Approach R50 - Recent Threads

Shots tracing in reverse

PD — Tue, 21 Apr 2026 01:45:38 GMT

Does anyone else have the bug where you hit a shot and it will trace it in reverse? the data seems correct, but the shot starts from 160 yards out and traces back to the tee off spot. It’s been happening increasingly for me.

HDMI - Need to reconnect to hear sounds

JGritten — Mon, 20 Apr 2026 16:17:49 GMT

For my projector's speaker to work, I always need to disconnect the HDMI from the R50, then reconnect. Is anyone else experiencing this?

Unplugging and plugging back in the hdmi has just become part of my routine after 6 months, but I would like to submit this as a bug or feature request on the R50 to Reset the output with a button or something instead of wearing out my one lead. Thanks

Switching from Left/Right Hitters gone after latest Update

3548497 — Sun, 19 Apr 2026 13:58:40 GMT

I’ve lost the ability to switch hitting left or right after the update yesterday.

There used to be a little toggle at the bottom that made this quick and effortless. Anyone else seeing the same thing?

Im on Version 4.9 and GLM Versions 4.1.1

I now have to quit the round, switch to a left hitting user and start it again.

Am I missing something?

Home Tee Hero Course selection

Dave — Sun, 19 Apr 2026 08:13:53 GMT

Really like the new option to select courses within Home Tee Hero.

Could you also add an option for Par 3 courses?

This would be great for people like me who don't have the option to hit the longer clubs

Cheers

On course Practice - Distance missing

JGritten — Sat, 18 Apr 2026 02:46:30 GMT

First, love the new On Course Practice mode +1

Quick change suggestion however; please give us the distance of the shot we made

thanks

Proposal: "Garmin Station" – A Hardware Hub to Unlock the Next-Gen Golf App Ecosystem

4715624 — Sat, 18 Apr 2026 02:43:32 GMT

The Approach R50 is an incredible piece of hardware, but to truly dominate the market and solve current processing limitations (blocking, slow UI, and lack of complex data fusion), I propose a dedicated hardware expansion: "Garmin Station."

What is Garmin Station?
An external high-performance processing hub (Mini-PC or Smart Dongle) that offloads heavy image processing and AI analysis from the R50.

Key Strategic Benefits:

Multi-Device Data Fusion: Seamlessly integrate R50 (Side-view), R10/Mevo+ (Rear-view), and CT10 (Automatic Club Recognition) to create the most accurate data set in the industry.
"Garmin Golf App Store": By providing a high-performance OS environment, Garmin can launch a dedicated App Store. This allows 3rd party developers (Creative Golf, Awesome Golf, etc.) to sell high-fidelity software directly on the Garmin platform.
AI-Driven Experience: Enable real-time "Wedge Matrix" generation and "AI Narrative Coaching" that requires more CPU power than the current standalone unit provides.
Future-Proofing: Users can upgrade the "Station" without discarding their expensive R50 sensors, creating a loyal, long-term subscription and hardware ecosystem.

Why it matters:
While new competitors are flooding the market with low-cost sensors, Garmin can win by becoming the "Platform Provider." By offloading processing to the Garmin Station, we can eliminate load times, simplify UI (like a touch-responsive Wedge Matrix), and integrate fitness tracking (Walking Mode) into the golf experience.

I believe "Garmin Station" is the missing piece to turn the R50 into the heart of a professional-grade, yet consumer-friendly golf ecosystem. I would love to hear from the development and strategy teams regarding this vision.

Bag mapping, wedge matrix anytime soon?

8345696 — Thu, 16 Apr 2026 23:58:32 GMT

Any chance of adding bag mapping, wedge matrix anytime soon? Kinda absurd not to already have that built in at this price point. Would be awesome to have that info talk automatically with garmin watch and range finder.

