• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Practical Golf

Golf Tips Made Simple

  • Home
  • Deals
  • Content
    • Physical
    • Mental
    • Reviews
    • Videos
    • Practice Games
  • Practical Golf
  • Insider
    • Videos
    • Practice Games
    • eBooks
    • Interviews
    • Contributors
  • Four Foundations
  • Contact
golf tips
Big news!
My new book, The Four Foundations of Golf, is now available on Amazon ➡

SkyCaddie SX500 Review: The GPS for Golfer’s Who Want It All

skycaddie sx500 gps review

SkyCaddie recently released their SX500 GPS Rangefinder. It’s rugged, has an enormous battery life, a large HD screen, and some of the best GPS functionality I have seen.

Recently, I got a chance to play five rounds with it on the course. I’ve tested a number of GPS devices on this site, and in terms of performance, I have to say it’s the best I have tried yet. However, there are some drawbacks that might not make it the right choice for every golfer. In this review, I’ll go over what I liked about the SX500, and what are some potential drawbacks.

What I Loved About the SX500

Let’s start with the good news. The SkyCaddie SX500 is a strategic golfer’s dream come true.

The 5″ HD screen shows you incredibly clear graphics of every hole you play. It’s like having the most detailed caddie book in the palm of your hand. On the course, you’re able to quickly toggle through multiple views of the entire hole and see closeups of the greens. You can easily measure distances to any point on the course with your fingers to help make your club and target selection as efficient as possible. The map will automatically rotate to give you accurate views no matter what angle you are approaching the fairway or green from (for help with those errant shots).

Here is a brief video exploring its key features:

Because SkyCaddie manually captures the information of every course on the ground, you get very detailed images. I found the shape of every green, fairway, and hazards to be almost identical.

skycaddie sx500 review
Here are samples of different views on the SX500

You can easily sync your courses through a wi-fi connection, and loading up a course on the go is a breeze. Overall, this is a very well-designed GPS device, and I found no flaws with how it performed on the golf course.

Rugged Design

When you hold the SX500 in your hands, you realize this is an absolute beast.

skycaddie sx500 review

The SX500 has some real weight to it and a rugged design. So you can toss it around in your cart, expose it to the elements (it’s highly water-resistant) and it will hold up.

The operating system is incredibly fast, so you won’t experience delays on the course. Perhaps it’s best feature is the battery life. With most GPS devices I have tested, I am lucky to get 1-2 rounds out of them before having to recharge. I played two 4 1/2 hour rounds with the SX500, and the battery was still above 50%. SkyGolf says in their official specs that it should last for 12-14 hours of continuous use. One of my pet peeves with golf technology is continually worrying about another device to charge, but you can leave the SX500 in your bag for multiple rounds and not worry about it.

Some Drawbacks

There are a few drawbacks that you should be aware of before you purchase.

As much as the size and weight of the SX500 enhance its features, it also makes it a little bit of a hindrance to carry around. It doesn’t fit in your pocket easily, so I would say it’s a better companion for an electric cart or push cart. If you’re carrying your bag, it might prove to be challenging to take in and out while you play. Compared to a GPS watch, it’s certainly not as convenient – which is a tradeoff for the extra features you get from the SX500.

Another deterrent is its price and the SkyGolf memberships that are required. The SX500 currently retails at $399, which puts it on the higher end of the market. Additionally, because they spend more time measuring distances on courses manually, there is an ongoing cost to have access to GPS maps. They throw in one year of their Double Eagle membership when you purchase the SX500 initially, but it will cost between $30 – $60 to maintain a membership afterward.

Many golfers who use their smartphones and have free GPS apps like 18 Birdies and The Grint might scoff at paying for a device like this at all. However, I would tell you that the functionality, data, and battery life do make a difference.

Who is the SX500 For?

If you want the best information, functionality, and battery life I believe the SX500 is worth it. I used it during three rounds of tournament golf and found the data to be very useful. For golfers who want extremely detailed yardage information, it’s a winner.

On the other hand, it’s size, initial cost, and ongoing fees might not make it worth it for other players.

You can learn more about the SX500 on SkyCaddie’s website here.

