STAMFORD, Conn., January 8, 2018 – Arccos Golf announces that its Arccos Caddie artificial intelligence platform developed in partnership with Microsoft is now Permitted Under the Rules of Golf, according to USGA decision #2017-0754.
The ruling confirms that Arccos Caddie can be used in competition whenever a Local Rule is in effect that permits distance measuring devices, such as rangefinders. Players must simply toggle “Tournament Mode” within the Arccos 360 app of which Arccos Caddie is a feature.
Golf’s first artificial intelligence platform, Arccos Caddie allows any player to Go Beyond Guesswork and have even more confidence in their club selection. It leverages a data set of nearly 100 million shots hit during 700,000+ rounds played by the Arccos community, and 418 million mapping data points on 40,000+ courses. Arccos Caddie also considers live weather conditions to show players their optimal strategy on nearly every hole in the world, regardless of whether they’ve previously played the course.
“Golf is an incredibly data-centric sport, and Arccos Caddie is harnessing the power of Microsoft Azure and the world’s richest golf data set to help players make smarter decisions and shoot lower scores,” says Sal Syed, Arccos CEO and Co-Founder. “This ruling shows how the USGA is embracing innovation in a manner that helps the approximately 97% of golfers who don’t have access to a human caddie.”
Initially showcased at the 2017 PGA Merchandise Show, Arccos Caddie officially launched last August. It has received widespread acclaim from all corners of the industry, earning awards from Forbes, MyGolfSpy, American Golf, GOLF Magazine, ScoreGolf Magazine and many others.
Of the USGA ruling, Golf Digest wrote: “It is fascinating to think about competitors in the U.S. Amateur or other elite USGA events consulting their conforming Arccos Caddie app, just as they would their green-reading books or caddie advice. It’s a new world, but in 2017 and our reliance on smartphones, it’s a step toward progressiveness.”
Arccos Caddie is offered as a premium upgrade to the Arccos 360 app. Tiered pricing – $7.99/month, $39.99/six months, $49.99/12 months – allows users to choose the subscription option which bests suits their needs.
“The PGA TOUR has done a great job of using advanced analytics to help its players practice and perform their best. At other levels of the game, capturing the necessary on-course data has been a real challenge,” said Mike Downey, Director, Principal Evangelist – Sports at Microsoft. “Arccos has cracked that code and built a robust data set which they’re deploying via the Microsoft Azure cloud to the benefit of golfers worldwide.”
Golfers using Arccos improved their handicap by an average of 2.77 strokes in 2016, a 36.4x greater rate of improvement than the average golfer with a USGA handicap.
For more information, please visit: www.arccosgolf.com.
