SkyTrak+ - 2024 Forum Review

[Swood1994]

51 minutes ago, TSauer said:

I'm really looking forward to trying them all out! It seems everything will run pretty smooth on the iPad, so that's a plus.

The graphics look great! I can't wait to get this up and running. I'm really excited for the par 3 oddly enough as I'm way more comfortable with irons indoors so it will be fun to play that course. I think I'm going to try and hit pebble and other "big boy" course from the front tees and really use the hybrid and driving iron for practice off the tee.

[TSauer]

Well, I went out to play a round at Pebble Beach on lunch and came across my first minor annoyance...

Earlier when I was testing out my license and making sure the courses would load, I decided to connect to the unit using network mode. This is pretty much the same concept of connecting a printer to your computer. You connect to direct mode first, then continue to connect to network mode by letting the device discover your wifi and then you put in your wifi credentials and voila!

Thinking everything was fine, I went out on lunch and got everything set up and for some reason the device wouldn't connect. The colored lights indicated it was in network mode, but the app would never connect to the device. From what I read, to get it back in direct mode, there were a couple options.

1. Reboot your router so your network goes offline and it may then force the ST to go back to direct mode
2. Hard reset the ST

Option 1 did not work.

Option 2 was what I was left with, which means I had to hardwire the unit to my computer in order to connect to it, then go into the device settings to reset it. I believe on the previous version there was a reset button on the bottom, but that doesn't appear to be the case on this model.

Everything was reset and I made sure I was able to reconnect to it using direct mode afterwards.

Also, the only way to download courses and new ranges with the app is to be connected in network mode, so I'm hoping it was just a weird fluke.

[TSauer]

QUICK UPDATE TO THE ABOVE STATEMENT.

I know it's back to back but I already had that typed up and figured it was worth posting, even if it was a one-off issue. BUT, I connected back to the device using network mode and powered it off and back on to make sure everything would be fine later when I go play... AND WE'RE GOLDEN!

[TSauer]

Oh, one more thing. They threw in a Halloween themed driving range. You can bet I'll be using that.

[TSauer]

Snuck in a quick 9 at Oakwood Country Club, and that was a blast! As @Swood1994 commented earlier, the graphics really are great on the iPad! The whole thing was pretty fluent and I think they did a really good job with the software. There was really only one issue I had, and I’ll talk more about that later in my update. 

But, I’m pretty amazed! 

[TSauer]

I know I'm all over the place today with these posts, but I forgot to include this earlier. I was going through the setup screens and noticed a little "rotten" Easter egg. Thought it was odd how the grammar on this page is all over the place.

[TSauer]

A little bit more about my round yesterday. It was a nice, cool day with temps in the 70s and I was able to enjoy Oakwood Country Club from my back yard.

I opted to only play 9 holes and didn't mess with any of the settings for the initial go-round. Honestly, I was just excited to dive in and play! You can choose to play 9, 18, or even customize your round to play whichever holes you select.

The settings that can be changed go as follows:

• Game Mode: Stroke Play
• Concede Score: Double Bogey, Triple Bogey, Double Par, Actual Score
• Mulligans: Unlimited, 1, 2, 3
• Putting: Auto Putt, Putt It Out
• Gimmes: 0ft, 3ft, 5ft, 10ft
• Pin Position: Easy, Medium, Difficult
• Wind Speed: 0mph, 0-5mph, 5-10mph, 10-15mph, 15-20mph, 20-25mph
• Wind Direction: Every Direction
• Green Speed: Normal, Fast, Lightning, Slow

 

 

If anyone has play any PGA game, that is exactly how the software feels. It starts over with a brief aerial shot of the hole and then gives you your yardages to a selected point. You can do a hole flyover, get a drone shot of the entire hole, or an aerial shot of the green. You get all of the important data about the hole, such as yardage, how many feet up or down it's playing, and the "Plays Like" yardage which you can toggle off or on. All pretty standard stuff. I really enjoy the UI, it feels really clean and well done. One thing in particular that just made sense on an iPad was being able to aim your shot not only by using the map view, but simply tapping on the screen where you wanted to aim. It doesn't make much sense to do that off of the tee box, but when you get around the greens, in comes in really handy.

