What They Have in Common
These two share the same Shot Scope DNA. Both use daylight-readable MIP displays with button-only navigation, pull from the same 36,000-course database with free updates, show full-color hole maps with hazard and dogleg distances, include a digital scorecard, and require zero subscription — ever. Both are tournament-legal and use the same multi-constellation GPS (L1, Galileo, Glonass). Two-year warranty on each.
Where They Differ
Shot Tracking — The Whole Game
This is the comparison. The G6 has no shot tracking whatsoever. No tags, no sensors, no stats. You wear it, you get yardages, you go home. The V5 comes with 16 club tracking tags that screw into the grip butt of each club. Once those are in, the watch automatically detects your shots and logs them — club used, distance, starting position, everything — without you pressing anything mid-round.
After the round, the Shot Scope app shows you 100+ statistics, including strokes gained broken down by category. That's a lot of data for zero ongoing cost. Some watches charge $8-10 per month to unlock stats like that. Shot Scope gives it to you free, forever. If you've ever wondered whether your short game is actually as bad as you think, or whether your driving distance is the problem, this is how you find out.
The one real-world caveat with automatic shot tracking: it needs clear sky to work properly. Teeing off directly under a cart canopy might mean the shot doesn't register. It's not a dealbreaker, but worth knowing.
Display & Weight
The G6 is lighter — 42g versus the V5's 50g. That 8g difference is noticeable to some people and invisible to others. If you've had wrist fatigue wearing watches during a round, the G6 has the edge. The V5's display resolution is also higher (240×240 vs the G6's 176×176), which shows up in sharper hole maps and text. Both are MIP, both read well in sunlight — MIP tech is genuinely excellent for outdoor readability.
The G6 is also slightly thinner (10mm vs 12mm for the V5), which probably matters more to people who wear the watch off the course than on it.
Customization
The G6 comes with two strap colors included and has 12 interchangeable options available. That's more than most golf watches offer, and if you want something that doesn't look purely utilitarian, the G6 gives you options. The V5 offers five color themes but doesn't advertise the same strap variety. Seems like a small thing, but the G6 clearly put some thought into aesthetics.
Price
G6 is $149.99 on sale ($179.99 MSRP). V5 is $249.99. The $100 gap at current pricing gets you the shot tracking system, better resolution display, and strokes gained analytics. There's no subscription math to do here — neither watch has one. You pay once and that's it. Three years from now, both watches cost exactly what you paid for them on day one.
Who Should Buy Which
Get the G6 if:
- You've tried shot tracking before and genuinely don't use the data
- Weight is a priority — you prefer something you barely notice on your wrist
- You're a casual golfer who wants yardages and nothing else
- The $100 price difference is meaningful and the extra features aren't
- You want more band color options and care about how the watch looks off the course
Get the V5 if:
- You're trying to improve and want to understand where your game is breaking down
- You've been curious about strokes gained but don't want to pay a monthly subscription to access it
- You play enough rounds that automatic shot tracking will actually build a useful dataset
- You're comparing this to any watch that charges for analytics — the V5's free stats model is hard to beat
- You don't mind the extra 8g
The Bottom Line
The G6 is a clean, simple GPS watch that does exactly what it promises. Nothing wrong with it. But the V5 includes 16 tags and full strokes gained analysis for $100 more — and since there's no subscription on either watch, the V5 is just a better value over time for any golfer who's serious about their game. The G6 makes sense for someone who's done the mental math and decided tracking data isn't for them. Everyone else should probably just pay the extra hundred.
Get the Shot Scope V5.
See Also