Hell hath no fury like a golf blogger scorned.
I went to use my Skycaddie SG2.5 the other day and imagine my surprise when the list of courses I had downloaded last year had disappeared off my device. I had hooked my Skycaddie to my computer to charge and I guess it sync’d with Skycaddies service allowing Sky Golf to wipe my device clean.
I get having to renew my membership if I want the privilege to download new courses. But to blow away the content that I had already paid for without warning to force membership renewal is heavy handed and not very customer friendly.
I have enjoyed my device up to this point but Sky Golf needs to change this policy or I can tell you this will be my last GPS purchase from this company.
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Wow…had no idea they did that. Kinda of horsesh*t.
I do renew every year but that’s because I’m often changing/adding courses. But still…there are several options out there that come w/the courses pre-loaded now I think.
Of course now you have to ask – what’s it worth to you to get the correct yardages
. A cheaper renewal and some swallowed pride, or an expensive new device that has courses pre-loaded and giving the finger to Skycaddie. Choices choices.
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admin Reply:
May 31st, 2009 at 1:55 pm
Hack – I’d LOVE to give a big finger to Sky Golf and dump the device for one that doesn’t require a subscription. But, I can’t justify the cost of that right now. Not in this economy. But, when things get better….
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-I’m not going to lie, thats pretty lame.
I totally understand the renewal as well but to not get to keep what you’ve already purchased
Is that just SkyCaddie or all of the brands?
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Are they really worth it? I find that it made me terrible at getting distances on courses I was not familiar and did not have this option so I gave up.
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Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan, heck Arnold Palmer and Jack Niiklaus did not have the benefit of range finders.ARE THEY REALLY NECESSARY?
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Dennis Snyder Reply:
August 11th, 2009 at 12:46 am
Bobby, Ben, Arnold and Jack didn’t ride around in carts, didn’t drag their own clubs and played in an era that didn’t have 460 degree drivers nor super graphite shafts either. Their caddies knew the exact yardage from whatever points they were playing from on any given course or else the pros got new caddies. Range finders? Next time your ball lands in tall rough around a dogleg and you knew you just made a great draw or fade but couldn’t see where it landed remember Bobby, Ben, Arnie and Jack had thousands of fans watching where their ball landed. Point is if you’re a pro you don’t need a range finder. If you’re not please let me play through with my range finder because you can’t figure out the yardage to the pin and are taking too much time. Den
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starrman62 Reply:
November 18th, 2009 at 7:34 pm
totally agree, pros don’t need them, but I sure do. SkyCaddie screwed me on a repair…the screen burned up during a round and they say it had to be physical damage, so give me $60 for a new screen or we keep your skycaddie. They are a tad heavy handed and lack reasonable customer service skills…but they have the best product…for now.
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SkyCaddie’s not likely to survive long with their BS subscription and upgrade pricing. There are some excellent GPS Golf applications for the iPhone. No need to buy a new device if you already own an iPhone. $29.95, one time, for the app with no subscription required? I’m not planning to pay SkyCaddie for their ‘new’ software release or renew my subscription, either SkyCaddie. My SG5 will be going on eBay. Might be worth something to a Verizon subscriber.
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i didn’t know they could wipe your unit, wow thats bs. But for those that didn’t know the entire reason skycaddie has annual dues and others don’t is that a person from skygolf walks these courses with a gps to map all the yardages to the green, bunkers, hazards, etc.. where others such as the Upro (i have one too) that are “free” courses are mapped using satellite photos. When my sg5 and upro are side by side they never show the same distance. According to the markers on the course the skycaddie is the more accurate, but the upro has never been off by more than 8-10 yards.
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admin Reply:
September 22nd, 2009 at 1:11 am
Bobby-
You’re right – I’ve never had an issue with accuracy with my Skycaddie. That is something Skycaddie owners take for granted, but they probably shouldn’t (including me).
Blaine
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Bottom line. Skycaddie was the only game in town, they are not anymore and the subscription plan is ridiculous. Even if you have say your home course on the unit and don’t go to the computer at all…they shut you down. Furthermore you have to resubscribe based on the date of your first subscription date. I am almost half hoping that mine breaks so I can justify to myself the u-pro. The problem Skycaddie has is their existing subscribers…they can’t very well sell a non-subscription version while banging the current subscribers. For people that play the same course for 90% of their rounds…Skycaddie is a complete waste.
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shane-o Reply:
May 17th, 2010 at 9:29 pm
@Jack Lord,
So my wife got me this for x-mas and I”m getting ready for the first weeks outing – suprized to see I have to pay another 30 bucks min to get the maps.
Last week a buddy of mine had a free app on his i=phone 3gs – it was updating real-time as he walked around the course. Impressive. Free. I’m curious to see how this goes this week.
Skycaddie would be a great short unless they free up the subscription – focus on the hardware.
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I’m getting rid of my sg5 after having it a year. The subscription is a rip off. Just bought a Nikon 350G laser rangefinder. Much more accurate and no more extra costs. Although I do like the look of the shotmiser 320. They charge a small fee for every course you donwload and its yours to keep.