Let's just say I went in the trees for, uhh... science.

 

 

Instead of using the map view on the right to aim my shot, I was able to just tap the center of the fairway to the left of the tree where it's currently aimed and it would put me right there, super simple. The entire round was a breeze. You get a few seconds between each shot to choose whether or not you want to take a mulligan or else it just continues to where your ball ended up and prepares your next shot.

BUT, there was one thing that kept puzzling me. There were a handful of times when my shots would end up just off the green or just a short chip to the green and the device would not ready my shot. The check mark would stay red and never turn green and give me the dot. However, if I clicked the button to play my last shot over, it would move me back to my previous shot and I'd instantly get the go ahead to swing. It was very odd and I'm not sure how to interpret it.

These were a few of the shots where that happened:

 

Aside from that little quirk, I had an absolute blast and I think they did a great job with the iOS app. I plan to get everything back inside and hooked up to the PC soon, I've just been taking advantage of the nice weather we're having here in Missouri. I think seeing this run on a PC with a TV is going to be much more fun!

And here's how the front 9 went for me. The decimal scoring kinda throws me for a loop, I'm assuming it has something to do with the putting.

 

 

[Medfloat]

14 minutes ago, TSauer said:

A little bit more about my round yesterday. It was a nice, cool day with temps in the 70s and I was able to enjoy Oakwood Country Club from my back yard.

I opted to only play 9 holes and didn't mess with any of the settings for the initial go-round. Honestly, I was just excited to dive in and play! You can choose to play 9, 18, or even customize your round to play whichever holes you select.

The settings that can be changed go as follows:

• Game Mode: Stroke Play
• Concede Score: Double Bogey, Triple Bogey, Double Par, Actual Score
• Mulligans: Unlimited, 1, 2, 3
• Putting: Auto Putt, Putt It Out
• Gimmes: 0ft, 3ft, 5ft, 10ft
• Pin Position: Easy, Medium, Difficult
• Wind Speed: 0mph, 0-5mph, 5-10mph, 10-15mph, 15-20mph, 20-25mph
• Wind Direction: Every Direction
• Green Speed: Normal, Fast, Lightning, Slow

 

 

If anyone has play any PGA game, that is exactly how the software feels. It starts over with a brief aerial shot of the hole and then gives you your yardages to a selected point. You can do a hole flyover, get a drone shot of the entire hole, or an aerial shot of the green. You get all of the important data about the hole, such as yardage, how many feet up or down it's playing, and the "Plays Like" yardage which you can toggle off or on. All pretty standard stuff. I really enjoy the UI, it feels really clean and well done. One thing in particular that just made sense on an iPad was being able to aim your shot not only by using the map view, but simply tapping on the screen where you wanted to aim. It doesn't make much sense to do that off of the tee box, but when you get around the greens, in comes in really handy.

Let's just say I went in the trees for, uhh... science.

 

 

Instead of using the map view on the right to aim my shot, I was able to just tap the center of the fairway to the left of the tree where it's currently aimed and it would put me right there, super simple. The entire round was a breeze. You get a few seconds between each shot to choose whether or not you want to take a mulligan or else it just continues to where your ball ended up and prepares your next shot.

BUT, there was one thing that kept puzzling me. There were a handful of times when my shots would end up just off the green or just a short chip to the green and the device would not ready my shot. The check mark would stay red and never turn green and give me the dot. However, if I clicked the button to play my last shot over, it would move me back to my previous shot and I'd instantly get the go ahead to swing. It was very odd and I'm not sure how to interpret it.

These were a few of the shots where that happened:

 

Aside from that little quirk, I had an absolute blast and I think they did a great job with the iOS app. I plan to get everything back inside and hooked up to the PC soon, I've just been taking advantage of the nice weather we're having here in Missouri. I think seeing this run on a PC with a TV is going to be much more fun!

And here's how the front 9 went for me. The decimal scoring kinda throws me for a loop, I'm assuming it has something to do with the putting.

 

 

Maybe the decimal scoring is a culmination of slope/rating/HC. 

