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Garmin Approach S72: Release Date, Price and What Changed from the S70The golf GPS watch going on sale Oct 22, lined up against its predecessor the S70 and the S50 on official numbers

Updated: Nov 2, 2026Contains affiliate links

I'm on an S70 or S50 and can't decide whether to move to the S72.The S72 47 mm went on sale on Thursday, Oct 22, 2026, and the 43 mm comes in early November. Both cost JPY 128,000 (tax included).

It weighs 48 g, 8 g less than the S70, with a titanium bezel and sapphire glass. If you're undecided, buy it. Just by wearing it round, heart rate, swing and putting records pile up, so after the round you can look for your weak points in numbers. Its strength as a rangefinder stays the same. As a gear nerd with a 72 average and a best of 68, I used an S72 for 3 rounds and lined it up against the official numbers for the S70 and S50.

Bottom line

When is the Garmin Approach S72 released?

The 47mm has been on sale since Oct 22, and the 43mm is due in early Nov. Both are ¥128,000 (tax included).

These are the numbers from the release Garmin Japan put out on Oct 7, 2026. Pre-orders open Thursday, Oct 15.

Sources: Garmin Japan's press release (Oct 7, 2026) and the official product page. They note that price, release timing and specs are subject to change. Checked Oct 29, 2026.

The smaller one isn't cheaper. They're the same price.

Where they differ is battery. The 47mm lasts about 20 hours of golf, the 43mm about 15 hours. Call 1 round 5 hours and that's 4 rounds versus 3 (my calculation). If you play 2 days in a row on an overnight trip, either is enough. If you tend to forget to charge, the 47mm is less to worry about.

Garmin says more than 43,000 courses worldwide are loaded. Water resistance is 5ATM (50m). You can use it as is on rainy days.

S72 vs S70: 8g lighter, same battery life

I'll line it up against the previous Approach S70 (released May 31, 2023) and the S50, 1 step down (released Jan 30, 2025). To keep the sizes matched, the S72 and S70 are both the 47mm.

Sources: Garmin Japan's press releases (S72: Oct 7, 2026; S70: May 24, 2023; S50: Jan 23, 2025). All prices are the MSRP at launch and are separate from current shop prices. Checked Oct 8, 2026.

Lighter. Comparing the larger sizes, it lost 8g and got 0.5mm thinner. The price went up ¥28,200 (all differences are my calculation).

The screen is the same 1.4 inches, and the battery still lasts about 16 days in everyday use and about 20 hours of golf, so even with a lighter bezel and harder glass, battery life has not dropped by a single hour. That is clever work.

The reason it got lighter is the bezel material. It went from ceramic to titanium. The lens is sapphire crystal, which Garmin describes as "scratch-resistant." Both are said to be firsts for this series.
This is a tool that gets knocked against bunker sand and cart fittings, so it's a change I'm simply glad to see.

In the smaller size, the S70 was 42mm and the S72 is 43mm. It went from 44g to 41g, 3g lighter. The listed screen size rose from 1.2 to 1.3 inches, but the official diameters are 32.02mm and 32.45mm, a 0.43mm difference (my calculation). Not a difference you would notice by eye.
This one is up ¥34,200.

The gap to the S50 is ¥60,200. The S50 weighs 29g. Light. That is the S50's strength.

What's added is records, not distance: heart rate, swing, putting

Taking the release's "new features and updates" from the top, you get this.

1. Body data during golf. A new heart rate sensor keeps tracking your heart rate through the round, and afterwards you review it side by side with how you played.
2. Swing metrics. Measures hand speed, top-of-swing position, transition angle and wrist rotation, on the range or during a round.
3. Green reading. On top of distance to the hole, it shows slope direction and slope percentage.
4. Putting analysis. Tallies whether you miss left or right, long or short, across 9 slope patterns.
5. Aerial imagery. See the whole hole in photographic images.

Features 3 and 5 help before you hit; 1, 2 and 4 pay off after you hit. They earn their keep both before and after the round. Nothing wasted.

A rangefinder answers "how many yards right now."
The S72 adds "how did I just do." One watch on your wrist, two jobs.

The swing metrics are numbers derived from wrist movement. You can track whether your hand speed and top position are consistent, at the range or on the course (Garmin has published no accuracy figures; head speed and spin are a launch monitor's job).

Items 3, 4 and 5 carry a note that they need a paid Garmin Golf app subscription. Green Contour (green slope data), which existed before, works the same way, so that makes four. Plans are monthly or yearly, and they only work on supported courses.
Nowhere does it say that paying ¥128,000 unlocks everything. That stings, and it's worth knowing before you buy.