Want to Get Exclusive Discounts on Some of the Top Golf Products?

Check out our deals for Practical Golf readers!

SEE THE DEALS

About the Author

Jon Sherman is the owner of Practical Golf, a website dedicated to being an honest resource for the everyday golfer who is looking to enjoy the game more, as well as improve. He is the author of the bestselling book 101 Mistakes All Golfers Make (and how to fix them). You can find him on Twitter here - @practicalgolf, where he is happy to chat about golf with anyone.

More Practical Golf Articles:

The Definitive Guide to Playing from the Rough

snell golf my tour ball review

Snell Golf MTB-X Review: The Story Has Not Changed – The Same Performance for Less $$$

Golfers Shoot The Scores They Are Comfortable With

best fairway woods for high handicappers

The Best Fairway Woods for High Handicappers

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Art says

    February 18, 2019 at 7:01 pm

    I want a GPS unit that also has club tracking–and Skycaddie could have EASILY incorporated their Game Tracker components. In addition, stat tracking is outdated. No strokes gained info, no handicap relationship for driving, putting…

    This device could have been, should have been, SO MUCH MORE!!!

    Reply
  2. Rattler says

    July 27, 2019 at 12:34 am

    I had a SGX and loved it. It was easy to operate on the course and I could accurately set the target. I now have the Touch and it is unmanageable. It is impossible to set your target where you want using your finger. It’s impossible to accurately set a target for a layup or an intermediate shot without spending a lot of time. Hope the SX500 is an improvement. Doubt I’ll spend the money. Oh .. And when I was on chat for online help .. all he could do is tell me to call in when they were open. Thanks Sky Caddie.

    Reply
  3. Hopeful in Idaho says

    April 12, 2020 at 2:59 pm

    Why would you not incorporate the game tracker feature. I own the Touch, Lynx GT, GT1, and the Tags.
    Honestly, these are a lot to manage and get to your Aps to update and use the data is too much!
    Would like to go to one hand held does it all inclusive of the tags and the aps! Would have moved to the SX500 in a heartbeat IF it had these features!
    Sorry..but no purchase now! Maybe after Research and Development put it all together! YOU CAN DO IT!!

    Reply
  4. Matthew Thomas says

    November 3, 2020 at 2:38 pm

    I purchased the SX500 and love it. However, i dropped it a cracked the screen and i can’t find a place to fix it. SkyGolf said ‘we don’t fix it but we’ll sell you a used one’ wtf. It’s not that much different than a cell phone and you can get those fixed everywhere. Anybody know of a solution?

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Before Footer

  • Insider Access
  • Account
  • Logout
  • Login

Footer

About The Site

Practical Golf is an honest resource for the everyday golfer who is looking to enjoy the game more, and find ways to improve - Learn More
golf tips

The Book

101 Mistakes All Golfers Make is your complete guide to golf. It will be your reference guide for years to come!

Subscribe To The Newsletter

Join more than 30,000 golfers and receive email updates when new articles post. We'll also send you a free copy of our bestselling eBook on course strategy

Become a Fan On Facebook
Follow Us On Twitter

Copyright © 2023 Practical Golf | Powered by: WP Engine | Built on: The Genesis Framework
Advertise With Us | Privacy Policy | Affiliate Disclosure | Site Design by 3200.PRO

/* ----------------------------------------- */ /* Content Template: Single Post - start */ /* ----------------------------------------- */ /*.logged-in .non-logged-in-ad-block { display:none; } .non-logged-in-ad-block { display:block; position: fixed; right: 0px; top: 250px; } @media only screen and (max-width: 1400px) { .non-logged-in-ad-block { display:none; } } .code-block-2:nth-of-type(even) { display:none !important; } */ /* ----------------------------------------- */ /* Content Template: Single Post - end */ /* ----------------------------------------- */
Practical Golf
  • Home
  • Content
    • Physical
    • Mental
    • Reviews
    • Videos
    • Practice Games
    • Back
  • Deals
  • Four Foundations
  • Insider
    • Videos
    • eBooks
    • Interviews
    • Practice Games
    • Back
  • Insider Login
  • Contact