Garmin launched the Approach S72 on 6 October 2026 as its new flagship golf smartwatch, and moved the S70 to its previous-models shelf. The build is the first thing that changes: a titanium bezel, a sapphire lens and a ComfortFit fabric band, in 43mm and 47mm sizes. The 47mm measures 47 x 47 x 13.5mm, weighs 48g and carries a 1.4-inch, 454 x 454 AMOLED display. On the course it keeps the S70's essentials, 43,000-plus preloaded courses, PlaysLike distances and a Virtual Caddie that recommends clubs from wind, elevation and your own swing data, and adds on-wrist swing metrics such as hand speed, backswing length and wrist rotation, plus golf biometric data that shows how your heart rate moved before and after shots. It is Garmin's first golf watch with a speaker and microphone for calls and voice commands, and it adds a built-in flashlight and the Garmin ECG app. Battery is rated at up to 20 hours in golf mode on the 47mm and up to 16 days as a smartwatch, with 64GB of storage and a 5 ATM water rating. The honest caveat is that several of the headline golf features, green reading, aerial imagery and putting analysis, need an active Garmin Golf membership on top of the watch price.
Best Golf GPS 2026
Watches, handhelds and speakers, ranked.
The Garmin Approach S72, launched in October 2026, is now Garmin's flagship golf watch: the S70's full course maps, Virtual Caddie and AMOLED screen, with a titanium bezel, a sapphire lens and swing metrics on the wrist. The S70 it replaces is still on sale and is the better buy if you don't need those upgrades. Want the same wrist-glance convenience for less? The Garmin Approach S44 covers front/middle/back numbers for a fraction of the price. This is the other half of the distance question: GPS gives you quick green distances at a glance with no aiming, where a laser gives the exact pin number.
Form factor is the first real decision. A watch is the most convenient — glance and go, no fishing in your pocket — but a clip-on handheld suits anyone who hates wearing one, and a GPS speaker doubles as cart music. After that it's how much data you want: a basic watch gives front/middle/back numbers, while shot-tracking models log every stroke for automatic strokes-gained stats. Almost all leading devices include tens of thousands of preloaded courses with no subscription, so check your home track is covered and you're set.
Below we've picked across form factors and budgets — the consensus best-overall watch, the budget watch beginners love, the shot-tracking-and-stats options, the clip-on handheld, and the GPS speaker that does music and yardages at once. Pick your form factor and your budget; the rest is sorted.
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Garmin's flagship golf GPS watch with a big, gorgeous AMOLED touchscreen. It's aimed at the golfer who wants the absolute top-end Garmin and uses it as an everyday smartwatch too, not just on the course.
Shot Scope's flagship GPS watch with automatic shot tracking via grip tags, turning every round into strokes gained data with no subscription.
A premium AMOLED touchscreen golf GPS watch from Garmin that doubles as a proper everyday smartwatch, aimed at golfers who want yardages on their wrist and full health tracking off the course without strapping on a second device.
The Garmin Approach S44 is a slim, lightweight golf GPS watch with a colour AMOLED screen, aimed at golfers who want accurate yardages on the wrist without paying flagship money for the S70 or S50.
A GPS golf watch with proper automatic shot tracking built in, aimed at stat nerds who want to know where their game actually leaks without paying a yearly subscription. You screw the included tags into your grips and it logs every shot hands-free.
A 500-quid-plus Garmin handheld that crams a full GPS golf computer and a radar launch monitor into one pocket unit, aimed at blokes who want yardages on the course and some practice numbers without buying two separate gadgets.
A compact handheld GPS with a touchscreen and slope-adjusted yardages, designed to clip to a bag or stick magnetically to a trolley.
Handheld GPS has quietly become the value corner of golf tech, and the H50 makes the case better than most. The screen is the headline: 4.3 inches of AMOLED, bright enough to read in July sun, and big enough to show the whole hole rather than the three numbers a watch can fit. That matters on a blind tee shot, where seeing the shape of the hole is worth more than a distance to a flag you can't see. Underneath it there are 42,000-plus mapped courses with elevation-adjusted distances and green contours, a cart magnet so it sits where you can see it, and battery life measured in rounds rather than holes. The genuinely important line is the last one: no subscription fees. Several competitors have moved their best features behind a monthly charge, and over three years that reframes what 'cheap' means. Choose it over a watch if you like a bigger picture and don't mind a device in the cart holder rather than on your wrist.
Garmin's entry-level golf GPS watch, built for the bloke who just wants accurate yardages on his wrist without dropping a small fortune or fiddling with a rangefinder.
It is a Bluetooth speaker with built-in GPS that barks out front, middle and back yardages on the cart, aimed at riders who want tunes plus distances from one gadget on the buggy rail.
Frequently asked
- What is the best golf GPS watch?
- The Garmin Approach S72 is Garmin's flagship from October 2026, with full colour course maps, shot tracking, everyday smartwatch use and a titanium and sapphire build. The previous S70 does the same golf job for less. If you want the wrist-glance convenience for far less, the budget Garmin Approach S44 gives the core front/middle/back distances.
- Is a GPS watch or a phone app better?
- A watch is faster and more convenient — glance at your wrist and keep moving, with no battery drain on your phone. A free app is fine for occasional golfers, but regular players find a dedicated watch well worth it.
- Do golf GPS devices give pin-accurate distances?
- No — they give distances to the front, middle and back of the green, not to a specific pin position. For the exact yardage to a tucked flag you need a laser rangefinder.
- Do I need to pay for course maps?
- Most leading GPS watches and handhelds include tens of thousands of preloaded courses worldwide with no subscription. Always check your home course is covered, but for the vast majority of golfers the maps are free to use out of the box.
- Watch, handheld or GPS speaker — which form factor is best?
- A watch is the most convenient for most golfers — distances at a glance with nothing to carry. A clip-on handheld has a bigger screen and suits anyone who dislikes wearing a watch, while a GPS speaker is great if you ride a cart and want music plus yardages. Pick the one that fits how you play.
Related reading
More on this from the desk
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Review
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Review
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Opinion
Golf gave up on the handheld GPS. Golf was wrong.
Watches won on convenience, lasers won on precision, and the humble handheld got left in the cup holder — where, inconveniently for the narrative, it still does things neither rival can: a full-hole map you can actually strategise from, battery life measured in rounds, and nothing buzzing on your wrist mid-swing.
Review
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A gorgeous AMOLED screen, full course maps and a battery that lasts. Is this the only piece of distance tech most golfers need?
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Versus
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