[TSauer]

4 hours ago, Medfloat said:

Maybe the decimal scoring is a culmination of slope/rating/HC. 

I'm not sure, I couldn't find a definitive answer. I did just see someone else mention it and they claimed it was because of putting as well. I do know when you get on the green there is a decimal number that pops up before giving you your putt... that's gotta be it. I didn't really think about it until now.

I'll have to load a course tomorrow and double check.

[Swood1994]

6 hours ago, TSauer said:

A little bit more about my round yesterday. It was a nice, cool day with temps in the 70s and I was able to enjoy Oakwood Country Club from my back yard.

I opted to only play 9 holes and didn't mess with any of the settings for the initial go-round. Honestly, I was just excited to dive in and play! You can choose to play 9, 18, or even customize your round to play whichever holes you select.

The settings that can be changed go as follows:

• Game Mode: Stroke Play
• Concede Score: Double Bogey, Triple Bogey, Double Par, Actual Score
• Mulligans: Unlimited, 1, 2, 3
• Putting: Auto Putt, Putt It Out
• Gimmes: 0ft, 3ft, 5ft, 10ft
• Pin Position: Easy, Medium, Difficult
• Wind Speed: 0mph, 0-5mph, 5-10mph, 10-15mph, 15-20mph, 20-25mph
• Wind Direction: Every Direction
• Green Speed: Normal, Fast, Lightning, Slow

 

 

If anyone has play any PGA game, that is exactly how the software feels. It starts over with a brief aerial shot of the hole and then gives you your yardages to a selected point. You can do a hole flyover, get a drone shot of the entire hole, or an aerial shot of the green. You get all of the important data about the hole, such as yardage, how many feet up or down it's playing, and the "Plays Like" yardage which you can toggle off or on. All pretty standard stuff. I really enjoy the UI, it feels really clean and well done. One thing in particular that just made sense on an iPad was being able to aim your shot not only by using the map view, but simply tapping on the screen where you wanted to aim. It doesn't make much sense to do that off of the tee box, but when you get around the greens, in comes in really handy.

Let's just say I went in the trees for, uhh... science.

 

 

Instead of using the map view on the right to aim my shot, I was able to just tap the center of the fairway to the left of the tree where it's currently aimed and it would put me right there, super simple. The entire round was a breeze. You get a few seconds between each shot to choose whether or not you want to take a mulligan or else it just continues to where your ball ended up and prepares your next shot.

BUT, there was one thing that kept puzzling me. There were a handful of times when my shots would end up just off the green or just a short chip to the green and the device would not ready my shot. The check mark would stay red and never turn green and give me the dot. However, if I clicked the button to play my last shot over, it would move me back to my previous shot and I'd instantly get the go ahead to swing. It was very odd and I'm not sure how to interpret it.

These were a few of the shots where that happened:

 

Aside from that little quirk, I had an absolute blast and I think they did a great job with the iOS app. I plan to get everything back inside and hooked up to the PC soon, I've just been taking advantage of the nice weather we're having here in Missouri. I think seeing this run on a PC with a TV is going to be much more fun!

And here's how the front 9 went for me. The decimal scoring kinda throws me for a loop, I'm assuming it has something to do with the putting.

 

 

I was able to get 27 in today as well! Still working on my update but played the par 3 and Quail Hollow. Decide to play QH from the very front tees so I could hit mostly irons. Longest club I hit off the tee was a 4-hybrid. My swing is feeling good, I’ll give you guys some guesses as to what I finished from 5100 yards

[Medfloat]

3 minutes ago, Swood1994 said:

I was able to get 27 in today as well! Still working on my update but played the par 3 and Quail Hollow. Decide to play QH from the very front tees so I could hit mostly irons. Longest club I hit off the tee was a 4-hybrid. My swing is feeling good, I’ll give you guys some guesses as to what I finished from 5100 yards

108 for 27 holes…and 2 hogies

[Swood1994]

1 hour ago, TSauer said:

I'm not sure, I couldn't find a definitive answer. I did just see someone else mention it and they claimed it was because of putting as well. I do know when you get on the green there is a decimal number that pops up before giving you your putt... that's gotta be it. I didn't really think about it until now.

