Sonic Golf: A System That Enhances The Audio of Golf

I am going to let you in on a secret: I did not want to test this system. A marketing representative had offered to send me the Sonic Golf Solo system; I decided that no answer was the best answer of all. I had read Mike Bailey’s review on TravelGolf.Com, along with other reviews on competing sites. Imagine my surprise when the box showed up on my desk. “Well, just tuck it over in the corner and they will forget about it.” No such luck…

“So, RonMon, how is the Sonic Golf test going?” That was the subject line from the biweekly (every other week) email that appeared in my inbox. “Ummm, you know, we are sooooo busy!” After the North Carolina junket, I made up my mind that I would reward perseverance with, well, responsibility. I cracked open the box, pulled out the briefcase and dove into Sonic Golf.

The initial response of all raters can be summed up in these words: GOD it takes a while to set up! Yes and no. If you can wrap tape, you’re set. If you can regrip a club (or in my case, have Bill Lindner of Bill Lindner’s Golf Service available), you’re set. You snug-fit the probe into the grip, hook up the receiver, put the head set in your ears, and off you go. What does Sonic Golf do? Well, it doesn’t play a concert, thereby eliminating the threat to your mp3 player.

Sonic Golf allows you to associate sound with your golf swing. The golf swing, in its essence, is a rotational motion. It has elements of the lateral and the vertical, but it is the rotational that makes it happen. Ironically, with the exception of the aforementioned Bailey, none of the other reviewers mentions the importance to the swing and to the Sonic Golf system of the rotational motion. Shame on them!

The quicker you rotate the club, the louder (greater pitch) the SG sound is. It’s a pleasant-enough note/chord, but over and over and over might be too much for me. Could I use it for the first few dozen swings of a practice session? Absolutely. The entire session? No.

The SG sound is heard at three points during the swing. The first is the back swing which, unless you are Lanny Wadkins, should not be killer loud. Pause (and silence) at the top is followed by the fast motion that Al Geiberger recognized back in the day. From the top down is where you hear the SG chord the loudest. After impact, back to quiet, then the sound one more time, on the recoil. Not as loud, but there. Reminded me of Greg Norman in his prime…he swung through, then brought the club from his left shoulder down toward the ground, like a woodsman swinging an axe.

The most striking feature for me is how I responded to the audio. I am a music appreciator. I fool around with harmonicas and singing, but I’m no great musician. Sonic Golf’s audio element hit home with me. I wonder how truly gifted singers and musicians would respond?

I have a golf GPS system that costs $400. I have a driver that costs $400. Can I afford the Pro ($499 pre-Labor Day sale) or Solo ($299 pre-Labor Day sale)? If I’m making good money, you bet. If I’m pinching pennies, probably not. The way I see it, though, the Sonic Golf system allows the GPS and the driver to be more functional. The Sonic Golf system IS the lesson, the instruction, that allows you to hit the driver, then hit the other shots that the GPS rewards with precision yardages. I like the Sonic Golf system and even though I have to send this one back, I’ll begin saving my dimes and quarters tomorrow to purchase one of my own.