The 7 Best Golf GPS Watches of 2021

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The Rundown

Best Overall: Garmin Approach S60 at Amazon

"This watch has become the gold standard of golf tech."

Best Budget: GolfBuddy WTX Smart Golf Watch at Amazon

"This affordable golf watch has all the same features as high-end golf watches."

Best Sport Tracker: POSMA GT2 Golf Watch at Amazon

"It shows you the number of steps you take and the calories you’ve burned."

Best for Shot Tracking: Garmin Approach S20 at Amazon

"Pair this watch with the Garmin TruSwing sensor for feedback on your every swing."

Best for Post-Round Analysis: Garmin Approach S10 at Amazon

"You can review a complete post-game report to see where the weak spots are in your game."

Best Lightweight: Bushnell Phantom Golf GPS at Amazon

"Although this watch is lightweight, it still comes packed with all the standard features."

Best for Bluetooth Connectivity: Bushnell Golf Excel GPS Watch at Amazon

"Connected via Bluetooth, this smartwatch gives you an in-depth look at the golf course."

Best Overall: Garmin Approach S60

Widely regarded as the best GPS golf watch on the market today, the Garmin Approach S60 has become the gold standard of golf tech. This high-quality watch can simply do it all.

This Garmin watch features a full-color 1.2-inch touchscreen display that can be read in bright sun. You can display an elegant wristwatch face on the watch during non-golf hours and switch it to a high-quality picture of one of the more than 40,000 pre-loaded golf courses at tee time. Using GPS, this watch will show you your distance to the pin in vivid color; give you a bird’s eye view of the whole fairway and hazards with front, center, and back green readings; or display your score, the hole you are on, and the par. The watch sports a 10-hour battery life in golf mode and 10-day battery life as a normal watch. You can get this watch with black or white silicone bands or a black leather band.

Best Budget: GolfBuddy WTX Smart Golf Watch

Purchasing a golf watch can quickly turn into an expensive endeavor. However, the GolfBuddy WTX Smart Golf Watch is an affordable golf watch that features all of the high-end features of the top of the market golf watches. This full color, touchscreen watch uses GPS to show you your exact location and distance to the front, center, and back of the green. It can also display a map of each hole.

The WTX watch includes a pedometer, smartphone notifications, automatic course, and hole recognition, as well as more than 38,000 pre-loaded courses. You can update your GolfBuddy watch via Bluetooth with the GolfBuddy app. The black watch includes six face display options, including a simple clock.

Best Sport Tracker: POSMA GT2 Golf Watch

If you are an avid golfer and an active person, you may want to consider the POSMA GT2 golf watch. This watch does all of the responsibilities of any GPS golf watch — tells you the distance to the green, your location, and distance of each strike — but it also tracks your activity the same as a FitBit. The POSMA GT2 shows you the number of steps you take and the calories you’ve burned, whether walking nine holes or going for a jog. This sporty red and black watch is very affordable and weatherproof. Featuring a black and white display, the POSMA watch has a 10-hour battery life in golf mode and 10-day life as a watch.

Best for Shot Tracking: Garmin Approach S20

The Garmin Approach S20 is a massively popular golf watch option that is short on frills but packed with the data you need for a great golf game. The watch, available with black, white, blue, or slate straps, tells you your shot distance and how far you are from the green on a simple, 0.9- x 0.9-inch black and white screen.

Golfers everywhere will love the S20’s sleek design, with handy buttons on each side for navigation. You can pair this watch with the Garmin TruSwing sensor for immediate feedback on your every swing as well. Steps, calories burned, score, and round time are just a few of the stats this simple watch can show you right on your wrist with the S20.

Best for Post-Round Analysis: Garmin Approach S10

The Garmin Approach S10 is pre-loaded with more than 41,000 golf courses. It tells you your distance to the green and measures your shot distances. You'll be able to keep track of your score with its sunlight-readable display and see hazard graphics on the watch's black and white square interface.

What sets the Garmin Approach S10 apart, however, is the data it collects and delivers to you for the round. You can review a complete post-game report with all of the data you need to see where the weak spots are in your game and where there is room for improvement. Using its associated smartphone app, you can see a summary of your round including total distance played, total time, and score. The app also lets you upload your scorecards, so you can keep track of your performance over the season. It's a great watch for anyone who loves data and is fixed on improvement.

Best Lightweight: Bushnell Phantom Golf GPS

Weighing under 2 ounces, the Bushnell Phantom Golf GPS watch won't add any extra baggage to your golf caddy. Although this watch is lightweight, it still comes packed with all the standard features that other high-end golf GPS watches have including Bluetooth accessibility, a 10-hour battery life, a shot distance calculator, and a hazard finder. The Bushnell Phantom Golf GPS also has a magnetic mount and clip holder, so it can attach to your golf cart, bag, or belt. This lightweight watch is also easy to travel with since it comes prepacked with 36,000 courses in more than 30 countries. It's available in a variety of colors including blue, green, and red.

Best for Bluetooth Connectivity: Bushnell Golf Excel GPS Watch

Small business owners and executives will love the Bushnell Golf Excel GPS Watch. Connected via Bluetooth, this Bushnell smartwatch lets you easily check your messages, calls, and calendar right from your wrist while you’re on the course. This watch also integrates with a smartphone app via Bluetooth, allowing you to get an in-depth look at the golf course, with more data than any smartwatch can provide.

Additionally, Bushnell’s Excel watch has GPS functionality for 36,000 pre-loaded golf courses in 30 countries, telling you your distance to the green and recording up to four hazards for each hole. You can buy this watch in black, white, or charcoal. It has battery life for three rounds of golf.

What to Look for in a Golf GPS Watch

Preloaded courses Top-of-the-line GPS golf watches come pre-loaded with tens of thousands of courses so your game assistance is dialed in and as accurate for your course as possible. Make sure to check if the courses you golf are installed on the watch before you buy it so you can take advantage of this incredibly useful feature.

Non-golf Capabilities Many manufacturers recognize that if you’re spending this much money on a watch, it should do other things besides helping you with your golf game. Some watches can also act like a Fitbit when you’re out on a run or working out off the course. Others have personal-assistant-like capabilities that can check emails and calls while you’re on the driving range.

Battery Life These watches carry—and process—a ton of information, so it’s not surprising that their battery life can be on the short side. Get a watch that has plenty of charge capability to make sure you can make it through your round.

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