I'll have to load a course tomorrow and double check.

The decimal scoring is from the average putts on auto-putt. I noticed if I had a 13-15’ putt if averaged around 1.6-1.8 putts but if I was inside 10-12’ it averaged around 1.2-1.5 putts. Whenever it’s below X.5 putts it rounds down and takes the lower score and if it’s over it takes the next shot and counts it. I don’t think you can adjust the way the auto-putts are calculated but I haven’t dug into it. I know of some other sims you can play auto putt to the tour average or the statical average. Could be a nice future add to the software. 

Part of me wishes it just gave you the rounded score on the score card but it’s. A minor detail and one that might be possible I just overlooked.

[MattF]

17 hours ago, TSauer said:

I think seeing this run on a PC with a TV is going to be much more fun!

It is, but if you get the opportunity to do a screen and projector, it's so much better.

[TSauer]

4 hours ago, MattF said:

It is, but if you get the opportunity to do a screen and projector, it's so much better.

For sure. My buddy has a full GC3 setup with the whole nine yards and I'm envious. An impact screen and projector is my ultimate goal, hopefully one day I'll be there.

[Swood1994]

Well I’m going to be slightly delayed getting my updates up but for an exciting reason though! My wife and I ended up having our second child early this morning so we are at the hospital for a couple days.

I’ll be sure to have the updates posted soon once we are home and settled!

[mynerds]

29 minutes ago, Swood1994 said:

Well I’m going to be slightly delayed getting my updates up but for an exciting reason though! My wife and I ended up having our second child early this morning so we are at the hospital for a couple days.

I’ll be sure to have the updates posted soon once we are home and settled!

Congrats @Swood1994! Best wishes to you, mama, and baby, and get some rest while you can!

[TSauer]

41 minutes ago, Swood1994 said:

Well I’m going to be slightly delayed getting my updates up but for an exciting reason though! My wife and I ended up having our second child early this morning so we are at the hospital for a couple days.

I’ll be sure to have the updates posted soon once we are home and settled!

Congrats on the newest addition!

[Medfloat]

1 hour ago, Swood1994 said:

Well I’m going to be slightly delayed getting my updates up but for an exciting reason though! My wife and I ended up having our second child early this morning so we are at the hospital for a couple days.

I’ll be sure to have the updates posted soon once we are home and settled!

Congratulations!  Hope all are doing well.

[MattF]

9 hours ago, Swood1994 said:

Well I’m going to be slightly delayed getting my updates up but for an exciting reason though! My wife and I ended up having our second child early this morning so we are at the hospital for a couple days.

I’ll be sure to have the updates posted soon once we are home and settled!

Congratulations!

[Medfloat]

Since the weather is changing and 'Ol man Winter is waking up, has anyone used the unit in colder weather, say sub 50?  If so...

Is there a temperature restriction for using the ST+ like "don't use below 40°?"

How was battery life?

Any issues with the unit reading ball placement like a reduced area from the warm weather area?

Was there any increase in lag time after striking the ball?

Any noticable graphics slowdown?

Any increase in shot mis-reads?

Any fog/condensation buildup inside the unit or concerns?

Since this will be a garage-use unit for me and I live close to lake Erie where temps can get cold and snow can be plentiful, these are thoughts that may influence my purchasing decision.  I do have an electric, portable heater in the garage but it is small.  

 

Edited Monday at 02:36 PM by Medfloat

[schooner44]

15 hours ago, Swood1994 said:

Well I’m going to be slightly delayed getting my updates up but for an exciting reason though! My wife and I ended up having our second child early this morning so we are at the hospital for a couple days.

I’ll be sure to have the updates posted soon once we are home and settled!

Congrats! I'm already a year into being a grandpa so now I don't feel so bad about seeing your distances compared to mine lol!

[MattF]

1 hour ago, Medfloat said:

Since the weather is changing and 'Ol man Winter is waking up, has anyone used the unit in colder weather, say sub 50?  If so...

Is there a temperature restriction for using the ST+ like "don't use below 40°?"

How was battery life?

