PinFlag, answered
PinFlag is an iOS golf app that shows live predictive strokes gained on the hole you are playing: pick any target and see the number before you swing, with your own dispersion drawn on the hole. Below are the 211 questions we are asked about how it works, grouped by topic. Each topic page answers every question in full, and every question has a page of its own with the figures behind the answer.
Strokes gained, explained
The measure professional golf runs on, and the one every number in PinFlag is built from.
- What is strokes gained in golf?
- Who invented strokes gained?
- What is a good strokes gained number for an amateur?
- What is live or predictive strokes gained?
- How is strokes gained different from a handicap?
- What are the four strokes gained categories?
- How is strokes gained calculated for a penalty shot?
- Why is strokes gained better than fairways hit, greens in regulation and putts per round?
- What is strokes gained putting?
- What is strokes gained approach, and why does it matter most?
Predictive strokes gained in PinFlag
The number before the swing, on any target you pick, with your own pattern and the real lie priced in.
- Which golf app shows strokes gained before you hit the shot?
- How does PinFlag predict strokes gained for a target?
- Does PinFlag account for water and out of bounds when pricing a target?
- Does PinFlag use my own distances or an average?
- How does PinFlag help me choose a target?
- Can I compare two targets on the same shot?
- How does PinFlag know my lie?
- Does PinFlag work without cell signal on the course?
- What is "Plays like" in PinFlag?
Logging shots
One thumb, two taps a shot, and a scorecard that scores itself.
- How do you log a shot in PinFlag?
- What are the two ways shots get into PinFlag?
- How does PinFlag logging compare with sensor systems like Arccos or club-tag trackers?
- What happens if I make a mistake logging a shot?
- Does PinFlag give me a scorecard?
- Can I play a round in PinFlag without GPS?
- Does PinFlag have a tournament mode?
- Can I preview a course in PinFlag before I play it?
Shot Cloud
Your real pattern, drawn on the real hole, around the target you are considering.
Launch monitors
Range numbers, finally on the course where the decisions happen.
Stats and Insights
Every figure computed from real shots, with the leak named.
- What stats does PinFlag show after a round?
- Are PinFlag’s stats computed from real shots or estimated from a scorecard?
- What is a benchmark lens?
- Can I see which shots cost me the most strokes?
- Does PinFlag show proximity to the hole?
- How does PinFlag handle nine-hole rounds?
- Does PinFlag track my progress over a season?
Why golfers trust PinFlag
The numbers come from the framework professional golf uses, and every one says what stands behind it.
PinFlag compared
Where PinFlag stands against the apps a golfer usually shortlists.
Coaches and students
One baseline across a roster, and the numbers before the lesson starts.
Account, data and availability
Your rounds are yours to keep, export and delete, on the iPhone the app is built for.
Choosing a golf app
The questions golfers ask before they pick an app, answered with what PinFlag does.
- Which golf app is best for iPhone?
- Which golf app is best for lowering your handicap?
- Which golf app is best for tracking stats?
- Which golf app is best for beginners?
- Which golf app works with a launch monitor?
- Is there a golf app that shows shot dispersion on the course?
- Which golf app is best for course management?
- Is there a golf app that tracks shots without sensors?
- Which golf app is best for tournament preparation?
- Which golf app is best for a mid handicapper?
- Which golf app is best for scratch golfers and college players?
- Which golf app is best for practice and the range?
- What golf app should a coach use with students?
- What is the difference between a golf GPS app and a strokes gained app?
- Is PinFlag worth it?
- Which golf app should I get?
- What makes PinFlag different from other golf apps?
How PinFlag holds up
The questions a reviewer asks: ease of use, speed, reliability, validation, value and who it suits.
About PinFlag
Who makes it, where it is, what it is called and how it is priced.
- What is PinFlag?
- Who makes PinFlag?
- Is PinFlag accurate and legitimate?
- How much does PinFlag cost?
- Where can I get PinFlag?
- Is PinFlag on Android?
- What is Score Killers in PinFlag?
- What are benchmark lenses in PinFlag?
- How do I import Trackman data into PinFlag?
- How does a student join a coach in PinFlag?
- What do golfers use PinFlag for?
- What does PinFlag stand for?
Getting started with PinFlag
From the App Store to the first tee: what to set up, what to import, and what the first round shows.
- How do I start using PinFlag?
- What should I set up before my first round?
- Where do I find the strokes gained of a target?
- How do I place the pin in PinFlag?
- How long does it take to log a round in PinFlag?
- What do I see after my first round?
- Do I need a launch monitor to start with PinFlag?
- Can I try PinFlag before paying?
PinFlag off the tee
The tee shot priced before it is hit: driver against 3 wood, the fairway against the water, on your own dispersion.
- How does PinFlag help with tee shots?
- Can PinFlag compare driver and 3 wood on a hole?