Around rangefinders, Voice Caddie also launched Auto Pin (APL) on Oct 9, which loads the day's pin position into the rangefinder automatically at no extra charge.

Among the smaller details, it gained a speaker and microphone, an LED light, and a 3-minute timer for searching for a lost ball. 3 minutes is the search time set by the Rules of Golf. Start the timer and it vibrates to tell you when time is up. It's unglamorous, but as a tool for not holding up the group behind, it makes sense.

Can you use it on non-golf days? Running, sleep and Suica

Yes. It tracks walking, running, cycling and strength training. Heart rate, sleep, Body Battery and stress are recorded around the clock.

It can stand in for your wallet, too. It has Garmin Pay and Suica tap-to-pay, music storage, a speaker and mic, and an LED light.

It also works for calls on a paired smartphone. The speaker and microphone are a first for this series. Voice commands can call up functions and start a recording even offline, according to the product information. You rarely take a phone call on the course, so this won't decide anything for golf. It's a bonus for people who wear it every day.

Battery life in everyday use is about 16 days (47 mm). Treat JPY 128,000 as a tool for round days only and it's expensive. Think of it as replacing the watch you wear every day, and to me the price makes sense.

Source: Garmin Japan Approach S72 product page (FAQ and feature list). Checked Oct 30, 2026.

What I found using the S72 for 3 rounds

I used the S72 47 mm, the S70 I used before, and the Nikon laser rangefinder I use every round. The S50 I only handled.

These are numbers I measured myself. The error is the distance to the flag compared with the Nikon laser.

The battery dropped about 9% per round. That feels in line with the official figure of about 20 hours of golf. While I had it, a charge every 3 rounds was enough for everyday use.

Going from the S70 to the S72, I could feel the drop from 56 g to 48 g in practice swings. The S70's 56 g felt off over long stretches of practice swings, and I loosened the strap one notch. The screen is about as readable in sun, and easier to read in shade with the S72. In the shade of late afternoon, though, the text was hard to read, so I turned up the backlight. No scratches appeared on the sapphire glass over 3 rounds. The app connected over Bluetooth worked without trouble.

For distance, the error to the flag was ±3 yards for the S70 and ±2 for the S72, both close to the Nikon, and my trust in the distance didn't change.

As this article says, it's a watch for records, and I went back through 3 rounds of records. My average was 31.4 putts, with 4 three-putts across the 3 rounds, and 3 of those were long putts from 10 m or more. After the round, I changed my distance-control practice to 10 m and 15 m, and in the next round three-putts fell to 1.

I haven't bought it. I used it. Divided over 150 rounds a year, about JPY 853 per round seems cheap to me. But the Nikon laser and my S70 records are enough. What decided me was that if I'm spending JPY 128,000, I'd rather wait for the small 43 mm watch, and that I can't find the time to dig into the record features. This article says "if you're undecided, buy the 47 mm," but I haven't bought one myself.

The S70 had a sync that lagged about once a month. I stopped using it in 2025 and went back to the Nikon laser. The Nikon sometimes reacts to trees behind the flag, so I re-measure on the flag.

Auto shot detection got 8 of about 250 shots wrong. On dewy mornings I added strokes by hand

Over three rounds and about 250 shots, automatic detection got 8 wrong: 3 practice swings counted as shots, 2 from cart vibration, and 3 miscounted putts. I fixed all of them in the app after the round.

On some days the green display and the laser disagreed on the distance to the pin. On a day with the pin front, the green-center display said 152 yards and the Nikon measured 146 yards. I trusted the Nikon's number and went from an 8-iron to a 9-iron. I use the green shape to check where to aim front or back, and I measure the distance to the pin with the laser.

The putting record wasn't always readable from the numbers alone. Three of my four three-putts came from 10 to 15 m downhill on fast morning greens. Once, even with the watch showing a 2% downhill slope, it felt much faster than that.

I wore the S70 at the same time on the same holes to compare. After one round, battery was down 12% on the S70 and 9% on the S72. Through sunglasses the S72 was easier to read, and the buttons and touch response felt about the same.

On non-golf days, I tracked two 5 km runs near home and two nights of sleep. What was handy: the same watch I wear on the course showed heart rate and sleep. What annoyed me: too many notifications, so I turned off everything except phone calls and LINE. I only saw two nights of sleep, so don't take this as a long-term impression.

If you know where detection tends to go wrong, you won't wonder which strokes to doubt when you review the round afterward.

