 Personal Golf Tracker

Personal Golf Tracker (PGT) is a comprehensive program that lets you keep a close eye on your golf game.  It is distributed as Shareware.  If you use the program you should pay the registration fee.  You receive significant benefits for registering.  See Benefits of registering for details.

Working with golfers

Working with courses

Working with rounds

Using the menus

Using the tool bar

Using shortcut keys

Understanding graphs

Printing reports

Converting PGT for DOS files

Details on calculations

Statistics names

Warranty and disclaimer

Summarizing rounds

Recalculating summaries and handicaps

Mathematics used in calculations

Backing Up Your Database

Scope of averages


Working with Golfers

Adding golfers

Deleting golfers

Adding notes to golfers

Database linkages


Working with Courses

Adding courses

Modifying courses

Deleting courses

Adding notes to courses

Database linkages


Working with Rounds

Adding rounds

Modifying rounds

Deleting rounds

Adding notes to rounds

Adding statistics to rounds

Assigning points to rounds


Converting from the DOS version of PGT
Converting Files From the DOS Based Version of PGT

Registered users of PGT for Windows receive a conversion program that will enable all golfer files used by the DOS version of PGT to be used in Personal Golf Tracker for Windows.  Information such as statistics names, rounds, courses, and golfers that have been entered into the DOS version will be converted.


Adding Rounds

You can add rounds to PGT by clicking New under the Rounds menu or by entering Control+R from the keyboard.  In order to add a round you must first select both a course and a golfer. See Adding golfers and Adding courses for more information.  When you do this, the Add Rounds window will open.  There are limits to the number of rounds that can be added to PGT. See Database limits for more information.

When you enter individual hole scores the cursor will advance to the next hole depending on the setting of the Nine or Better check box.  If you have individual hole scores over nine you will have to clear the check box to enter the score. To back up a hole hold down the shift key and press tab.

You can keep the rounds window open by clicking Add and entering another round.  Click OK when you are finished adding rounds.  Rounds that you add are assigned to the Selected golfer and Selected course.

You can attach notes to a round by clicking on Notes and you can add special statistics of your choosing by clicking on Stats


Adding Notes to Rounds

When you are adding or modifying a round you can attach a note by clicking Notes on the Add/Modify Rounds window.  You can enter up to 192 characters in a note.

You may want to keep track of the type of day it was, who you played with - anything special.  You can view the note later by clicking View notes under the Rounds menu. See Viewing notes for more information.


Modifying Rounds

To modify a round, click on one of the rounds listed on the main screen.  After you do that you will be able to select Modify on the rounds menu.  You can also enter Control+M from the keyboard after highlighting a round. Modifying a round is much the same as entering a new round.  See Adding rounds for more help.


Deleting Rounds

The best way to delete a round is to press the delete key after highlighting a round on the main screen.  Another way is to click on Delete under the Rounds menu.  You can also enter Control+D from the keyboard or press the Del key when a round is highlighted. If a round is highlighted the Rounds Delete window will locate the round for you.  You can delete the highlighted round by clicking on the Delete button or you can delete the round by dragging the round to the trash can.


Dragging

Dragging is depressing and holding down the left mouse button and moving to a destination and releasing the button.


Deleting by Dragging

To delete a round by dragging, depress the left mouse button and drag the golf cart icon to the trash can and release the left button.


Deleting Courses

The best way to delete a course is to press the delete key after highlighting the course on the main screen.  Another way is to click on Delete under the Course menu.  If a course is highlighted, the Course Delete window will locate the course for you. Alternatively, you can press the Del key when a round is highlighted.  After the delete window opens, you can delete the highlighted course by clicking on the Delete button or you can drag the course to the trash can.


Viewing Notes

If a round on the main screen has an "n" to the right of the date you can highlight the round and click View notes under the Rounds menu to read the note.  You can also enter Control+V from the keyboard. If you cannot select View rounds from the Rounds menu you have either not highlighted a round or the round you have highlighted does not contain a note.

Another way to view notes is to double click on the round, course, or golfer whose note you want to view.