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admin Reply:
January 7th, 2010 at 11:26 pm
I’m coming up on a decision point on my sg2.5 service renewal. The only thing I don’t like about laser range finders is they are line of sight. And I sometimes find myself off the fairway and that is where I need distances the most. I will have to take a look at the shotmiser though.
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I need clarification on the subscriptions for Skycaddie SG5. So if you pay $29.95 for a membership and download your golf courses, but then not renew your membership the next year (and not reconnect your SG5 to sync), will it just turn off after 1 year and not allow you to play those downloaded courses? Again, I’m saying that you will not reconnect your SG5 to sync ever again so that the manufacturer cannot delete the courses through the synchronizing process.
If anyone could clarify this for me, it would make a big difference in my decision to purchase Skycaddie. Bottom line, it ISN’T WORTH $30 per year just to play your 1 or 2 local courses.
Yes, I know you can “walk your course” on your own and it is free, but you can’t get the water and sand traps (hazards) included which defeats much of the purpose of owning the darned thing.
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admin Reply:
January 16th, 2010 at 6:12 am
Walt –
Unfortunately, it doesn’t matter whether you sync or not. The courses will “expire” on your device a year after your membership expires. So that strategy will not work.
Also, the local course option is fine but I take at least one golf trip during the year and that is when I need my Skycaddie the most. I have local knowledge of the courses near me to the point that I have almost every club choice hardwired, but not at courses I’ve never played before. So, I almost always end up paying for the “Eagle” plan or $49.95. Otherwise, I just don’t get the value from the device that I feel I should.
I get your point about it being worth it. For me, $49.95 is not much more than a round of golf with cart. But, that really isn’t the point. There are plenty of devices on the market that don’t charge subscription fees. Also, I’ve noticed applications are beginning to become available for the iPhone and the various Android devices including Droid and Droid Eris. So, there are choices and you have to weigh Skycaddie’s breadth of mapped courses and features compared to the subscription costs you will incur after purchasing a device from them.
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[...] skycaddie membership renewal rant – hell hath no fury like a golf blogger scorned. i went to use my skycaddie sg2.5 the other day and imagine my surprise when the list of courses i had downloaded last year had disappeared off my device. i had hooked my skycaddie to my … [...]
I had a similar experience with Sky Caddie. I received a sky caddie for a Xmas gift and immediately started a subscription. When it lapsed a year later I stopped playing golf after the birth of my daughter. 6 months later when I was going to start playing again I wanted to renew my subscription.
When I called sky caddie I was told that I had to pay for a full 12 months but would only receive service until Xmas. The anniversary date never changes even if you don’t use it for years. So you may not use it for the first 11 months but you have to pay for a full year to use it regardless if there is only 1 month remaining before your anniversary date.
Total BS.
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Blaine Ballard Reply:
April 20th, 2010 at 8:27 am
@atkjhi,
Wow, that is something I didn’t know either. Interesting. I agree with you – paying for 1 year membership but only getting 11 months is total BS. It should be up to the subscriber on when they renew. Life sometimes does get in the way of golf.
Thanks for visiting the site and as always appreciate your comments and feedback!
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What there doing should be illegal. There using the governments GPS Satellite that we pay for as tax payers and making us renew a membership to continue to use it. The only reason they should be charging us a yearly fee is if you continue to download courses. If not then they cant be shutting it off. This has lawsuit written all over it. When you buy a GPS unit for boating there is no yearly fee because again its the governments GPS satellite your using.
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Does anyone know where you can go for instructions on how to hack the skycaddie so you don’t have to renew it?
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[...] skycaddie membership renewal rant – hell hath no fury like a golf blogger scorned. i went to use my skycaddie sg2.5 the other day and imagine my surprise when the list of courses i had downloaded last year had disappeared off my device. i had hooked my skycaddie to my … [...]
I also am pissed that my use of this device is cancelled because i must send more money every year…there are other companies that do not do this and skycaddy will learn that they lose a loyal following for their greed. So it may not be feasible to dump them and go with another company instead of buying a whole new device; BUT: do not recommend to friends and buy another company’s offering next time your in the market.
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you think the annual membership is a crime. well it gets worse.
once you purchase a sky caddy and activate your membership you are signing up for an uninterrupted service commitment.
what does this mean?
it means if you choose not to renew your (1, 2 or 3 year) membership when it expires, for any reason (injury, illness, course closure, whatever…) you still pay for that time when you choose to reactivate.
i chose not to renew my membership when it expired after 1 year. i took a year off from the game. when i went to reactivate my membership it back dated my renewal 13 months to the cancellation date. so i paid for a year of service when i didn’t even turn the damn thing on.
when i called customer service to point out what i assumed was a technical error. (how naive was i.) i was told it was policy. nice policy. rip off your customers. but after reading some of the emails above i shouldn’t be surprised. obviously they just want to get you signed up. then you’re screwed. they don’t need to provide service. they have you entangled with your investment in the device. clearly, service is not part of their vocabulary.
so if you buy one, just know what you are signing up for.
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