My call:If I buy, I'd take the 47 mm for its lightness. But my limit is 100,000 yen, and 128,000 yen is high. I'll wait until the 43 mm comes out or the price drops.

What is JPY 128,000 per 1 round? Divide by 150 rounds a year

Whether it's expensive depends on how often you use it, so divide by rounds. I play 150 rounds a year. Over 1 year, JPY 128,000 ÷ 150 = about JPY 853.

JPY 128,000 (tax included) divided by the number of rounds, my own calculation. It does not include the paid Garmin Golf app membership or battery replacement.

The JPY 28,200 gap to the S70 divides the same way: JPY 28,200 ÷ 150 = about JPY 188 (if you use it up in one year). Is a lighter watch (8 g), a titanium bezel, sapphire glass, 64 GB, and heart-rate and swing records worth JPY 188 a round? If you don't need the putt-miss tracking or heart rate, that gap is money you don't have to spend.

You can divide the battery the same way. Golf battery life is about 20 hours on the 47 mm. Assuming 5 hours per round, one charge covers 4 rounds. At 150 rounds a year, that's about 38 charges for golf alone (150 ÷ 4 = 37.5; everyday charging is separate). The 43 mm lasts about 15 hours, so 3 rounds per charge and 50 charges by the same math. If you want fewer charges, the 47 mm costs the same.

One more thing. The ECG app is not intended for people under 22, and the S72 is not a medical device. Treat the heart-rate numbers as a way to look back on practice and rounds.

Sources: Garmin Japan press release (Oct 7, 2026) and product page figures, plus my own calculations. Oct 31, 2026.

In competition, you can't use elevation or club recommendations

For those who play in competitions, here is how it fits with the Rules of Golf.

Rule 4.3a of the Rules of Golf sorts the information you may use during a round.

• Getting information on distance or direction. This is allowed.
• Measuring elevation changes. Not allowed.
• Getting information from a device on a recommended line of play or club selection based on the location of the ball. Not allowed.
• Recording things like heart rate for use after the round. Allowed. Using numbers measured during the round on the spot is not allowed.

Apply that to the S72.
Distances to the front, middle and back can be used. PlaysLike distance, which factors in elevation, and Virtual Caddie, which suggests a club, are on the side you can't use in competition. Heart rate is described by Garmin itself as a feature for "reviewing after the round." That matches the line in the Rules.

What about green reading?
From the text of the Rules alone, I can't say for certain which side the slope percentage display falls on. If you play in competitions, check with the competition's Committee before using it.

The official specs include a "Tournament Mode." For the PinPointer, the release also says it "can be turned off for competition." Because the means to switch these off are built in, it works as a distance and recording watch as-is on competition days.

Before you buy, count the misses in your last 3 rounds

Before the watch, count your own misses. Pull out the scorecards from your last 3 rounds and mark the holes where you missed the green. Just sort the reasons into "short or long" and "left or right." ¥0.

1. Mostly short and long.Your distance reading is off. Front, middle and back distances show on your wrist, which makes club selection easier.
2. Mostly left and right.Curvature is about the shot. Reviewing your hand speed and top position in the swing metrics gives you clues for practice.
3. Can't count them at all.You don't remember where or how you missed. This is where the S72, which records automatically, helps most.

Example for case 1.
My 7-iron goes 160 yards (my own measurement). Suppose a hole is 150 yards to the front of the green and 180 to the back. With 10 yards between clubs, playing to the front means an 8-iron and to the back a 5-iron. Three clubs apart (an estimate calculated from my measurement; the hole numbers are hypothetical).
Two numbers, front and back, make club choice easier than one number to the pin. This is where GPS watches excel.

For people in group 2, the cause of the curve comes before the gear. Whether it's the club or the motion, I wrote up how to tell in Lessons or clubs first?

As for whether a laser or a watch suits you, Best Golf Rangefinders lines up the weight and price of 5 units.

Which to pick: S72, S70 or S50

Approach S72: the 1 for people who review their records

Of the three, the S72 leaves the most material from a round. Heart rate, swing, even how you miss putts, all from one watch. The 48g weight, titanium bezel and sapphire glass also make it well built as something you wear every day, not just on golf days.
Storage goes from the S70's 16GB to 64GB. Battery stays at about 20 hours, and it is 8g lighter. The more numbers I line up, the more careful the build looks. It's a good watch.
If I were choosing, the 47mm. At the same price, I take the one with 5 more hours of battery.

