In a recent piece on Golf Digest’s website, Geoff Shackelford highlighted one benefit of smartwatches in general and the Apple Watch in particular.

 “Once at [the course] the phone went into my golf bag and only came out to take a few photos. Otherwise, texts and even a phone call I answered quickly all came to the watch. Nothing was important enough to require action and I was able to enjoy my round much more even though it was during a workday. I never felt disconnected but also felt more free to take in the on-course proceedings.”

Beyond the ability to disconnect and stay connected, to a degree, smartwatches will have on-course applications. Hole19 is a smartphone and smartwatch application that’s available for the just-introduced Apple Watch.

According to Robert Stewart of Hole19, with the release of the Apple Watch, the company is well positioned to capitalize on what is sure to be the growing popularity of wearable technology in golf.

The company’s website describes the product as “an intelligent caddy in your pocket, integrating a GPS rangefinder, Club Tracker, Strokesaver and a mobile Scorecard into one device.” 

Hole19 launched in April 2014 and has seen impressive growth since launch. In little more than a year, the company has garnered 500,000 users from 90 countries, 1,000,000 rounds of golf played, and 1,200,000 course map downloads.

Interestingly, the company does all of its mapping in house and has 95 percent of the world’s courses in its database.

According to Stewart, users are engaging with the app in different ways. Some are merely using it to get front/center/back distances. Some people just using it as a digital scorecard. Some using shot-by-shot input. And some users, of course, are going a combination of all three.

Regarding the interplay between smartwatch and smartphone technology, the company believes shot-to-shot functions (distances, shot entry) will be primarily accomplished by the smartwatch with complementary functions achieved with the use of the phone every couple of holes and between holes.

Hole19 endeavors to create the most engaged network of golfers who are more engaged with their games than they otherwise would be. The Hole19 user’s average age is 37.5, which sits at the intersection of two major spheres: the active mobile tech user, who is in his/her mid-20s, and the active golfer, who is 50 on average.

Q&A: Anthony Douglas, Founder and CEO of Hole19

Q: What’s your perspective on the current state of wearables in golf?

A: “Our observation has been that golfers are generally quite tech-savvy. This make sense to us, as tech-uptake people and golfers seems to overlap demographically.

While there are some interesting golf-specific wearable and hardware offerings that have emerged, we continue to believe in focusing on creating amazing software for golfers. Our feeling is, ‘Let’s leave the hardware to the players that are experts in building hardware’ (Apple, Samsung, Sony, LG, Motorola, others).

We think it’s still early for the smartwatch category. With the launch of Apple Watch, we think the category is primed to really take off this year. And based on feedback we’ve received from our user base, golfers are among the most eager to use smartwatches. That’s because an app like Hole19 is so valuable while fitting in so seamlessly on the golf course.”

How does the future of recreational golf look different than the present/recent past?

“At Hole19, we believe that putting the tools you need at your fingertips will drive improved pace of play, on average. We also think ever-improving technology will result in game improvement, which further contributes to faster pace of play.”

Let’s look at a practical example. It’s never been so easy to track your stats. Now marry those stats, and knowing what you need to work on most, with personalized in-app Lessons (a feature Hole19 just launched in English-speaking countries), and you have a recipe for engagement and improvement like never before.

Going forward, we believe wearable and software technology will serve to bring new Millennials into the game, and will more strongly engage existing Millennial players. More players and more rounds is a obviously a huge win for the golf industry, especially since it’s been stalled for a half-dozen years. Interestingly, you’ll also see the inverse as well, whereby golf is an entry point into technology for Baby Boomers.”

Tell me about the origins of Hole19…success since launch?

“While I was living in Sweden a while back, I had picked up golf again after a stint of trying to play semi-professional basketball around Europe and I paid $50 for lesson with a pro. When he asked me what I wanted to work on, I had no idea what to say. After sitting with that discontent for a while, I imagined a tool that would allow me to easily track my playing stats; one that gave me deeper insights into my game. At that time, smartphones and the app ecosystem were just starting to take off, and you saw the massive potential there. That was the seed that developed into the Hole19 you see today.

There were a couple of existing apps in the market, but I thought that nobody had delivered the various functionalities in a way that’s simple and not overbearing while on the golf course. Hence, user experience became, and continues to be, Hole19’s No. 1 expertise. If you look on the App Store and Play Store, our reviews back that up. The clean and simple design, as well as being a free app with no subscriptions, have resulted in quite rapid growth since launching in April 2014. 

What’s next for Hole19?  

“It’s a busy and exciting time for Hole19. We’ve just launched the Lessons feature in English-speaking countries, and are enthusiastic about its potential because it connects golfers and pros in an all new, streamlined way. That’s a theme that will be integral to the future of Hole19: connecting the world of golf.

We’ve also launched on three smartwatch platforms over the last month — Apple Watch, Android Wear, and Samsung Gear — and are already seeing lots of feedback from golfers who have switched from golf-specific watches and from other apps to Hole19.

Up to this point, we’ve focused on building Hole19 to support an excellent on-course experience. As the on-course experience shifts more to the smartwatch, we feel there is a very interesting challenge that is presenting itself to us: ‘How can we promote stronger and better engagement with the game of golf off the course?’ We’ll have fun answering that question.”