Any issues with the unit reading ball placement like a reduced area from the warm weather area?

Was there any increase in lag time after striking the ball?

Any noticable graphics slowdown?

Any increase in shot mis-reads?

Any fog/condensation buildup inside the unit or concerns?

Since this will be a garage-use unit for me and I live close to lake Erie where temps can get cold and snow can be plentiful, these are thoughts that may influence my purchasing decision.  I do have an electric, portable heater in the garage but it is small.  

 

I'm a bit further south of you near Akron and use mine exclusively in the garage. It's insulated and I have a tower heater going but it's been as low as 46° in there and I haven't seen anything wrong with the ST+ reading shots, slow downs or condensation.

[TSauer]

A little experiment from yesterday. I wanted to test how the numbers differentiated depending on where the ball was placed relative to the dot. Now, most of the time the ball is going to be pretty close to the dot, so this won't matter a whole lot, but I wanted to test it anyway. I used a 6 iron and hit 10 shots with the ball in each location. The ball being on the inside of the dot was the most difficult, as there were quite a few shots that didn't even register. As you can tell, the numbers from that location were also the outlier of the pack when it came to distance.

My swing was kinda all over the place yesterday, so I tried to exclude any shots that were out of the norm.

Remember, I am a lefty, so in all of these shots the ball is going to be traveling to the right.

[Medfloat]

1 hour ago, TSauer said:

A little experiment from yesterday. I wanted to test how the numbers differentiated depending on where the ball was placed relative to the dot. Now, most of the time the ball is going to be pretty close to the dot, so this won't matter a whole lot, but I wanted to test it anyway. I used a 6 iron and hit 10 shots with the ball in each location. The ball being on the inside of the dot was the most difficult, as there were quite a few shots that didn't even register. As you can tell, the numbers from that location were also the outlier of the pack when it came to distance.

My swing was kinda all over the place yesterday, so I tried to exclude any shots that were out of the norm.

Remember, I am a lefty, so in all of these shots the ball is going to be traveling to the right.

Location, location, location.  Which location was the closest to your actual numbers or results you see on the course or a fitting?  Which one will you be using for consistency? 

[TSauer]

2 hours ago, Medfloat said:

Location, location, location.  Which location was the closest to your actual numbers or results you see on the course or a fitting?  Which one will you be using for consistency? 

The center was the most accurate and closest to what I’m seeing on the course. 

[Swood1994]

7 hours ago, TSauer said:

A little experiment from yesterday. I wanted to test how the numbers differentiated depending on where the ball was placed relative to the dot. Now, most of the time the ball is going to be pretty close to the dot, so this won't matter a whole lot, but I wanted to test it anyway. I used a 6 iron and hit 10 shots with the ball in each location. The ball being on the inside of the dot was the most difficult, as there were quite a few shots that didn't even register. As you can tell, the numbers from that location were also the outlier of the pack when it came to distance.

My swing was kinda all over the place yesterday, so I tried to exclude any shots that were out of the norm.

Remember, I am a lefty, so in all of these shots the ball is going to be traveling to the right.

Great experiment! I just got my RPT ball marker in the mall today so I’ll be marking up some balls and hopefully doing something similar in the next couple days. 

I think these 2 experiments will compliment each other very nicely!

[Swood1994]

Course Play 10.19.24

This post is slightly overdue as we are 5 days past when I first got to test the course play features of the Skytrak+. However, like I mentioned a couple days ago in this thread as well as others I welcomed my 2nd daughter into the world 10/20 so I've been taking some much needed down time to spend with family and try to catch some sleep.

Now let's dive into the Skytrak+ in-app course play software. First off, the variety of courses that Skytrak offers is outstanding. you have top tier courses like Pebble Beach and Quail Hollow to local gems like Shelter Harbor in RI and even fun arcade style par 3 courses. There really is something for everyone.

You do need to download each individual course. But the download times were quick, and I had no issues with getting things up and running. I like that Skytrak has included multiple options for style of play (Stroke vs Match play) as well as all of the usual creature comforts when setting up simulation golf like wind, putting style, gimmie range, etc. The only options I didn't recall seeing (but could be wrong and will double check) is green and fairway firmness which would be nice to have but not necessarily a deal breaker.

