Golf Programs "FORE" You

I'm a golf nut. I've been playing golf since I was 5 years old and most of the shirts and ties in my dresser have a golf motif. When someone is coming to visit me at home I tell them to look for the golf cart in the yard, the only one on my street. I have golf clocks, statues of golfers around my house, and a picture in my office of the 3 Stooges dressed in golf clothes with the caption "Golf with your friends." So I guess it was "par for the course" that I was chosen to review the various golf-related programs available for the Palm-size and Pocket PC. It meant taking my Palm-size PC out on the golf course and playing a few rounds. It's a tough life, isn't it!

I looked at four programs already available for the Palm-size PC. Pocket PC versions of most of the programs were not available for review. So far, only IntelliGolf and ZIOGolf have formally announced that they will release Pocket PC versions. In my opinion, Golfwits and IntelliGolf are the best golf scorecard programs and I will continue to keep both of them on my Palm-size PC.

Smart scorecard with great graphics

Golfwits ($49.95, www.golfwits.com, demo available)

Golfwits for the Palm-size PC is what I'd call a "smart scorecard" program. It lets you record your play (and the play of up to three other golfers) on a detailed map of each hole of your course. Golfwits automatically posts your score and tracks your statistics for future review and game improvement. The layout for different courses can be purchased online ($9.95 each; 1,833 courses currently available). If your course is not available you can contact Golfwits and ask them to create it for you. If you have access to a scanner and a map of your course you can use a desktop PC utility called Mapwits to create graphics for your own course.

Golfwits was the most graphically interesting of the golf programs I tested. You enter your shots and score on a graphical display of the hole you're playing. The installation procedure is smooth and simple. First you enter information about the players in your group (name, handicap, which tees the player will use, whether the player is using men's or woman's par and handicap). Then you are ready for your first shot.

The groundskeepers move the tees around to let the grass grow back. The first thing you need to do is open the display of the first hole, tap on the EDIT button, and drag the representation of the tee to its current location on the display. Golfwits automatically calculates the actual yardage of the hole for you (tee to center of the green). In fact, you can find accurate yardage to any location on the hole. For example, tap on the YARDAGE button and then tap the front of the bunker and Golfwits will show you how far it is (Screen 1). In addition, you can choose to also have 100, 150, 200 and 250 yard markers and the directional markers displayed on the map of the hole.

Screen 1: Golfwits will calculate the yardage between any two points on the hole. Shown here is the yardage from the tee to a bunker.