Garmin Approach S62 GPS Watch Review
Scrolling through the feature list on the Garmin Approach S62 would suggest this promises to be the ultimate golf GPS watch comparable to the TAG Heuer Connected Calibre E4 Golf Edition, offering bucket loads of exciting functionality at a more affordable price point.
We tested it over multiple rounds and have to say it was an enjoyable and relatively seamless experience. It's easy and intuitive to get the watch set up and the touch screen works well in conjunction with the side buttons to navigate through the various options. The color touchscreen display is a full 17 per cent bigger than the previous Approach S60, which makes it easier to navigate and see hole details more clearly on the color maps.
You can even swipe around the edge of the screen to switch between holes quickly if you need to and access distances to hazards as well as the crucial front, middle and back yardages. There's also the option to account for elevation changes and manually move the pin position for more accurate distances, something many of the best golf watches offer.
The hole maps are somewhat basic and dimmer than we'd have hoped, but we were still able to see clearly what lay ahead and move the pointer to areas of interest. If you enable shot tracking, you can tell the watch what club you hit after each shot and after five rounds of doing this the Virtual Caddie feature becomes available, suggesting clubs to hit for upcoming shots.
While this function is not permitted in tournament play, it's a nice feature to have recommendations on clubbing from a device that definitively knows how far you actually hit each club rather than what you think (or hope!) you hit them. Once paired with your phone, the watch can also factor in the wind conditions in real time when suggesting a club, which is genuinely next-level functionality that not many other golf watches offer.
We weren't too fussed about the shot tracking element, but did find the Pin Pointer feature useful on blind shots and efforts from the trees when the green wasn't visible.
The GPS distances stacked up well against our laser and the other leading GPS devices we were testing at the time, although the hole maps on the accompanying Garmin Golf app hadn’t updated to include course changes from a few years ago even though the watch did.
The visual is slick and stylish and would look as at home off the course as on, plus there are lots of fitness tracking options should you want to use it more as a sports watch rather than just a golf GPS. It also has the ability to receive email and text notifications should you so desire. Overall this is undoubtedly one of the best Garmin golf watches out right now but if you want to spend a little less we have also created a guide on the best value golf watches as well.
