Active Mind Technology, the Silicon Valley start-up behind the much-talked about product called Game Golf, has a substantial problem on their hands. Orders for the device are coming in at a pace that exceeds the company’s ability to ship them out.
Game Golf ($249) was arguably the most intriguing product introduced at the recently concluded PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando. It’s not an easy feat to trump equipment manufacturers showcasing the latest sticks and balls, but Game Golf managed to rise above the substantial clatter of noise echoing from one end of the pavilion to the other with the bold promise of revolutionizing how golfers play, compete, socialize and improve their game.
The technology itself is surprisingly simple. A lightweight device sensor clips onto a player’s belt and interacts with little red tags that attach to the butt end of the grip for every club in your bag. When you are ready to play your shot, you touch the tag to the sensor on the belt and make your swing. The device will accurately record the distance and direction that the ball flies, tracking your performance from tee to green.
Shot data is transmitted from the device to your computer and is accessible on Game Golf’s website when you log into your account. Your dashboard will list your previously posted rounds allowing you to adjust your score if necessary (as in the case of adding a penalty shot) and determine whether you wish to share your round with your friends within the Game Golf community.
Although the ability to electronically track your score is becoming increasingly commonplace, you’d be wrong to assume that Game Golf is just another in a long line of derivative applications that offer little more than basic stat-keeping.
Unlike existing GPS devices or software applications designed for smart phones that require substantial input from the user, either during a round of golf or afterwards, the Game Golf device is designed to stay out of your way as much as possible while you play so that your focus remains on the shot at hand, as opposed to fumbling around with your phone between holes or scribbling copious notes on your scorecard.
“It collects your round of golf seamlessly,” says John McGuire, CEO of Active Mind Technology. “When I tee off it starts collecting what clubs I’m using and the distances of my clubs. This is the first device that captures that type of data without the golfer having to take out his phone and enter data into an app.”
Active Mind Technology began developing the concept of Game Golf six years ago in Ireland, but it was McGuire’s decision to move the company to San Francisco two years ago to lead with a design-first approach that really propelled the project forward. The company partnered with Fuseproject and famed Swiss designer Yves Behar, who was behind iconic product designs such as the One Laptop per Child computer and Jawbone wireless device to come up with what McGuire affectionately describes as an Apple-like consumer experience.
McGuire’s company focused on engineering the technology while Fuseproject applied their award-winning skills to design the device, the packaging and the user experience. McGuire says working with a firm that didn’t have an inherent knowledge of the golfing industry was a conscious decision.
“They’re outside the box most people are in and came up with something that hasn’t been shown before,” he says. “That’s how breakthrough innovation happens.”
What the joint partnership came up with is a slick package, not just in terms of the actual device (which is substantially cool in it’s own right), but with the online media hub that displays your best round to date, your scoring average, your putts per hole as well as distance and accuracy stats. Drill into a round and Game Golf will overlay each shot against a map of the course you played, giving the player a unique and visually stunning way to view the clubs they’ve used and the flight paths those clubs recorded.
“There’s a plethora of stuff out there on the web for golf but it’s really poorly designed,” McGuire says. “Very little thinking has gone into how you visualize the actual data in terms of colors, in terms of bringing each shot by shot to life. That was one of the biggest challenges we had and I think we’ve done a really good job in making it very simple and very visual.”
At the heart of Game Golf is data. As you would expect, it records your fairway accuracy and greens in regulation. It also records your putts and calculates your scoring average, revealing trends for all the statistics mentioned above.
Things get really interesting because the platform is able to track club performance. The ability to measure the distance golfers hit each club accurately to within less than a yard allows them to have a much better understanding of far how they hit the ball. This is nothing short of revolutionary considering the majority of golfers consistently under-club on their approach shots to the green. Game Golf also has the potential to surface insights about how you use each club in your bag. Imagine being able to find out what your left rough tendency is specifically with your 3-wood, or a breakdown of your GIR percentage based on distance. While Game Golf is not up to par with ShotLink, it is easily the most advanced platform available for the recreational golfer. And McGuire says the company will collect enough data to dig as deep as the Game Golf community wishes them to.
Game Golf went through a thorough beta testing period. One of the early adopters included PGA Tour professional Graeme McDowell, who was so convinced with the product’s potential he became an investor.
“I chased Graeme for a good year while I was in Ireland,” McGuire says. “I eventually got to him and showed him what I was thinking of building and he got it immediately. And he wanted in.”
McGuire credits McDowell’s use of the device as being pivotal in ironing out issues and furthering its capabilities.
“He’s been testing the product for two years,” McGuire says. “Not in it’s current beautiful form factor, but when it was an ugly grey box. We’re very thankful to Graeme. He was able to see around corners and he’s a got a pretty solid head screwed onto his shoulders in terms of what’s coming.”
Active Mind Technology has also brought Lee Westwood and Jim Furyk on board as investors. Westwood saw McDowell wearing it at last year’s U.S. Open practice round at Merion Golf Club and was signed that evening.
McGuire’s company has also partnered with the PGA of America and Golf Channel, two major organizations in golf that clearly see the product’s potential for increasing participation and enjoyment in the game.
The social-centric appeal of Game Golf is no less impressive than it’s data analysis capabilities. Active Mind Technology came up with the concept of the activity feed patterned after existing social networking platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The activity feed not only allows you to share your round of golf with others as you might expect, but it also lets you notify others of your individual achievements such as hitting your longest drive. Your buddy halfway around the world can then receive that notification on their phone and try to best you the next time they hit the course.
“For the really good golfers who want to improve, it’s all about your statistics and understanding your club distances,” McGuire says. “Whereas if you’re a high handicap golfer it might be more about trying to outdrive your brother. So there’s different value props for different golfers.”
Game Golf and the PGA of America also envision a scenario where teaching professionals can be notified via the activity feed of any rounds posted by their students. This gives the PGA teaching pro another platform for engaging their students and, most importantly, a tool that can help golfers return for additional lessons and play better.
Will this new technology have the same transformative effect on golf as the titanium driver or the multi-layered ball? Considering that Active Mind Technology’s small San Francisco-based staff is feverishly working to fulfill product orders so that everyone’s first impressions of the device and the company is a positive one, the long-term answer might be yes.
“Game Golf will revolutionize the game by changing the way we socialize about golf and reveal how we are actually playing the game,” McGuire says. “Much like the introduction of plastic cleats changed the culture of the game, we are doing the same by making golf more social and bringing a golfer’s data to life.”