Adding statistics
Adding Statistics to Rounds

When you are adding or modifying a round, you can attach up to six statistics to track.  You can assign your own names.  The range for statistics entries are integers from 1 to 999.  PGT will double your statistics when entering nine hole rounds if you have checked the "Double stats for nines" check box when entering a round.  Doubling stats keeps nine and eighteen hole rounds synchronized by doubling statistics for nine hole rounds when you view the statistics graphs.  This helps you get a more realistic measure of your progress.

Rounds that have statistics attached to them have an 's' next to the date on the main display window.  You can change the statistics by clicking Modify under the Rounds menu.


Graphs
Understanding Graphs

See the following topics for an explanation of graphs available with PGT:

Consistency

Distribution Graph

Statistics Graph

Detailed Statistics Graph


Statistics Names

Choose Name statistics under the Statistics menu.  Doing this enables you to name the statistics you want to track.  Use you imagination.  For instance, if you have a particular statistic that you want to track, you could put a name on it such as "ThreePutt".

Note:	Once you assign a statistic name and assign rounds to it, changing the name may confuse you because all rounds are assigned the statistic name you have selected to use. Therefore, your statistics names should be meaningful and consistent throughout the program.


Adding Courses
Adding New Courses

You can add courses up to the Database limits.  When you add a course, remember that PGT accepts course pars of three, four, and five.  When you add a course, the course name must be unique without regard to capitalization.  For example, "Swan Lake" is the same course as "swan Lake".  PGT will still display the name as you typed it.

If you want to change the course name later, you must delete the course and reenter it.  Furthermore, any rounds attached to the old course name will not be displayed or used in calculations unless the names are an exact match.  See Database linkages for more information. Therefore, be sure you properly name a course before adding it to the database.

PGT uses your entry of the course rating when calculating handicaps for eighteen hole rounds.  If you don't enter a rating or the rating you enter is outside reasonable limits, PGT uses course par to figure Handicaps.  Slope is used for reference only.  It is not used for handicap calculations. See Handicap calculations for more detail.


Database Linkages

PGT assigns the Selected course and Selected golfer to each round entered by the name you assign.  Therefore, course names and golfer names must match the names assigned to rounds.  This does not present a problem unless you change a course name, or delete a course from the database.  If you do this, rounds previously assigned will not match a course and PGT will not use those rounds in listings or calculations.

If you accidentally delete a course and want to reinstate it, just add the course back into the database.  Be sure the course name you assign is exactly the same as the course name assigned previously.  You can list all the courses assigned to rounds in the Delete Rounds window.


Modifying Courses

To modify a course, click on one of the courses you want to modify.  This will highlight the course.  You can click on the Course icon on the Tool bar to list the courses.  After highlighting the course, click on the Course menu and on Modify to open the Course Modify window. Changing entries is much like Adding Courses.

Because PGT matches course names with rounds, you can't change a course name.  See Database linkages for more information.


Adding Golfers

Click on File from the main menu then click New.  You can also type Control+G from the keyboard.  This will display the Add Golfer window.  Enter a golfer name and a file name for the golfer you want to add.   Both golfer names and the file names you assign must be unique.  Your golfer name may be any character up to a total of twenty characters.  The file name can be up to eight letters or numbers.  PGT will append the file name extension of .GLW. To close the Add golfer window, click on Cancel. See Database linkages for more help.


Deleting a Golfer

To delete a golfer, press the delete key after listing the golfers and highlighting the golfer you want to delete.  PGT will open the Delete Golfer window and select the golfer for you. If you wish, you can go to the Delete Golfer window by clicking on Delete under the File menu.  Doing this will open the Delete Golfer window. Click on the golfer name you want to delete and click Delete.  You can also delete a golfer by dragging to the trash can.


Date Filter

Personal Golf Tracker does calculations only for rounds that are between two dates.  The Oldest and Newest dates are displayed in the lower left section of the screen. Click on the dates to change them.

This feature enables you to exclude certain rounds from the calculations PGT makes.  Although all rounds are listed, only those with an asterisk (*) next to the round's date are used in graphs, summaries, and all calculations.

Note:	If the dates are set in a way you don't intend, you can be mislead regarding your performance.


Database Limits

The default number of golfers, courses, and rounds is 100.  These limits can be changed by modifying the WINPGT.INI file included with Personal Golf Tracker. See Modifying WINPGT.INI for more information.

Because all rounds are kept in memory to increase speed, you may want to reduce the number of rounds per golfer to conserve memory.

