How Google Glass Could Change Golf

Ryan Ballengee considers the possibilities of Google Glass transforming golf and talks to Paul Goldstein, creator of GolfSight. It's an app that recently debuted at a Google Glass event.

Naturally as an app inventor, Goldstein thinks Google's data recording and sharing glasses will be great for golf.

In a broader sense, Goldstein thinks Glass will be great for golf, furthering the game’s technological revolution. Golfers can get the data they need to play the game in real time, as well be able to see and respond to outside distractions — like email and text messages — without having to become an on-course nuisance.

Another feature golfers will love about Glass and GolfSight? The ability to create their own, real-time highlight reel.

“I think Glass is also great for sharing about golf with friends,” Goldstein said. “It’s great for snapping a quick picture of the course without having to dig out your phone.”

He added, “If you’re fast enough you can turn on the video in time to see your putt role into the hole.”

You may recall that in August Billy Horschel wore the glasses at a tour event range in blatant violation of the PGA Tour's video policy, compromising not just the rights of tour media partners, but the entire broadcast structure in America. Horschel has lived to tell about, or at least the footage has.

A GolfSight promotional video:

Comments

[Ted Ray's Pipe]

Appalling: Golfers can get the data they need to play the game in real time, as well be able to see and respond to outside distractions — like email and text messages — without having to become an on-course nuisance.

[johnnnycz]

Oy vey! Have fun using them in the rain

[sabino]

Maybe they could figure out a way to have sponsor advertising playing while you are standing on a tee box waiting for the group ahead of you, or better yet Joe Buck screaming in the background on FOX Sports. We are getting a long way from C.B. Macdonald's maxim, "When playing golf you want to be alone with nature" which is too bad.

[D. maculata]

Agree, Ted. Just what we need, an army of Terminators to "grow" and thus save the game from itself. Makes perfect sense to some. Golf was so horrible before we were aligned properly, had yardage from the 4th blade of grass in the 2nd cut to the front edge and then couldn't share f-ups instantaneously before the steam dissipated.

I love technology but if you can't detach yourself long enough to play uninterrupted, stick with TV golf and the fridge.

[No Longer Used to be Former Stack & Tilt Convert]

Technology will sneak into golf, slowly, up to the individual on how fast. It would be cool to have a rangefinder integrated in my sunglasses, would not be an early adopter though.

[3foot1]

"You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows."

[munihack]

I have played using glasses since may late 20's and all of my serious golf in glasses. The add doesn't show how the shot looks over the ball but if that corner is still there with info I would find it distracting. My golf glasses are much larger than my standard ones so my side vision has a little more room. This application seems to infringe on that approach, not to mention the mental intrusion. But I expect this will be used by someone who thinks it gives him an edge. I can't see it being allowed in competition.

[digsouth]

If they are made with touch screen, you will have to look thru all those annoying fingerprints.

Seriously, I can still play without any ''devices'', but it is nice to hae some sort of yardage markers on course that is new to me, just 100,150, 200 is good enough.

As I have dabbled in a few 9 hole fun runs since surgery, and I can only play at 40=60% my needing to club with 2-4 more clubs has been whacked by my forgetting to allow for simple elevation changes, such as pop up greenso often found in flat areas. With less power, it usually takes one more club to compensate for a simple 7-12 foot rise.

Google that.

[The Big K]

There was nothing about that ad that made their product seem the least bit compelling. And I consider myself a geek.

[so]

Crap ,crap and more crap .......

[Talking Head]

Maybe Tiger could use them to assist in identifying quantifiable movement?

[DTF]

Very few things in life are a lock, a slam dunk, a certainty, guaranteed...

...but I guarantee you will never see me wearing a pair of those, anywhere!

[Pepperdine]

Might be cool - but watching strictly POV (point-of-view) video footage gets really weak, really fast. So there really isn't much "sharing" available in that regard. Still photos, distance overlay, and ball tracking would be pretty sweet though.

Geoff - what's your big beef with the PGA Tour trying to protect their brand/product? I'm a big fan of cool videos (and fan videos) and such ... but it's the same as NBA/NHL games that way... you're really not allowed to film on your own. That's why broadcasters pay so much money for the rights to do so, isn't it?

I imagine you wouldn't like people taking your published works ("Future of Golf" for instance) and changing it, modifying the cover, moving some chapters around, maybe cutting out some content, etc. etc ... then posting that work on their website. That wouldn't be commentary, parody, or anything along those lines. It'd just be potentially damaging to your work. On the flip side - it could bring a lot of new eyes TO the original work ... but that should be your job to begin with anyway.

I don't know the answers ... but "free reign" shooting doesn't seem to be right.

[Chuck from Charlottesville]

The Horschel video has been taken down, by the way.

[No Longer Used to be Former Stack & Tilt Convert]

Del maybe not those things, but how about some cool Oakleys that have a range finder embedded, responding to simple verbal commands to operate. Future iterations have some potential.

[BrianS]

@ Talking Head +1.

This seems moronic. Just so you have the yardage ? You look at the little map (scorecard, tee box, maybe in the cart if you have one, ), figure out the distance and hit the freaking shot.

[3PuttAficionado]

I am looking forward to GooGlass being able to project a movie onto the underside of the bill of my golf visor, while I wait to tee off.
It won't be long before the fans who yell "mashed potatoes", are yelling "OK GLASS" during tournaments. You have gotta love progress!

[Ted B. (Charging Rhino)]

Just looking at the fairway and getting a visual of the yardages, etc...might be interesting. Or being able to look at the greens and seeing the fall-lines. As long as the information isn't anything more than what you'd get from a good yardage-book and using an excellent, skilled caddie I can't see a problem.

I still want one of those robot-caddies that follow you around the course carrying the bag.

