Samsung Galaxy5 Pro Golf Edition Watch Review

Samsung Galaxy5 Pro Golf Edition Watch Review

In the last five years, the number of people who wear smartwatches has more than doubled worldwide. Some 230-plus million people walk around with these wondrous gadgets, the least of their functions being telling time. Smart watches can monitor heart rates, count your steps, answer phone calls, sync you calendars, and some even check blood pressure. More than that, they can run hundreds of apps.

So if you're a golfer who has a smartwatch to go with your smartphone, probably the last thing you want is some other type of watch to wear while you're playing golf. The good part is that if you have a smart watch, there are several golf apps that will allow you to use your watch for distances, scoring and tracking shots. But even better would be a golf watch that's already preloaded with a really good golf app. That's the case with the new Galaxy Watch5 Pro Golf Edition ($330) from Samsung. It has to be paired with an Android phone, so iPhone users need not apply. But for those of you with a Galaxy phone, Android 8 or higher with 1.5 GB of RAM or more, this might be one of the best golf watches available right now.

I tested the Watch5 Pro Golf Edition over the course of six rounds. And even though I've never owned a smart watch before, nor an Android phone (I paired this watch with a loaner Galaxy S21 FE 5G), I didn't find it that difficult to use. Personally, I'm pretty much good with distances to the green and other obstacles like bunkers and water, as well as scoring, but there's so much more you can do with this watch. 

First off, the Golf Edition comes preloaded with the Golf Buddy Smart Caddie, a special app developed for the Galaxy smartwatch by GolfzonDeca. There's an icon on the exclusive golf edition watch face (if you don't change the face) that you simply click on, and it takes you into the app. You have to download a course first before you play, then you can activate the round  on the first tee. From there, you can check on a bevy of options. The basics are the hole maps, distances, and scoring, which is all pretty easy. But for those who want to take a deep dive, the Smart Caddie app really has them covered.

For example, you can keep track of every club and every shot you hit, and how far you hit the ball. That in turn, will basically chart all your tendencies - fairways hit, greens in regulation, putts, etc. The app can recommend what clubs to hit in certain situations once you start entering data. There's also a compass feature to tell what direction the center of the green is from where you are. And there are greens heat maps available on certain courses, which can help you read breaks and slopes. Again, it really depends on your needs and personality. 

I also found the distances to be accurate when compared with a laser rangefinder I was using. Battery life was good as well since the golf edition of this watch comes with an even longer battery life than previous versions. As long as you take the watch out to the course fully charged, you should have no trouble getting through a round with plenty of power left over for the rest of the day. And charging the watch with the included magnetic dock is a breeze. If you're not playing golf you can probably get by for a couple of days without a charge, by the way.

The bottom line is the Galaxy Watch5 Pro Golf Edition pretty much provides all the data one could want to find - distances, keep score, track golf shots, and help in green reading, which matches any golf specific watch on the market. But the best part is that it all comes in one watch that looks at home off the course too.