I was a bit hesitant to finally purchase a GPS unit because I didn’t really think it would make that much of an impact. That was completely wrong. Today, we’ll be talking about the 3 best handheld golf GPS units so you can get the one that’ll give you all the features you’re looking for, and I’ll also talk about the cheapest place to pick each of them up.
When we were trying out all the GPS devices we ranked them all based on how many features they had, how accurate they were, and also how much they cost. We’ll also share the cheapest place to pick them up.
That being said, here are the best handheld golf GPS:
- Garmin Approach Z80.
- Garmin Approach G8.
- Golf Buddy Voice 2.
Continue reading for my full review of each and info on where to get them for the best price…
The 3 Best Golf GPS Handheld Units
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#3: Golf Buddy Voice 2 GPS
This is my favorite budget GPS and even though it doesn’t have advanced features like a lot of others, it does the main job really well. Some units will give you an endless amount of data and a lot of the time it’s completely unnecessary. This unit gives the info you’ll actually find useful on the course.
It’ll show you the distance to the back, center, and front of the green and will give you the green shape, par, and hole number as well. The unfortunate part is that the Voice 2 doesn’t tell you how far away hazards are.
The battery life isn’t the greatest on it (charge after each round) but it’s by far the best option in its price range (I found a lot of the cheaper units were pretty junkie and wouldn’t recommend them).
The PROS:
- It’s simple to get set up and use.
- It’ll show you how far you hit each ball (important to know how far you hit each club).
- It’s the most accurate unit in its price range.
The CONS:
- The battery life could be better on it.
- It sometimes gets confused and goes to the wrong hole (turn it off and on and you’ll be good).
- It takes longer than the more expensive units to find the course you’re on.
Overall, it’s the cheapest GPS I’d feel comfortable recommending. Check the current price on Amazon. Here’s a demo video:
#2: Garmin Approach G8 GPS
This is my favorite handheld GPS and even though it’s fairly expensive, it’s definitely worth it if you’re going to be using it a lot and would benefit from the data. It’ll give you everything you’d need on the course and the big difference is that it’s going to tell you how far away hazards are.
It has a touchscreen display and comes preloaded with over 30,000 courses from around the world (all the courses I normally go to were on it). You can check the Garmin website to see if your course is on it.
It’ll show you the course layout in more detail so you’ll be able to see exactly where the pin is and how far away it is. It’s nice being able to see the course layout compared to the Voice 2 where you just see the numbers.
The PROS:
- It’s far better than any of the phone apps.
- It’ll last a full round no problem (possibly 2).
- It’s easy to use the GPS and all the features.
- It’s close to being as accurate as my laser (not 100% though).
The CONS:
- It’s quite a bit more expensive than the Golf Buddy.
- It’s not as compact as the Voice 2.
- It wasn’t 100% accurate 100% of the time (but it was as close as you could get with a GPS).
Overall, it’s the best handheld GPS on the market by far (at the time of writing this). Read our full review here. Here’s a demo video:
#1: Garmin Approach Z80 GPS Rangefinder
This is my favorite hybrid unit because it comes with both a GPS and a laser rangefinder (thus the big price tag). Some GPS units can be a bit off when it comes to yardage, but a laser rangefinder will always be pretty exact.
Not everyone will be able to afford it but for those who can and play a lot of golf, I’d highly recommend it. It’s not the easiest to use at first because you have both systems on the same screen. You’ll get the hang of it after a while though.
It has the accuracy of a laser and the versatility of a GPS and will allow you to see the full course layout and also all the hazards when shooting blind. There are a couple of different units like this from different brands but Garmin seems to make the best, in my opinion.
The PROS:
- It comes preloaded with over 41,000 courses around the world.
- It’s as close to being 100% accurate as you’ll get.
- It’ll fit in your pocket.
The CONS:
- It’s not the easiest to use at first and will take some time to get used to.
- The battery life could be a bit better (still lasts a full round).
- It doesn’t have some advanced stat tracking like the G8.
Overall, if you want all the data possible but don’t want to carry 2 devices around, this will be perfect for you. Read our full review here. Here’s a demo video:
Final Thoughts
If you’re in the market for a new golf GPS, these 3 will be perfect options for you. They all are well built with lots of courses, are just as accurate as any, and are reasonably priced.
If you’re tight on a budget, go with the Voice 2. It’ll give you 80% of what you need and is fairly cheap. If you want the most advanced GPS, go with the G8. It’ll give you more info such as hazard distances. If you want the most data possible, go with the Z80. It’s the best of both worlds.
Let me know your thoughts and any questions you have. Like this article? Feel free to give it a share!
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Last update on 2023-07-26 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API