May 12, 2017

Arccos and Microsoft Introduce Golf’s First Artificial Intelligence Platform, Arccos Caddie

All golf shots involve a decision-making process, and the role of a caddie is to help you make smarter choices. A century ago, every course had caddies. Today, that number hovers below 3%. Now, Arccos is helping to usher in a rebirth of the caddie – with a modern twist.

We’ve partnered with Microsoft to create golf's first artificial intelligence platform – Arccos Caddie. It helps golfers of all skill levels shoot lower scores by making data-driven decisions on the course.

A premium feature within the Arccos Caddie app, Arccos Caddie incorporates data for every shot a user has taken and layers that information on top of the golf industry’s richest data set.

Using the power of the Microsoft Azure cloud, Arccos Caddie leverages more than 61 million shots hit by the Arccos community, 368 million geotagged data points on more than 40,000 courses and weather conditions including forecasted wind speed, precipitation, temperature and more.

“Arccos Caddie is the first platform in sports that truly harnesses the power of artificial intelligence to help players make smarter decisions,” said Mike Downey, Director, Principal Evangelist – Sports at Microsoft. “Through the Microsoft Azure cloud, Arccos Caddie instantly digests unique data sets and delivers actionable advice to any golfer, from beginners to pros seeking to make the PGA Tour.”

So how does it work?

A user must play five rounds with Arccos in order to unlock Arccos Caddie. That’s the threshold at which our system has enough data about your game.

When a user stands on a tee box and taps the "Caddie" button, they will be presented with a personalized strategy highlighting the optimal path to their lowest projected score. Users will see likely shot distance – as impacted by wind and elevation – expected score, likelihood of hitting the fairway and their chances of missing it left or right.

On par 3s, Arccos Caddie also shows a player’s chances of hitting the green in regulation, and predicts his or her miss percentage by quadrant.

“Every shot in golf involves a decision-making process, and the caddie’s role has historically been to help you make more intelligent choices,” said Sal Syed, CEO and Co-Founder of Arccos. “Everyone else is missing out on a crucial source of information that can help inform every shot.”

Interestingly, the origins of Arccos Caddie are connected to a text from 1927. In C.B. Macdonald's seminal book, Scotland’s Gift, the father of American golf course architecture wrote:

"The caddie is an institution and an excellent mentor. Rarely does one have to choose one's own club. So well versed is the caddie in the game and so acquainted with your own weaknesses, that he suggest the club you ought to play with, and should you take one of your own choice, you will usually make a bad shot."

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