Putting Speed/Distances

5133373 — Thu, 16 Apr 2026 18:51:29 GMT

I agree with the other thread that a putting green feature would be really nice. Since the on-course practice feature was introduced, I've been practicing putting there. The R50 seems to register ball speed and angle pretty well, but it seems like something in the distance formula is off as you attempt longer putts.

I'm mostly trying to work on speed and start line, so I found a long flat spot on a green (Bethpage Black hole 3) and experimented on ball speed vs distance. I have speed set to stimp 11 to match my home course. Here is what I've found in trying to map speeds to distance on the R50:

5'	2.8mph
10'	4.0 mph
15'	5.2 mph
20'	6.5 mph
30'	9.3 mph
40'	12.1 mph
50'	15.0 mph
60'	18.0 mph

A stimpmeter rolls a ball at 4.1 mph (11 foot rollout = stimp 11). So on the low end it's fairly accurate. It also matches my real-life feel for distance. But once you get out beyond 20', it seems like you have to hit the ball way too hard on the R50. After practicing on the R50 a couple times, I found I was blasting longer putts way past the hole on a real course.

I haven't found anything official online that corresponds speed/distance/stimp, but I did find a site where someone mapped it out on GSPro (link to chart & data). For stimp 11, the speeds they provide are this:

5'	2.7 mph
10'	3.9 mph
15'	5.0 mph
20'	6.0 mph
30'	7.9 mph
40'	9.5 mph
50'	11.0 mph
60'	12.5 mph

Not sure if these are perfectly accurate to real-life, but they seem more realistic.

I don't really want to, but I could take the R50 to my course and put it out on the putting green and hit some 30-60 footers and see what the R50 shows for speed. I guess I wanted to see if anyone else has noticed needing to hit longer putts much harder on the R50 than they normally would. There also has to be some real world data out there on this but so far I haven't found it.

Approach R50 - GLM Version 4.1.1

Garmin-Jim — Tue, 14 Apr 2026 19:52:00 GMT

Good Morning Approach R50 Users,

We are now 100% live GLM version 4.1.1 for the Approach R50.

Change Log

Added support for browsing Enhanced and Tour courses.
Added dynamic text for metric cards in On-Course Practice.
Fixed issue where all shots would show when Current Club is selected in Shot Tracer settings.
Fixed split view always defaulting to Overhead/Map View after each shot.
Fixed issue with ball detection not working after going into standby mode.
Fixed weekly tournament issue where powering off during round results in putting and no gimme zone around green.
Fixed issue where nearby courses may not be nearby.
Fixed overlapping text in standings.
Improved target icon tap and drag aiming.

Continued request for more detailed/immersive practice range options; Other stuff

uofi1998 — Mon, 13 Apr 2026 21:30:55 GMT

Hi... have owned the R50 for about 1 year now... despite its limitations, I still absolutely love it and don't feel the need to go buy a computer for GSPro, and generally don't use Awesome Golf or E6 that often. I use my R50 on a daily basis, and I am not complaining... but I would like to see more depth for practice.

HOWEVA... I made many of these requests probably 10+ months ago, and none of these have been brought forth over the past year of software updates. It shouldn't be that difficult from a programming standpoint to allow for any/all of the following:

1) On the specialty ranges, the ability to place the ball anywhere on the teeing ground to produce different length shots to the greens.

2) On the specialty ranges, the ability to move the pins around the greens to practice moving the ball to buried targets

3) On the specialty ranges, a practice shot randomizer where you don't just get muscle memory, but you're challenged to keep hitting different shots without a bunch of prep swings.

4) On the specialty ranges, more short runway type shots so a player can practice bump and runs, low spinners, etc.

5) True driving fairway(s) on the specialy ranges so you don't have to close out of a range to go hit driver on the basic range.

6) On the specialty ranges, the ability to address/manipulate vertical height so a player can practice hitting uphill or downhill.

7) On the specialty ranges, more greens with different shapes, obstacles, pin placements, etc. just for more variety.

