Apple Watch | Using 18Birdies on Apple Watch

You can use 18Birdies on Apple Watch to view GPS distances, enter scores, track shots, and manage key round actions from your wrist. 

In this Article:

• How do I start a round from the Apple Watch?
• How do I view GPS distances?
• How do I enter score and stats?
• How do I switch holes while playing?
• How do I track a shot from my Apple Watch?
• How do I finish a round?
• Frequently Asked Questions

How do I start a round from the Apple Watch?

To start a round from Apple Watch:

1. Open 18Birdies on your Apple Watch.
2. Choose the course, if available.
3. Select which holes you would like to play.
4. Select the starting hole, if prompted. 
5. Select tees, if prompted.
6. Select a Scoring Mode: Classic or Smart Tracking.
7. Start the round.

You can start a round directly from your Apple Watch even if you haven’t opened the app on your phone yet. The phone and watch will sync automatically. 

You can also start the round from your iPhone, then open 18Birdies on Apple Watch to continue from your wrist.

How do I view GPS distances?

During a round, Apple Watch will show front, middle, and back distances to the green on the right side of the screen. Distances are based on the GPS location available to the watch.

Premium users will also see Plays Like distances for the center target on the left side of the screen. If you would like to adjust the wind or see more details on the Plays Like distances, you can swipe once to the right to do so. 

In addition to GPS Distances, Premium users can click on the “Map” icon in the bottom left corner of the screen to see Apple Watch Maps and 3D Greens. 

How do I enter my score and stats?

Entering score in Apple Watch differs based on which Scoring Mode you are using. This section specifically covers Classic Scoring on Apple Watch. To enter your score and stats:

1. Open the active round on Apple Watch.
2. Go to the score entry screen.
3. Enter your score for the hole.
4. Enter stats.
5. Save or continue to the next hole.

Optional stats include putts, fairway result, greens in regulation, chip shots, sand shots, and penalties. 

You can turn off Stats Tracking in your Apple Watch settings if you would like to skip this step:

1. Swipe left until you get to the furthest page.
2. Click the “Settings” gear wheel in the top right.
3. Toggle off the Stats Tracking setting.

Visit this article to learn more about tracking your score and stats with Smart Tracking with Apple Watch.

How do I switch holes while playing? 

After you input your score for a hole, the Apple Watch should automatically move to the next hole. 

If you are not inputting scores and would like the Apple Watch to advance automatically, you can turn on the “Switch Hole Based On Location” setting. To do so:

1. Swipe left until you get to the furthest page.
2. Click the “Settings” gear wheel in the top right.
3. Toggle off the “Switch Hole Based On Location” setting

If you notice the watch is showing the wrong hole as you play, you can fix it manually by clicking on the hole number in the top left corner, and selecting the correct hole. 

How do I track a shot from my Apple Watch?

There are two main ways to track a shot on Apple Watch when using Classic Scoring. 

Manual Tracking

To manually track a shot from Apple Watch:

1. Swipe to the left to get to the Shot Tracking screen
2. Click the “Track Shot” button at the starting location of your shot. 
3. Select or confirm the club used on the tracking screen. 
4. Hit your shot. 
5. Walk to the ending location of your shot. 
6. Click “Save” and your shot is tracked. 

If you track shots often, you have the option to replace the “Map” icon with the “Track Shot” icon. To do so:

1. Swipe left until you get to the furthest page.
2. Click the “Settings” gear wheel in the top right.
3. Click “Home Page”
4. Select “Track Shot”

Automatic Tracking

Premium members have access to Auto Swing Detection, which you can use to expedite your shot tracking on Apple Watch. 

To use Auto Swing Detection for shot tracking as you play the hole:

1. Hit your ball. When a swing is detected, the top left of your watch face will display the distance to your most recently detected swing next to a red dot. 
2. Walk to your ball.
3. Click on the distance to last shot. This will open the Shot Tracking page, with the starting location where your swing was detected. 
4. Click “Save” and your shot is tracked. 

Alternatively, you can revisit where swings were detected after your round in the Round Summary. 

If you would like to track every shot in your round automatically, you can use the Smart Tracking scoring mode. Visit this article to learn more about Smart Tracking on Apple Watch. 

For more information on Shot Tracking, see Shot Tracking Basics and Club Recommendations and True Distance.

How do I finish a round?

To finish a round from Apple Watch:

1. Complete your final hole.
2. Review your score and stats.
3. Tap the finish round option, if available.
4. View your final score and then go to your iPhone to confirm your scorecard. 

For best results, review and confirm the completed round from your iPhone before leaving the course.

Frequently Asked Questions