Note: If you set the limits in WINPGT.INI to values less than your highest number of rounds, golfers, or courses in the database, PGT will generate an error and the program will terminate. This is done to keep the database intact. Keep this in mind if you change the settings.


Changing database limits
Modifying WINPGT.INI

You can modify the settings in WINPGT.INI if you wish.  You will find the file in your Windows directory.  To make the changes, use an ASCII text editor such as the Notepad application that ships with Windows.

Be careful modifying WINPGT.INI.  If you decrease the settings and have more golfers, courses, or rounds entered than the number you assign in the file, PGT will terminate.

If you need to enter more rounds, courses, or golfers than the default limits, keep in mind that there is a tradeoff in memory usage because all rounds, courses, and golfers are stored in memory when the program is running.  This is done to increase speed.


Storing golfer files
Golfer Files Directory

You can select a directory of your choosing for storing rounds. Click on New golfer under the Files menu to assign a directory for golfer storage. When you add a golfer to the database it is assigned to the directory shown in the directory list.  To see where a golfer file is stored, double click on the golfer's name in the Golfer Name List Box. Doing that will change the directory to the one that is assigned to the golfer you selected.

Note:	It is a good idea to pick a directory for all golfers and use it consistently. If you delete a golfer's file, all rounds entered for that golfer will be lost.


Backing up the database
Backing Up Your Database

As with all things mechanical you will, at some point, have a problem with your hard disk. It would be a good idea to keep a backup up all golfer files on floppy disk.  The important files are:

File contents:	Description:

Rounds Storage:	Any file with a file name extension of <filename>.GLW.  These files are where the rounds for each golfer are located.

.

Course Storage:	COURSEW.LST. This file stores all information about the golf courses entered in the Personal Golf Tracker database.

Golfer Storage:	GOLFERW.LST. This file keeps track of the location of the golfers' files, summaries, and calculations.

Program Defaults:	WINPGT.CNF. This file contains important information the program needs to operate properly along with statistics names, sort order selections, and other data.

Program Limits:	WINPGT.INI. This file contains the Database limits. The maximum number of rounds, courses, and golfers are stored there along with the start-up window size.

Note: Your course storage, golfer golfer, and program defaults files are located in the directory in which you installed PGT. The rounds storage files are located in the directory you assigned them to when adding golfers. The program limits file is in the Windows directory.


Printing Reports

You have many options available to you when printing. You can select any one, or all of the reports by checking the boxes. To change the appearance of your printout, see Using Different Fonts when Printing Below is a listing of the names for the check boxes and a description of the report each option will produce:

Rounds:	Checking this box causes PGT to list the rounds on a hole by hole basis for the Selected golfer on the Selected course. Your printout will include a listing of each round played. It is important to note the round number listed before the date. Other information you print, such as statistics and notes, also designate the round number. That way you can associate the information you entered with each report.

Statistics:	Checking this box causes PGT to printout the statistics that you have chosen to keep track of.  Using this option, you will get both a round by round listing of statistics along with summaries which include the Total, Average, Highest, Lowest, and Average Deviation.

Notes:	To printout the notes you have assigned to rounds, select the Notes check box. You will get a printout of the notes as you entered them. You associate a note with a round by matching the note number with the round number which is listed with the rounds and statistics listing.

Graphs:	You can printout three graphs by checking this box. The three graphs are:

The Consistency graph  includes only the rounds for the current course and the current golfer. Note: This graph is valid only for the selected course and the selected golfer. Since par on one course varies on a hole by hole basis with another course, including more than one course would invalidate the information. See Consistency Graph for more information

The Distribution graph includes distribution statistics for the selected golfer on all courses. If the Selected only option button is active, the distribution graph will include only the scores for the selected course. Note: The Distribution graph on the computer display can only show rounds for the selected course. See Distribution Graph for more information.

The Statistics graph includes the last twenty statistics for the selected golfer on all courses. If the Selected only option button is selected, the Statistics graph will include only the scores for the selected course. Note: As with the Distribution graph above, the Statistics graph on the computer display can only show rounds for the selected course. See Statistics Graph for more information.

Option button settings

The Option buttons control what is included in the printouts. For example: If you are a league secretary, you may want to printout certain statistics for all golfers in the league. If you are an individual keeping track of your rounds but play several courses, you may want a printout that spans across all courses.  Or, you may want information for just yourself on a single course.