Now if it could just rake the traps properly.

[Pepperdine]

oooo ... fall/speed lines on a green. Now that would look cool (like in various golf video games). Different colors or dots due to speed/elevation. Glasses would likely need a laser in them though, to "scan" the green.

Sweet idea though Ted B.

[CWt]

the applications of the technology shown in the video are middle of the road. nothing too revolutionary. I am interested in how GG or similar can be used instructionally. Overlaying alignment lines or ball position markers during practice. An animation that helps a user visualize an ideal ball flight while standing on a specific hole etc.

[D. maculata]

Now you're making me seasick and want to ralph, Pepperdine. I think its intended, too in funny warped kind of way. So I'll award you a bonus point for the creativity ;-)

[Pepperdine]

HAHA - wasn't trying to induce sickness. But green scanning (like professional LIDAR) would be incredible. You look at a green - it's color coded ... red along the elevated bits, trailing into blue for the lower bits. Little wee dots indicating actual "speed". The colors could overlay directly onto the grass (not like some big thing floating in mid air).


Guess I've played too many golf videogames ... see potential in that sort've thing (check out HotShots Golf for the PS3 ... you'll see exactly what I mean).

[The Pro from Dover]

@D Maculata +2

@so +1

@ BrianS +1 on your second paragraph

[Old Tom]

Why do some even bother to pretend to play golf - they just do not want the challenge - outside information is cheating - there enough said. - Then today we see few Golfer on a golf course, thousand of players, but players will never mature into Golfers, they have not the legs brains or skill to understand the game let alone try and play it without outside help at every move.

PS Slow play is the fault of players and not Golfers!

[johnnnycz]

@Pepperdine&all:

Lol...you guys (and gals) are talking about Al Cervik's Einstein putter becoming a reality.

Like any teacher..I like all the new tech. It provides interesting and effective feedback in this day and age. But in the end it all comes down to just looking at whatever's between your ball and the hole and then trying to hit it solidly along your chosen line....for better or for worse of course.

It either goes in the hole or it doesn't. Much like tossing a coin. The rest is just peanut gallery hubris.

[digsouth]

Johnnny...

The John Daly school of putting vs, Jim Furyk school of screwing around and never getting any sun on his forehead. If Daly played more, he would make more, in 10% of the time it takes Furyk.

They either go in or the don't, if you have a consistent grip, stroke, and can read the greens, and reading the greens should be up to the golfer, and not the caddy, and that includes Bones and PM.

Don't even get me started on putting with The Matrix involved--take your goggles and stick your head in the lake for 3 minutes and see the little fishes and the identifying notes on the lense. That's a catfish.

[johnnnycz]

@Digs: I hear ya...some of my juniors started using that Aimpoint card thing on almost every green...which involved pacing off EVERY putt. After 3 holes last week...I confiscated those cursed cards and voila...they putted more freely.

Sure...they may have missed a few...but at least had fun doing it. Ah...fun, the much forgotten element that brings us back to the course time and time again.

[digsouth]

With my very limited play- around 9-11 holes 4 times in the last 3 months, with none in the last 6 weks, I never even gave putting a thought; I figured if I could just hit the ball that would be good enough, after 3 years of no play...and if I could have chipped worth a flip. I would have scored better than bogie golf- but alas- terrible short game, as to be expected.

I am only a week from this ''boot''being taken off my fott and the pins taken out, and I m chomping at the bit to actually go putt for a few days, chip for a few days, and then go play 18, and target a bogie round.

I pride myself on being able to judge distance, once I have some perspective ( hill country is tough ) I like to walk halfway up to the pin on chips and X2 and you have the distance, and on putting, if there is time I like to walk all te way around the putt/hole- but the main thing is to find something in the background that is at 90* to the ground (telephone poles are good), and then you can see the true slope of the green.

Glad to hear you ar discouraging devices. Golf should be fun, especially for kids.

[Pepperdine]

I'm not advocating any device as a "be all and end all" for golf. I barely use any of the stuff (mostly because I have no money, lol), I play with 12 yr old clubs (Hogan Apex Edge .. ooo yeah), I buy used balls, I don't even use GPS anymore.

That being said ... a bunch of this stuff just sounds like fun. As long as it doesn't hold up play for others, I don't see a problem with it in the least. Sort've like new camera views, graphics, transitions in golf broadcasting. We don't NEED to go back to only showing the last 5 holes in black 'n white at Augusta ... do we? :)

[johnnnycz]

@Pepperdine: It is a sticky paradigm. The new tech gets the kids attention (eg: a launch monitor day is great fun) but IMO it dumb's down the game. Creating helpless little golfers who look good form a distance, but actually have zero clue as to what they're actually doing.

I use this analogy: My CZ cousin here, who loves his BMW's...has ZERO skills when backing up any 4-wheeled vehicle without a stupid computer having to send out beeps letting him know when he's about to bump into something. The other day he nearly freaked out when I backed into his driveway w/ my no-computer aided red ford about 4x faster than he could ever do today. He asked me how I did it...all I said was "I used my eyesight and trained judgement...parking golf carts as a 15yr old teaches many great life skills that can't be bought with the keys to a beemer".


@Digs: Great to hear you're getting out there again. The short game is the first thing to leave and the last to come back after a prolonged break from my experience(s). Tip: Practice putting and chipping with 1) eyes on the hole during the whole stroke (small swings are in order unless you're gumby)

and then...

#2) Now try the same...but the opposite. Keep your head/eyes DOWN until you think the ball has stopped it's journey. Goal is to improve feel for the strike and time it takes the ball to rollout (IMO the most important variable in any target sport like golf). Practice to the point where you can always see the last couple of rolls before it stops and you're good to go find some unsuspecting pigeons and take em to the cleaners.