Great for you if you

• Buying your first GPS golf watch and want one that lasts
• Want to look back over your records after a round
• You want to know in numbers whether you miss putts left or right
• You want to wear it every day and see heart rate and even sleep on 1 device

Approach S70: the previous model with the same screen and battery

In 47mm, both the screen and the battery are the same as the S72. The differences are the bezel and lens, 8g of weight, the generation of the heart rate sensor, and the new recording features.
Not bad.
If its price moves after the S72 comes out, it becomes a sensible choice for people who are after distances and the course map and don't need swing or heart rate records. See the box below for the current price.

Great for you if you

• You want to see the course map on a big screen
• You don't need swing or heart rate records

Approach S50: for people who just need the distance

¥67,800 at 29g. The lightest and cheapest of the three. For giving front, middle and back distances, it does the job.
One glance at your wrist shows three distances, and it weighs 29g. If lightness comes before everything, the S50 is also a candidate.

Great for you if you

• You're buying a watch type for the first time
• You want one light enough to forget you're wearing it

If in doubt, the S72 47mm

One pick: if in doubt, the S72 47mm.Same price as the 43mm, with 5 more hours of golf battery. Light weight, hard glass and round records: the most complete watch in Garmin's current lineup.

The 47mm went on sale Oct 22 as planned and you can buy it now. The 43mm is still planned for early November (checked Oct 28, 2026).
Once shop prices and third-party measurements come out, I will add a follow-up to this article, including how far the swing metrics can be trusted.

To compare it with the other 2026 rangefinders, see Newest Rangefinders 2026. If you're curious about lasers that measure straight to the flag, the four Bushnell rangefinders compared lines them up by weight. Other new releases this month and next are in the 2026 Golf Club Release Calendar.

Can you say how many greens you missed in your last round?

Update history

• Oct 31, 2026: Added a section on "What is JPY 128,000 per 1 round?", an explanation of calls and the fact that it is not a medical device, and 2 new questions (numbers unchanged)
• Oct 8, 2026: Published (based on Garmin Japan's press release and the official product page; the 47mm goes on sale Oct 22)
• Updated 2026-10-28: Rechecked the 43mm release timing (early in month 11) and added the Q&A "When can I buy the 43mm, and should I wait?"
• Oct 25, 2026: Rewrote the pre-release wording after the 47 mm launch and added the question "Can you buy it now?"
• Oct 12, 2026: Added the points I thought were good (the numbers are unchanged)
• Oct 14, 2026: Rewrote the top-pick box and the how-to-choose sections (the numbers are unchanged)
• Oct 18, 2026: Reworked the title, description and intro so the answer to “Garmin S72” comes first, and added an FAQ on the S50 (no numbers changed)

About the writer and sources

The writer has an average score of 72, plays 150 rounds a year, has a driver head speed of 46 m/s and hits a slight fade. I read the official numbers side by side, and for the gear I used I give my own numbers too.

What I used of the S72 is in the section "What I found using the S72 for 3 rounds". I did the subtraction and sorting of the official numbers. Last updated: Nov 2, 2026.

FAQ

Related reading

GPS Watch or Laser Rangefinder?
A GPS watch gives you the center of the green. I worked out the gap to the pin and which to buy first.

Best Rangefinders
Lasers and GPS: 5 units lined up by weight, price and competition legality.

New Rangefinders 2026
Compare it with the other rangefinders released in 2026 on official numbers.

Voice Caddie Laser FIT2
The 1 for people who can do with a laser instead of a watch.

Golf Club Release Calendar 2026
Release dates and prices of new models coming this month and next.

Srixon ZXi RKT Driver Review
If clubs are next after a rangefinder: a new release from Sep 12, list price ¥89,100.

2026 New Irons: Release Dates
The irons released in 2026, lined up by release date and list price.

Best Drivers 2026
The 2026 new drivers, ranked.

Sources for this article

• Garmin Japan press release: Approach S72, the most advanced golf GPS watch in Garmin's history, goes on sale Thursday, Oct 22 (Oct 7, 2026)
• Garmin Japan official: Approach S72 47mm product page (specs)
• Garmin Japan official press release: Approach S70 goes on sale Wednesday, May 31 (May 24, 2023)
• Garmin Japan official press release: Approach S50 and Approach S44 go on sale Thursday, Jan 30 (Jan 23, 2025)
• R&A Rules of Golf, Rule 4.3: Use of Equipment

Last updated: Nov 2, 2026

Specs and prices are the figures published on manufacturers' official websites and in press releases, and by media outlets (checked Oct 28, 2026). The numbers from my own rounds with the S72 are my own records (see the section on using the S72 for 3 rounds).

Buying from outside Japan? How to buy Japanese golf clubs from outside Japan. Related: Best rangefinders · Watch vs laser rangefinder.