Selected Only:	Rounds print out only for the selected golfer and the selected course. Also, selecting this option causes the Distribution and Statistics graphs to print only information for the selected course. If this option is not selected, the graphs mentioned above will include statistics which include all courses.

All Golfers:	The rounds printout will include the rounds for all golfers in the database that have rounds on the selected course.

All Courses:	The rounds printout will include rounds for all courses in the database that have rounds for the selected golfer.

Other Printing Options:

Course Listing:	Printout a listing of all the courses in the database by checking this box. You will print hole by hole par for each course along with the course rating and slope.

Course Rankings:	Check this box to printout a sorted ranking of your performance on a course by course basis. If you are running a league which has many golfers that play on many courses, you will have to select each golfer separately and reprint this report. The printout will be sorted based on your selection on the "Sort courses by" setting under the Course menu.

Golfer Rankings:	You can printout the summary for each golfer for which you have entered rounds. PGT will include all courses in the calculations. This is the most useful printout for leagues. Total points you have assigned when entering rounds is shown. The printout will be sorted based on your selection on the "Sort golfers by" setting under the File menu.

Stat Names Sheet:	To printout a sheet that has a listing of the statistics names you have entered, check this box. You will get a sheet of names that you can take to the course with you to help you keep track as you play.


Benefits of Registration

Personal Golf Tracker is distributed under the Shareware concept.  As such, you are encouraged to copy and share this version of PGT with others.  If you use the program you should register your copy.  Aside from encouraging the author to continue to update the program, you receive significant benefits for registering:

You get the latest version of PGT.

You receive a printed and illustrated manual.

You get copies of golfing icons.

After hours phone support will be provided.

You get notification and discounts on future versions.

You will be supporting the Shareware method of software distribution which enabled you to try out PGT before buying it.

The author is a member of the Association of Shareware Professionals. This assures you that you are doing business with an author dedicated to the advancement of Shareware and customer satisfaction.

Thank you in advance for registering your copy of PGT.

Please register your copy by sending $25.00 US to:

John L. Hancock

2713 Trelawny Dr.

Clarksville, TN  37043

Overseas registrations: Please add $3.00 shipping and handling.


Association of Shareware Professionals
Association of Shareware Professionals (ASP)

The ASP is a organization devoted to advancing the concept of Shareware as a marketing alternative to commercial software distribution.  Members of the ASP must reach detailed standards of excellence and maintain certain guidelines established by the ASP.  The ASP has an Ombudsman to help settle any dispute between an ASP member and his registered customer should that become necessary.  See ASP Ombudsman for more information. In general, when you register your product with an ASP member you are dealing with a person or company that is dedicated to the advancement of Shareware and subscribes to the principals laid down by the organization.


Displaying Summaries

Click on the Summation button to cause PGT to calculate the percentages, deviations, best round, handicaps, and averages displayed at the bottom of the screen.  Keep in mind that all calculations and graphs are filtered by the Oldest and Newest dates in the lower left portion of the screen.

For details on the mathematics used to make the calculations, see the topics below:

Rounds averages

Average deviation

Best round

Percentages

Handicaps

Hole by hole percentages


Average deviation
Deviation Calculation

Deviation is an average deviation off all scores that fall within the Oldest and Newest dates.  PGT calculates the average of all rounds, sums the absolute value of the difference between the average and the scores, then averages the differences.  The lower the number the more consistent you are.


Handicaps
Handicap calculation

By default, PGT uses the best ten of the last twenty rounds to calculate eighteen hole handicaps.  The program will not figure a handicap until five rounds have been entered.  In order to make PGT valuable for nine hole leagues, the default selection offers three nine hole rounds being required to establish a nine hole handicap.  PGT uses the best nine of the last eighteen nine hole rounds to figure a nine hole handicap.

If the Course rating was entered when a course was added to the database, PGT will use it to calculate eighteen hole handicaps.  If not, PGT uses course par.  In the case of nine hole rounds, PGT uses course par to develop handicap differentials.

You can change the basis used for calculating handicaps. To change the PGT defaults, click on Rounds and Custom handicaps. Enter the values you prefer and save each set of parameters by clicking the Save button.