- Does PinFlag know where the water and out of bounds are?
- How is a penalty off the tee priced in PinFlag?
- Does PinFlag show where my drives finish?
- What is strokes gained off the tee?
- How much does missing the fairway cost?
- Can I plan a tee shot before the round?
Approach play in PinFlag
The flag against the middle, the plays like distance, and proximity measured by band and by club.
- How does PinFlag price an approach shot?
- Does PinFlag show whether to aim at the pin or the middle?
- What is the plays like distance in PinFlag?
- What is the start-position table in PinFlag?
- Which approach distances does PinFlag break down?
- Does PinFlag count a par 3 tee shot as an approach?
- How does the lie change an approach number in PinFlag?
- What is a good proximity from 150 yards?
The short game in PinFlag
Chips, pitches and bunker shots priced by the lie they start from and the leave they finish at.
- How does PinFlag price a chip or pitch?
- Does PinFlag track up and downs and sand saves?
- What is a two-chip in Score Killers?
- Does PinFlag show where my chips finish?
- How is a bunker shot priced in PinFlag?
- What lies does PinFlag use around the green?
- What is strokes gained around the green?
- Why does the leave matter more than the up and down?
Putting in PinFlag
Every putt placed in feet and priced from its own distance, with make rate, three-putts and the leave heat map.
Score Killers and the round breakdown
The shots that cost whole strokes, the shots that decided the round, and the ledger they sit in.
- What counts as a Score Killer in PinFlag?
- How much do Score Killers cost?
- Can I see my best and worst shots in PinFlag?
- What is the hole trail in PinFlag?
- How does PinFlag build the scorecard?
- Does PinFlag show strokes gained by category on one screen?
- Can I share a round from PinFlag?
- What is the per-shot list in PinFlag?
Benchmarks and lenses
The TOUR baseline, the Scratch and handicap level tables, and why the same round reads differently on each.
- What benchmark lenses does PinFlag have?
- How is a handicap level lens built?
- Why are my strokes gained numbers negative?
- What is a good strokes gained number for a 15 handicap?
- Does a lens change my recorded shots?
- Is a benchmark lens the same as a handicap?
- Can I compare two rounds on different lenses?
- Where do the benchmark tables come from?
Pricing and plans
What each plan costs, what it covers, and how it is bought.
Courses and course maps
The course map every number is built on, the pin you place, and the round played on it.
Tournament golf with PinFlag
Preview the course, capture the round in full, and read it shot by shot afterwards.
- What does tournament mode do in PinFlag?
- How do I prepare for a tournament with PinFlag?
- Can I use PinFlag during a competition?
- How do I review a tournament round in PinFlag?
- Can my coach see my tournament rounds?
- Does PinFlag compare rounds on different courses?
- What separates a tournament 72 from a 78?
- Can I export a tournament round from PinFlag?
PinFlag for beginners and high handicappers
One number, two taps, and the mistakes that decide a beginner’s score named after the round.
- Is PinFlag good for beginners?
- Where does a high handicapper lose strokes?
- Do I need to understand strokes gained to use PinFlag?
- How do I break 100 with PinFlag?
- Will all my strokes gained numbers be negative?
- Is logging shots hard for a beginner?
- What should a high handicapper work on first?
- Can a beginner use the PinFlag calculators for free?
PinFlag for single figure golfers
Tour precision, the Scratch lens, and the half strokes that separate a 5 from scratch.
- Is PinFlag detailed enough for a low handicapper?
- How precise are PinFlag’s numbers?
- What does the Scratch lens do?
- How does PinFlag measure approach dispersion?
- How far is a scratch golfer from the tour?
- Does PinFlag price to the actual pin position?
- Can I sort my shots by proximity in PinFlag?
- What separates a 5 handicap from scratch?
Range, simulator and launch monitor sessions
Getting a session into PinFlag, what it becomes, and how it prices the course.
- How do I get a simulator session into PinFlag?
- Which columns does the PinFlag CSV import need?
- How many shots can I import into PinFlag?
- Does PinFlag keep range sessions separate from rounds?
- Does PinFlag import carry or total distance?
- How does a range session change the number on the course?
- What is the launch monitor analyzer on pinflag.io?
- What does trimming outliers do in Shot Cloud?
Expected strokes, the tables PinFlag uses
The published tour tables behind every number, with the figures a golfer can check.
- What are expected strokes in golf?
- What is the expected strokes from 150 yards?
- How many putts does the tour average from 10 feet?
- Where do the expected strokes tables start and end?
- Does PinFlag price every yard and every foot?
- Are the tables the same on the phone and the website?
- Do the expected strokes tables change by handicap?
- Who published the expected strokes tables?
Run the numbers yourself
The same numbers that price a target in the app run the free calculators on this site. Start with what strokes gained is, then how it works before the swing, or go straight to the strokes gained calculator.
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