GPSGolfShot: Exclusively for Verizon Wireless Customers

Until recently Verizon Wireless had blocked access to the GPS in its smartphones to third party GPS applications, forcing its customers to subscribe to Verizon’s own VZNavigator for $10 per month if they wanted GPS navigation. For many golfer’s, this meant that they could not use golf GPS software on their smartphones unless they used an external Bluetooth receiver. Verizon has since made a policy change and some smartphones, like the Samsung Omnia, have been opened up to third party mapping and navigation software.

And now, perhaps to appease the disgruntled hackers who had to “hack” their way around the blocked GPS access, Verizon has introduced GPSGolfShot, an application that works on many of its popular mobile phones (and not just on its smartphones). But its features are limited:

• Distance to front, center, and back of the green
• A shot distance function to measure distance of each shot
• Can “speak” distances so you don’t have to read the screen in bright sunlight
• 10,000 professionally mapped courses in the US

This app won’t challenge (and certainly won’t replace) the more expensive standalone units. However, the first round is free; from there it costs just $1.99 per round, a measly $3.99 per month, and $34.99 per year. No harm in giving it a try.