Helsinki, Finland: Golf GameBook, the free smartphone app featuring live scoring, tournament manager and social chat, is now available in Asia.
Free to download for iPhone and Android phones, the mobile live scoring function enables golfers to track hole-by-hole scores, share leaderboards, photos and comments.
Developed in Finland, where some of the world’s most successful apps have been created, including Angry Birds, Golf GameBook is now driving the fastest-growing online global golf community.
Key features and benefits of Golf GameBook include:
• It’s free!
• Keep live scoring for individual or team games
• Choose from many popular game formats: Stroke Play, Stableford, Skins or Better Ball
• Create your own tournament for friends, golf leagues or charity tournaments
• Share your scores, games and photos across social networks
• Chat with other golfers or friends and share your best or worst moments on the golf course
• Schedule your next round, share results and analyze your game with the GameBook online community.
One of Golf GameBook’s advantages is its sophisticated, but easy-to-use score entry system. All the popular game formats are included and users can share scores on social media platforms instantly.
An in-app chat-style commenting option, similar to Facebook, allows users to interact with friends while they stroll the fairways. To complement this, Golf GameBook has recently released an online service where all games and larger tournaments can be recorded from the app for live tournament scoring – for free.
“Live scoring for individuals, groups and tournaments is great fun, but what really sets Golf GameBook apart is the way the leaderboard, comments and photos are shared in real time,” says Mikko Manerus, co-founder of GameBook.
“That means you can have friends following your game from home, or on the golf course around you, commenting on your shots and scores. And it’s not just golfing friends – everything can be posted to Facebook, engaging an even wider audience in your game or event.”
GameBook was launched in Finland in 2012, where more than 20% of all golfers have now downloaded the app and use it regularly, including for club competitions.
The app was launched in the UK, Europe’s largest golf market, in summer 2013, where it has become among the top 10 most downloaded sports apps.
Within the past month, GameBook was launched in Canada, and featured in a special partnership competition with Golf Canada to promote The RBC Canadian Open. The campaign resulted in the app becoming the most downloaded sports app in the Canadian App Store in July 2013.
While already available from the App Store, Google Play or Samsung Apps, Golf GameBook will be officially launched in America in 2014.
Stewart Cink, the 2009 Open Champion and an early adopter of Twitter, and three-time European Tour winner, Mikko Ilonen, have both been involved in the development of the Golf GameBook app.
Cink said: “I have been involved with GameBook since the beginning, providing a Tour player’s insight throughout the development process. It is rewarding to see GameBook is not only now a reality, but one that exceeds our initial expectations. GameBook will spice up your game and motivate you to play better throughout the whole round.”