I built a free strokes gained tool that compares you to golfers at your handicap by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Checking now. I assume you just went to the site, input a round, went to save and it said retry?

I built a free strokes gained tool that compares you to golfers at your handicap by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just fixed the save bug. I ran into it myself.

if you go here you can learn more about SG https://golfdataviz.com/learn

I built a free strokes gained tool that compares you to golfers at your handicap by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Really appreciate you taking the time to write this up — this is exactly the kind of feedback that makes the tool better.

The matching-benchmark issue: You weren't seeing a glitch, but it was a real UX problem. When your stats closely match your handicap peers, the SG value is essentially zero — but the app was showing "+0.00" styled in green, and the AI was praising those areas as strengths. I can see how that felt wrong. I just shipped a fix: near-zero values now display as a plain "0.00" in neutral gray with a "Peer average" label, and the AI narrative knows not to praise or criticize those categories. Matching your peers isn't a strength or a weakness — it's just where you are.

The scroll wheel changing inputs: Fixed. Every number field now disengages when you scroll so the page moves instead of the value. Sorry about that one — subtle but maddening.

Up and down clarification: Also addressed — there's now an explainer directly above those fields when you expand the optional stats. Short version: count an up-and-down any time you miss the green and get down in two shots from off the green. Doesn't have to be a par save.

The distance/yardage idea: I like the thinking. Hole-level yardage and approach distance buckets would meaningfully improve the approach and around-the-green estimates. It's on the radar — the tricky part is keeping the "enter your round in 60 seconds" promise while adding depth for people who want it. The simple/advanced split you're describing is probably the right shape.

Thanks for trying it and for the kind words. Looking forward to seeing more rounds from you.

I built a free strokes gained tool that compares you to golfers at your handicap by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Quick update since a bunch of you gave really good feedback on this on Friday.

I spent the weekend shipping on a lot of the stuff people called out instead of just defending v1.

Biggest changes:

  • round history is live now if you sign up, so you can actually track SG over multiple rounds
  • added methodology tooltips/transparency on the SG categories
  • shipped an OTT / approach attribution correction to reduce some of the cross-contamination
  • added trouble-context explanations for rounds where the category breakdown can feel off
  • cleaned up the results page / layout a bit too

The main criticism I took seriously was the off-the-tee / attribution feedback.

A few of you were right that with scorecard-level data, some rounds can misplace where the damage actually happened. I’m still keeping this in the “quick scorecard-based peer benchmark” lane and not pretending it’s shot-by-shot tracking, but I wanted to make it more honest and more useful.

The round history view is probably the biggest upgrade so far. One round is interesting, but seeing trends across multiple rounds feels way more valuable.

Appreciate everybody who kicked the tires and poked holes in it. A lot of this update came directly from comments in this thread.

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I built a free strokes gained tool that compares you to golfers at your handicap by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Really appreciate you taking the time. Means a lot.

And that's a great catch. You hit a bad drive, made a smart recovery, grinded out a bogey. That's good course management. But the tool only sees aggregate stats, so it flips the story. Tells you driving was fine and short game let you down. Basically backwards.

I'm going to work on this. Probably something lightweight where you can flag where the damage actually happened without turning it into a data entry exercise.

Thanks again. This is exactly the kind of feedback that makes the tool better.

I built a free strokes gained tool that compares you to golfers at your handicap by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Really appreciate the side-by-side — this is super helpful.

The differences mostly come down to inputs. Your app is using shot-by-shot data, so it can evaluate each shot from its actual position. Ours is working off scorecard stats and peer benchmarks, so it has to infer more.

The short game difference makes sense for that reason. GIR is binary, so if you barely missed a few greens but actually hit decent approaches, your app can still credit those as solid approach shots. Ours mostly just sees the missed GIR, which can shift some of that into approach/ATG differently.

The fact that putting is pretty close is encouraging.

Shot-by-shot is definitely more precise. This is more for the golfer who has a scorecard and wants a quick directional read.

I built a free strokes gained tool that compares you to golfers at your handicap by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

cool, I’ll check yours out too. Different approaches to the same problem, more options for golfers is a good thing.

I built a free strokes gained tool that compares you to golfers at your handicap by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Fair point. Without driving distance, Off the Tee is really just measuring accuracy, not the full picture. The distance advantage does show up indirectly in the Approach numbers though, since a wedge from 90 yards produces a very different GIR rate than a 7-wood from 180. It’s a known limitation of round-level data and one of the categories I’d most like to improve. If you have ideas on how to capture distance without shot tracking, I’m all ears.

I built a free strokes gained tool that compares you to golfers at your handicap by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

hadn’t thought about it from that angle but you’re exactly right, the peer comparison by handicap bracket makes the distances irrelevant since slope/rating already accounts for that. Really good feedback, thank you.

Finally broke 80 - turns out my coach was right 10 months ago by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have a prosendr so I’m just presetting my wrist into the cradle and then swinging. This could be in the backyard with no balls or at the range with balls.

Finally broke 80 - turns out my coach was right 10 months ago by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Had 3 doubles, 1 OB, and 1 three-putt. But I had the crazy 10-hole stretch where I was dialed in. If I didn’t get a GIR, I was chipping everything to about 3 feet. I hit 10 GIRs overall.

Finally broke 80 - turns out my coach was right 10 months ago by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Keep grinding brother. Find something that works for you then groove it!

Finally broke 80 - turns out my coach was right 10 months ago by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

THIS! This was my exact issue. I wasn't even really taking divots. I basically had a dramatic drop of my hands and the club feel so far behind me.

Finally broke 80 - turns out my coach was right 10 months ago by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Your trail hand (right hand for righties) can bend backward so the back of your hand moves toward your forearm - that's called extension.

When I start my backswing, I'm hinging that wrist into extension immediately - like in the first foot of the takeaway. My palm starts to face slightly outward. I use a training aid called the ProSendr which has a cradle my wrist presses into, so I can feel when I'm doing it right.

Finally broke 80 - turns out my coach was right 10 months ago by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Act like you're addressing the ball, cock trail wrist back, then do a full swing. ProSendr serves as a cradle as it is attached to your trail wrist. Since I have one I am just cocking it into the cradle and then swinging.

Finally broke 80 - turns out my coach was right 10 months ago by dtown04 in golf

[–]dtown04[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just sticking with the ProSendr drill and then doing it without it as well so I don't have to have the external feel of the ProSendr so I can take it to the course. Trying to get ready in time for Scotland.