The Quick Verdict
Honestly? These two together might be the setup — but only if your budget allows. The X5 ($249.99 on sale) is a full course-management tool on your wrist. The PRO LX+ ($449.99) is an elite laser rangefinder with GPS built in. They're both Shot Scope products, they share the same app ecosystem, and they genuinely do different things during a round. If you're picking just one: the X5 covers more of your game. But if you play seriously and want exact pin distance alongside hole strategy, there's a real case for both. More on that below.
What They Actually Do
The X5 is a GPS watch — strap it on, and it shows you distances, hole layouts, hazards, and your shot history throughout the round. The PRO LX+ is a laser rangefinder — point it at a flag or target, press the button, get a distance. Both live in the Shot Scope ecosystem, share the same app, and both are tournament legal (with slope disabled on the PRO LX+). That shared ecosystem is actually a bigger deal than it sounds.
The Real Tradeoffs
Precision vs. Convenience
The PRO LX+ gives you ±1 yard to whatever you're pointing at. The X5 gives you front/center/back of green — accurate enough for club selection most of the time, but not the same thing. On a par 3 with a back-right tucked pin, that difference matters. But on a 420-yard par 4 where you're trying to figure out if you can carry the fairway bunker on the left? The watch already has that number on your wrist before you've reached your bag.
Speed of Use
The X5 wins on speed, every time. You step up to your ball, glance down, you're done. The PRO LX+ means pulling it out of your pocket or holster, locating the flag through the lens, pressing the button, reading the number, putting it away. On a slow course with people waiting, the watch keeps pace of play moving. When you need an exact number for a 165-yard approach with a front pin, you'll want the laser.
What You Can See Before You Hit
This is where the X5 does something the PRO LX+ literally cannot do. The personalized hole maps on the X5 overlay your actual club distances — so it shows you roughly where your driver or 3-wood is likely to finish based on your history. You see the whole hole: where the bunkers sit, how far to carry the water, where the dogleg turns. The rangefinder shows you one number. That's it. There's no course map, no hazard layout, nothing about the shape of the hole.
Real-world example: You're on a tee box you've never played, 390-yard par 4, water cutting across the fairway at 240 yards. The X5 shows you the carry distance to clear it and where your driver typically lands. The PRO LX+ can't help here — there's no target to aim at that tells you anything useful.
The Ecosystem Connection
Both products sync to the Shot Scope app. Both give you access to 100+ stats including Strokes Gained, and both pull from the same 36,000-course database. If you're already a Shot Scope user, adding the other device means your data flows into the same place. That's a real advantage over mixing brands. What I can't confirm from the spec data is whether the PRO LX+ relays laser measurements directly to the X5 on your wrist — so don't assume that without checking with Shot Scope directly.
Shot Tracking
The X5 includes 16 club tags and tracks every shot automatically. The PRO LX+ also has shot tracking capability through the H4 GPS attachment. Both devices feed into the same stat engine. This is unusual for a rangefinder and genuinely useful — most laser-only devices give you nothing after the round.
Cost of Ownership
Neither product has a subscription fee. That's a Shot Scope thing across the board, and it matters over time. The X5 is $249.99 on sale. The PRO LX+ is $449.99. Combined: just under $700 before any discount. That's real money, but there's no annual fee stacked on top.
Battery
The X5 runs about two-plus rounds on a charge before you need to plug it back in. The PRO LX+ runs approximately 5,800 measurements — that's months of normal play without thinking about it. If you forget to charge the X5, you're out of luck. The rangefinder just works.
Who Should Get Which
Get the X5 if: You want one device that handles everything — distances, course layout, shot tracking, stats — without ever pulling anything out of your pocket. You're a mid-handicapper who plays a variety of courses and wants to understand your game better over time. You don't want to mess with charging a watch AND carrying a rangefinder.
Get the PRO LX+ if: You already have a GPS device you like, or you play the same handful of courses and know the layouts cold. You care most about exact pin distance on approach shots. You want a rangefinder that also builds your shot history in the app — not just a dumb laser.
Get both if: You're a serious golfer who wants the full picture. Use the X5 for course strategy — hole layout, hazard carries, where your clubs typically land — and the PRO LX+ for precise pin distance when it counts. This is the setup a lot of low-handicap players actually use, and with both products in the same ecosystem feeding the same stats, it makes more sense here than it would mixing brands.
The Bottom Line
The X5 does more for your game overall, and at $249.99 it's hard to argue against as a standalone purchase. But the PRO LX+ isn't redundant — it does one thing the watch can't: give you the exact number to a specific target. If budget forces a choice, get the X5. If you're ready to build a proper setup, get both.
Get both. The X5 on your wrist, the PRO LX+ in your pocket.