I am no tech wizard, but with the amazing technology built into this unit, and the unit's ability to read a golf shot from anywhere on a course, i cannot imagine these are difficult items to add, and they would make practice *SO MUCH* more useful and valuable.

Now... layering on top... green hardness, green speed, different lies for different spin... all of that is harder, but not impossible...

Finally...

1) DYING for some party-type games like scrambles... best ball... maybe a skins game or match play... none of that should be that difficult, but I recognize there is a time element.

2) Keep enhancing courses... Augusta is significantly better than it was previously.

3) I know this won't change... but I would like the ability to putt from on the green if I'm outside of the 2-putt zone on HTH tournament mode... an auto 3-putt kinda sucks - especially this past week where the pins are buried and you are penalized for playing smart.

Thanks, and please keep up the good work. Looking forward to the next updates.

Blank screen on power up

9020887 — Fri, 10 Apr 2026 14:04:45 GMT

Hello,

My new R50 is having issues when I power it on. When I press the power button, the system turns on, and the screen backlight comes on, but there is no display. If it’s connected to my projector, it’s still sending the display to the projector and the touch screen works but nothing displays on the R50. I turn it off and on, power supply in and out, and HDMI in and out. Nothing seems to work specifically. Eventually, with no rhyme or reason, the display just works after a number of attempts. Any one have any suggestions? Pretty irritating for such an expensive piece of equipment to do this after only having it for a couple days.

Proposal for Improving Approach R50 Performance (Hardware Upgrade Options)

4715624 — Thu, 09 Apr 2026 08:14:37 GMT

I believe many of the issues reported with the Approach R50 stem from a lack of processing power. To address this, I would like to propose the following hardware-based solutions or upgrade options:

USB Dongle with Image Processing Chip: A stick-type device to offload and enhance image processing capabilities.
USB Hub for External Connectivity: A specialized USB hub that allows the R50 to interface with other high-performance devices.
External Mini-PC Bundle: The sale of a dedicated mini-PC specifically for image processing, or an upgrade kit that includes one.

I believe these options would significantly improve the user experience for R50 owners. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this.

Increasing ball data accuracy with RPT ball

1546025 — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 05:56:28 GMT

Hi,

Does Garmin have any data on whether RPT golf balls increases the accuracy of the ball data?

LIghting

7556539 — Thu, 02 Apr 2026 18:59:50 GMT

I am setting up a 16'Wx10'Hx10'D simulator shell (plenty of room to the back - the shell is at the end of a long room) with the Garmin R50 placed 9' from the screen. What type of lighting do I need. Will just ambient from the rest of the room and reflection from the screen be sufficient? If I add light should it be ceiling diffuse lighting? A single top down spotlight? A pair of top down spot lights at opposing angles? If so at what angle? Some type of side lighting?

Thanks for any help/direction!

Putting adjustment arrows

6812273 — Tue, 31 Mar 2026 14:38:51 GMT

Is it possible to have arrows to adjust the aim for putting. The current setup does not work. Frustrated with it.

Drop lie after penalty water shot

5387998 — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 12:58:14 GMT

Please fix the lie after the penalty water shot, the penalty ball drops are often on such a slope very close to the water that the follow up shot is impossible, this would not happen in real life...

Offset centerline doesn’t change view on external screen

Squid#02 — Thu, 19 Mar 2026 08:46:46 GMT

I just got my R50 a couple of weeks ago. I have it connected to a external projector. The shape of my sim space means I can’t hit into the center of the screen. I have been trying to adjust the centerline of the screen so that the centerline is in line with my hitting line. I can adjust the setting (currently 40% right), but the change doesn’t show on the screen. The onscreen ball is still set to the middle of the screen. How can I get the image on the screen to adjust to show the offset centerline?

I am running the latest software update (4.90).

