Shot Pattern Alternative: Get Strokes Gained Stats for Free

Quick answer: Shot Pattern Premium costs $99 per year. Several of the features it charges for are free in the WhyGolf app, including shot tracking, shot by shot strokes gained stats, your shot dispersion drawn on the hole, plays-like yardages and sharing your stats with a coach. WhyGolf is free to download, and the strokes gained features sit on the free side of its paywall, not behind the $99.99 PRO tier.

In this post, WhysGuy will cover:

• What Shot Pattern charges for, and what its free tier actually includes.
• The Shot Pattern Premium features you get free in WhyGolf.
• What WhyGolf gives you that Shot Pattern does not sell at any price.
• What WhyGolf PRO adds, if you want it.

What Shot Pattern Costs

Shot Pattern is a GPS, stats and strategy app built around shot dispersion. Its paid tier, Shot Pattern Premium, is $99 per year as of September 2026, also sold at $74.99 for six months or $19.99 per month. There is a 14 day free trial when you check out on their website and a 7 day trial inside the app.

Shot Pattern does have a free tier, and it is worth being accurate about what is in it: GPS distances on phone and watch, 2D and 3D course previews, one preset dispersion size that you cannot customize, and a wind meter and compass. What it does not include is shot tracking or strokes gained. Those are Premium features.

That is the line most golfers run into. You download a stats app to find out where you are losing strokes, and the stats are the part you have to pay for.

Shot Pattern Premium Features You Get Free in WhyGolf

This table covers the overlap: the features Shot Pattern puts behind its $99 paywall that are free in the WhyGolf app. Shot Pattern Premium includes additional tools beyond this list; this is the shared ground, not their full feature set.

All five are in the WhyGolf app at no cost, with no trial clock and no card on file. Full detail on both tiers is on the WhyGolf app pricing page.

Shot tracking and strokes gained

WhyGolf tracks your shots during the round and turns them into strokes gained for the round, broken out by part of the game. This is the core of what a stats app is for, and it is the thing Shot Pattern reserves for Premium. In WhyGolf it is free.

Dispersion on the hole

Seeing your pattern against the hole is what turns a yardage into a target. WhyGolf draws your dispersion from your handicap, so it works from your first round rather than waiting for you to bank enough shots. Shot Pattern's free tier gives you one preset size; the customizable version is a Premium feature.

Plays-like yardages

Slope and elevation change what a number means. WhyGolf adjusts for both in the free app. Shot Pattern's elevation markers live inside Tournament Mode, on the paid tier.

Sharing with a coach

WhyGolf lets you share detailed stats with friends and coaches for free. Shot Pattern has a Coach Portal where coaches view for free, but the player needs an active Premium subscription for there to be anything to view.

What WhyGolf Gives You That Shot Pattern Does Not

These are not paywall comparisons. Shot Pattern does not offer them at any price:

• A digital scorecard that posts to GHIN. Keep the card, post the score, no second app.
• Betting games with end of round net payouts. Match play, Nassau, Wolf, Skins, COD, 9 Point, Left/Right and Dots, scored for you. Our guides to Wolf and Skins walk through the rules.
• AI powered insights and swing thought organization. Somewhere to put the thing that worked on the range so it is still there on the first tee.
• Build Your Bag and a club selector for every shot. Your set, your distances, a recommendation on the shot in front of you.
• Round sharing with photos and comments. The round, with your group in it.

Full GPS with AimAssist and Apple Watch support are in the free app as well.

What WhyGolf PRO Adds

WhyGolf PRO is $99.99 per year with a 7 day trial. You do not need it to track shots or see strokes gained. It adds depth on top: strokes gained benchmarking against a target handicap range, more detailed performance analytics, personalized shot dispersion built from your own shots, the ability to add targets when you track a shot, green slope maps and a green reader on iPhone and Apple Watch, on demand instruction from TOUR coaches, unlimited AI insights, and discounts on WhyGolf products.

The point of the free tier is that you can answer "where am I losing strokes" without paying anything. PRO is there when you want to go further.

Which One Should You Download

If you want shot tracking and strokes gained without a subscription, download WhyGolf and start with the free app. Nothing in this post asks you to pick a tier on day one. Play a few rounds, look at where the strokes are going, and decide from there.

Prices in this post are current as of September 2026. Check Shot Pattern's pricing page and the WhyGolf app pricing page before you buy, because app pricing changes.