Advice for a potential SkyTrak buyer

[schmidt61059]

Hello everyone,

I’m seeking advice as a potential SkyTrak buyer. I ventured into golf sims several weeks ago with an R-Motion. For the price, it’s a great value, but there are lots of drawbacks as well. I’d also very much like to use JNPG rather than TGC as the sim (sorry), because I already have a decent version of my home course designed for it. I’m just trying to figure out if SkyTrak is, well, 7x better or just 7x more expensive. I’ve read lots of reviews, but I have a few specific questions remaining.

1. Accuracy of mishits: R-motion is all over the place on this. I presume a real launch monitor like ST will be more or less on the mark since it’s looking at the ball rather than the club. Is that what people experience? It may sound odd, but I want a topped shot to be a topped shot.

2. Chipping and short game: R-motion is very inaccurate here. I’ve read a post or two claiming ST has problems in this area as well, especially on short chips. Is that a general experience?

3. Setup/alignment/non-reads: R-motion is very touchy, both as a Bluetooth device and with what it believes is a “square” club face at address. I’ve read that there are alignment issues with ST as well as problems with non-reads. How common would you say these problems are? I don’t want to trade one set of issues for another.

4. Almost Golf balls: I’m using these with RM, so I’ve had minimal/no costs for screen, net, etc. It doesn’t really matter since RM tracks club not ball, so all it needs is something to impact. I’ve seen a few posts and videos on using Almost Golf with ST. Has anyone used them consistently? If so, what has been your experience with distance loss and other impacts on realism? If they are a no-go with ST, I’d have to figure in the cost of real safety equipment as well.

Thanks in advance for any help.

[StanMI]

Schmidt. ..im no guru but I'll try a couple of your questions

1, IMHO, the worse your mishit is, the worse the info you get from it will be. Skytrak info is based on a center club strike. If you miss by a ton the info you get back may not agree with what you think it should be. I'll add my experience here. I've had good results with it. Mishit or clean strike.

2, short game..... don't bother if it's less then a few feet. Really bad here. IMHO

3, I have had 0 alignment issues. If I hit it right, it goes right. Pull it, it goes left. Shank it, it's a shank.

4, Almost golf balls are going to give you almost results, you won't like it.

I really liked my ST. Just moved on to the GC2 and looking to add an HMT. This hobby is a little like Boating.......as your finding out

[Morini]

1. In my experience MAJOR mishits are capured accurately IF the ball passes through the ST capture area. Minor mishits are captured accurately.

2. I dont do sim, so can only speak to driving range. Pitch style shots that carry over 20 yards are read well. Short chip shots are not, I stopped even trying.

3. Once the unit is accurately aligned, it is accurate.

4. I would't bother with almost golf. Doubt it would be accurate, and there is no normalize function.

[schmidt61059]

Thanks very much for the advice.

StanMI: is the GC2 better at short game? Not that I'm in that price point. Just curious if any simulator had solved this problem.

[StanMI]

I'm very new to the GC2., but so far I'd say yes. It does seem to be better and you don't have to place the ball in a critical location to get consistent reads. I also think it puts better.

Remember, I'm very new to it and at the cost I don't want to initiate any buyers remorse !! LOL

[cmckelvmi]

1. I too purchased the R-motion as my first venture into sim play. Unfortunately I had several issues with it and ended up returning it within a week. My wife purchased a ST for me for Christmas and I say without a doubt the ST is worth the higher price. I think the accuracy of mishits is right on based on my experience with worm burners, slices, and hooks.

2. I didn't have WiFi in my garage until this past weekend. I played my first 18 holes on Pebble Beach Sunday night and 18 holes last night on Pinehurst No. 2. The chipping and pitching around the greens is something I definitely need to get used to. However, I can't believe how much fun simulation play is and I look forward to each round. I have also played several par 3 holes on Bandon too and they're equally if not more fun.

3. I haven't had any set-up or alignment issues. I have my ST in a metal case and I place an alignment rod on the front of the case to visualize my alignment. I recently got a FiberBuilt FlightDeck to hit off of and had several non-reads with my 3 wood and 3 iron. However, thanks to the suggestions from people on here, I realized I needed to adjust the height of the ST. I haven't had any other problems with non-reads since.

4. I tried different cheap range balls, Titleist ProV1x, TaylorMade TP5x, Callaway Truvis, and Titleist TXTs. The ProV1x give me the most backspin and I enjoy those occasional shots that indicate backspin on the green. I have never used Almost Golf balls, but I like what StanMI said, you will likely get Almost results.

As far as advice: Don't over do it! I didn't listen to the warnings on here and ended up with bilateral tendonitis in my wrists. I forced myself to take 12 days off without any playing before the symptoms went away.

My wife and I compared cost of going to the driving range the other day. At my range an extra large bucket of balls (110-120 balls) is $12. I hit any where from 150-250 balls everyday, so I figure I am saving at least $12 a day. Plus all of the time driving to and from the range being saved along with cost of fuel.

[Morini]

I did a similar calculation. Even you by premium balls and "retire" them after 300 shots, it is a fraction of range ball cost. An added benefit of ST vs range is that you have numeric data that can be analyzed.

[Tmorelock]

1. Mishits are pretty accurately depicted in the Skytrak, from my experience (2 months of daily use).

2. The biggest issue I've had with Skytrak on pitching/chipping is that sometimes it will read almost 45 degrees right shank (I'm a lefty) on a ball that travels straight to my net. In JNPG if you click and put it into chipping or pitching mode before taking the shot this doesn't happen.

3. I put down markings on my floor for lefty/righty setup so that I put the Skytrak in the exact same spot every time, and then put down a target line for each using a laser level and the laser alignment dots of the Skytrak. My unit is inside the plastic case. It seems pretty accurate for me. I can watch my buddy hit and instantly tell him it is going right or left based off where it hits the net relative to those target lines. 99% of the time what I see is reflected in the shot from Skytrak.

4. I would use real balls.

[MainStGolf]

You have received some good answers. The SkyTrak for the money is money well spent! It is quite accurate even on mishits - unfortunately - ROFLBMO.

As for the short game the logo pointed toward the unit is a must to help with accuracy. Also if you place the ball slightly toward the unit on shorter shots it tends to help as well. This has virtually eliminated the misreads from the short game. Putting is accurate as well, at least as accurate as the unit will allow it to be. I think the margin of error on either side of straight is larger than the GC2.

I would not hesitate to purchase a SkyTrak unit.

[BogesMalone]

I have had the Skytrak for 2 Month and yes its worth it

1. I agree with what everyone has said so far. If your setup is good and level you are going to get solid readings.

2. I love the short game! This thing has really allowed me to practice the flop shot. I tried doing it at the range but get embarrassed when I skald one over into someones putting line....FOUR!!! The putting on the other hand...well I just suck at it I guess because I see ghost players online bagging birdies all the time.

4. I had issues for a while with alignment and misreads because of the metal case and my wifi connection. Got a proper setup now (hitting mat, wifi extender) and its a thing of beauty. I have not had a proper night of sleep in weeks. Lots and lots of swings. I agree with cmckelvmi as I feel I am on the verge of over doing it.

3. I just ordered some Callaway Foam balls and going to try them out today. I was shanking the other day and my SIM is in my living room so I got some $2 foam balls from Walmart. They actually read those crappy walmart ones so I assume they will work fine with the ones you want. I guess you could just turn up the boost a bit if you want to use them all the time, but like everyone else said its best to use the real thing.

[schmidt61059]

Thanks a ton. This is all very detailed and very helpful.