Update made it worse

2085601 — Thu, 19 Mar 2026 01:13:30 GMT

I received and updated the latest update on 3-17-26. I assume it was to fix the situation of the R50 going into standby and having to completely restart to continue playing in GSPro, and missing shorter putts. The situation was worse today when I played. The screen just locks up now on occasion with no message, and still goes into standby and have to restart. If the update was for these issues it didn't work and got worse.

Face to path and club path -- are they inferred from the ball flight or measured directly?

7677389 — Thu, 19 Mar 2026 00:51:03 GMT

Does anyone know if the R50 measures face-to-path angles and club-path angles directly, or are they inferred from the ball flight?

My instinct is that they would be measured directly since we have to put stickers on the club faces for those metrics to be reported, but one thing I've noticed that makes me doubt it is that if I hit the ball with the hosel of the club and the ball goes hard right, the R50 will say that my face-to-path angle was extremely open, even though it actually wasn't. It feels like it's using the ball flight angle to back calculate the face to path, versus actually looking at the face angle.

Country used for Garmin Profile

HRCARMICHAEL — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 20:24:43 GMT

I noticed in my Garmin Account profile that my country is set to US but I live in Canada. Does anyone know how to change that?

download courses

HRCARMICHAEL — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 20:00:59 GMT

When I try to download courses for the R50, it shows me courses from over 1000 kms away. How do I get it to see courses local to me. I know I can search for a course but that is a pain everytime I want to add a course.

Next-Gen Hybrid Launch Monitor Ecosystem (R50 + R10/CT10 Fusion)

4715624 — Tue, 17 Mar 2026 05:48:23 GMT

As a dedicated Garmin user utilizing the Approach R50, R10, and CT10, I propose a "Dual-Sensor Fusion" system to eliminate current hardware limitations:

Eliminate R50 "Blocking": Allow R50 (front-view) to sync with a rear-view device (Mevo+ or a camera-equipped "Next R10") via USB/Wireless. This "Dual-Angle" tracking will solve data loss caused by body/club occlusion.
Auto-Alignment via Dual Cameras: Use front and rear cameras to auto-calibrate the target line by recognizing an alignment stick. This "One-Click Setup" is crucial for indoor rooms.
CT10 & AI Caddie Integration: Enable CT10 to auto-switch clubs in simulators. Implement an "AI Caddie" that provides voice-narrated coaching and "Scenic Walk" modes based on my 30-day average data.
Hardware Request: A camera-equipped "New R10" that functions as a standalone unit or a dedicated satellite sensor for the R50.

Update won’t download?

5007833 — Sun, 15 Mar 2026 01:15:27 GMT

Anyone had issues with updates not downloading? It seems to start fine, then the “X minutes remaining” just continues to climb into the trillions (yes, trillions). I’ve got 1G fiber internet and no other devices are struggling like this. I’ve tried full shutdown, reconnecting WiFi, disconnecting power, and so on. Do I need to try Garmin Express next?

Screen goes blackout when ball in the air on range

6261940 — Sat, 14 Mar 2026 12:52:53 GMT

Does anyone else’s screen blackout when hitting on the range, just after ball is hit? It stays blacked out for about 7 seconds (while ball is in the air and should be tracking) and then comes back on after ball stops rolling. It seems to occur only when the ball is going to come very close to the pin. It’s almost like the feature of pin lifting itself out of the hole on close shots is causing the blackout and lack of tracking. Garmin please look into software code—this only started after last two updates.

Home Tee Hero - User Score between holes

JGritten — Fri, 13 Mar 2026 23:19:49 GMT

This is a feature request for the UI in between holes.

Issue: at the end of a hole, you get the Birdie, Par or Bogey screen in some capacity with your picture. Please add the User's score to this screen. As it currently works, I putt out, the screen gives me my result as aforementioned, but there's no score. it loads the next hole and starts the fly by, still no score. Even for a single player it feels like an eternity until I can see what my score is because the first instance of it being available is when its that User's turn. I appreciate the fly by but can we also allocate some screen for all the current user's scores?

Please and thanks
cheers