For my initial round(s) I played the 9-hole par 3 course and then tried Quail Hollow from the very front tees. I played with the following setup for Quail Hollow:

• Game Mode: Stoke Play
• Concede Score: Double Bogey
• Mulligans: Unlimited (more for if the shot glitched based on other experiences)
• Putting: Auto Putt
• Gimmies: 5ft
• Pin Position: Medium
• Wind speed: 0-5 MPH
• Wind Direction: North
• Tees: Red ~5100 yards

The main reason I chose the front tees is I still only really feel comfortable hitting up to a hybrid inside the garage. I wanted to try and simulate what I would have into par 4's/5's with driver from 6500-7000 yards. I'll likely move back 1 or 2 tees from the very front as I had a couple par 5's that were sub 475 yards which made them very eagle-able.

Now onto graphics and UI. The graphics were great and exactly what I would expect at this level of software. the background noise was a nice touch, and the clubhouses and trees/backgrounds were not grainy or pixeled.

I failed to snap a screenshot of the available stats but similar to the driving range course play gives you a subset of metrics like back spin, side spin, launch angle, etc. after each shot. I thought this was a nice touch if you are actually trying to "practice" while playing on courses. One thing I don't think I'll be able to test right away but will hopefully update on in the future is if you can move the metrics to a separate screen while projecting the course/shot on the impact screen. I think that would be a really nice touch so you could have both up at the same time but not interfering with the view of the course/shot. Another added feature I liked was the approach view with the lines for wind direction as well as multiple view options such as flyover, drone, and green views.

This screen also allowed you to change your aimpoint by left mouse clicking a spot in the fairway. this is a simple thing that most sim software has but still nice that it wasn't overlooked. This screen can also be enlarged, kept in the top right corner, or minimized completely when playing. The graphics and processing were extremely smooth, and I was very impressed with the ball flight characteristics. I was able to hold greens and shape shots as I would expect to in real life. The auto putt is a little hard to follow, in my opinion. To me it looks like it takes an avg putts taken from a certain distance and rounds you up or down to the nearest score if you are over or under 1.5 putts. It makes sense but they display the scores for each hole with decimal points which then add up a whole number at the end of your round. I would prefer if it just rounded off on the actual scorecard for each hole. It would make it a cleaner as you went through your round. This also may be something I can fix in the settings but haven't had the time to mess around with it yet. I will be sure to check before including anything further about in my final review. I will also be sure to try out Skytrak's putt it out setting to see how good the putting is on the sim. I tend not play this setting on any Sim's as I do not enjoy simulator putting one bit.

After my first experience with the Skytrak+ course play I am extremely impressed. It checks all the boxes for me, and it was a lot of fun. There is definitely room for improvement in some areas. Not to mention shooting -6 at Quail Hollow (front tees) helps with having fun! I tried calling Jay Monahan to see if he could get me into the field for the ZOZO but unfortunately, he didn't return my call. I guess I'll have to keep practicing...

[Swood1994]

Starting to mark up some golf balls for the spin experiment, The $9 RPT template worked well for the price! I am planning on hitting a blank prov1 and a normally marked ball in comparison, so 4 balls total.

Edited 14 hours ago by Swood1994

[TSauer]

2 hours ago, Swood1994 said:

Starting to mark up some golf balls for the spin experiment, The $9 RPT template worked well for the price! I am planning on hitting a blank prov1 and a normally marked ball in comparison, so 4 balls total.

Very much looking forward to this!

[Swood1994]

On 10/18/2024 at 3:17 PM, TSauer said:

QUICK UPDATE TO THE ABOVE STATEMENT.

I know it's back to back but I already had that typed up and figured it was worth posting, even if it was a one-off issue. BUT, I connected back to the device using network mode and powered it off and back on to make sure everything would be fine later when I go play... AND WE'RE GOLDEN!

Reading back through this I forgot to respond. When I called ST customer support they recommend resetting the unit if it gets stuck in a certain connection mode so you were right on the money!

Edited 11 hours ago by Swood1994