware of. I have used every single one of those systems quite extensively (mostly Foresight). When you start up the SkyTrak software, youll be presented with up to three different modes depending on your membership level: Practice, Challenge, and Game Improvement. At the end of the session, youll be able to view the yardages for all of your wedges in matrix format. You should expect to purchase the Game Improvement package at the minimum if you do buy SkyTrak. We talk more about the simulation plans for the SkyTrak here. The Game Improvement mode is only available with the Game Improvement or Play & Improve packages. Your review was very informative.. i have had mine for about 6 months and have purchased everything and could not be happier. Playing a simulated golf course is some of the best practice you can get. There are a few things to keep in mind. Both of us know our yardages very well with every single club in our bag, and it was obvious that the FlightScope was overestimating our carry distances by roughly 20%. It measures five directly: With this data, the software is able to derive six more measurements: This turns out to be plenty of data for most golfers. A standalone upgrade to the Game Improvement Plan is also available at $99.95 per year, or $299.95 for three years.