Note:	You must click the Save button for each set of handicap parameters you change. Said another way, you must click the Save button three times if you have changed all three sets of parameters.

PGT chooses how many rounds to include in calculations based on the schedule below. This example uses the default values supplied by PGT (best 10 of the last 20 starting with five rounds) for eighteen hole handicap calculations. If you use numbers of your own, the table adjusts to accommodate your selection. Keep in mind that handicap calculations include only rounds that fall with the Oldest and Newest dates assigned in the lower left corner of the main screen.

Rounds entered	Best used

1-4	0

5-6	1

7-8	2

9-10	3

11-12	4

13-14	5

15-16	6

17	7

18	8

19	9

20	10

IMPORTANT:  Handicaps calculated by PGT are not official. Therefore, you should not use PGT to establish handicaps for competitive events.  Handicaps figured by PGT are for your information only and are not intended for you to use when comparing yourself to other golfers.  They are included to give you a measure of your individual progress.


Averages
Average Calculation

Averages are calculated for all nine hole rounds and all eighteen hole rounds that fall between the Oldest and Newest dates. The front and back nines are figured separately. Eighteen hole averages are figured on eighteen hole rounds only.  Therefore, the sum of the front and back nine averages may not equal the eighteen hole average.  Averages shown at the bottom of the main screen are calculated for the Selected course only and are filtered by the Oldest and Newest date.

To see averages including all courses, list the golfers by clicking File and List Golfers on the main menu.


Percentage calculations
Percentage Calculation

Depending on the setting of the Options menu, PGT lists, on the Percentage line, the percent of the time your hole score reached the goal.  For example, if Bogey is selected on the Options menu and a percentage number equals 66 then your scores for that hole have been Bogey or better 66% of the time.  If your percentage reaches 100% then PGT prints two dashes for that hole. The percentage is calculated against the Selected course and filtered by the Oldest and Newest dates.


Best round
Best Round Calculation

Depending on your selection on the "Best score by.." setting under the Options menu, you can show your best score on a hole by hole basis or on a nine hole basis. Your best score on the selected course is shown along the bottom of the window. If you have selected "Best score by holes" from the menu, PGT keeps track of the best hole score as you add rounds.  This is intended to show what you are capable of if you were to shoot your very best. Some people prefer to call this calculation "Fantasy Best". If you checked "Best score by nines" on the menu, PGT displays your best front and back nine entered for the Selected Course.


Using the Tool Bar

The tool bar consists of the buttons along the upper right of the main screen display. Click on the button above to see a description of the item's action.

Summarizing rounds

Adding golfers, courses, and rounds

Listing rounds

Listing statistics

Listing courses

Listing golfer rankings

Graphing your consistency

Graphing your score distribution

Graphing your statistics


Hole by Hole Comparasons to Par, Bogey, and Double Bogey
Hole by Hole Comparisons to Par, Bogey, and Double Bogey

Most golfers compare their scores referencing Par, Bogey, or Double Bogey. There is one calculation affected by the Par, Bogey, or Double Bogey selection on the Options menu: The Percentage line at the bottom of the screen changes to represent the percentage of the time your hole score was equal to or better than the option you selected.  When you select one of these options, the summary portion of the screen will clear. For more information see Notification of the Need to Summarize the Rounds


Using the Tool Bar to Add Golfers, Courses, and Rounds

Click on this button to add a round. If the button is dimmed, you have entered rounds up to the current limit of the database. To learn how to change the database limits, see Modifying WINPGT.INI.

Click on this button to add a course. As with the Add Rounds button, if the button is dimmed, you have entered courses up to the current limit of the database.

Click on this button to add a round:


Listing Golfer Rankings
Listing Entered Rounds

As long as there are rounds entered for the Selected golfer and the Selected course, you can list the rounds assigned by clicking this button.

You can also list rounds by opening the Rounds menu and clicking List. Alternatively, you can enter Control+L from the keyboard.

Note: If the button is dimmed, there are no rounds entered for the Selected golfer and the Selected Course.


Listing Statistics on Entered Rounds

If there are statistics entered for the rounds assigned to the Selected golfer and the Selected course, you can click this button to list the statistics along with a summary of performance.

You can also list statistics by clicking on List under the Statistics menu.

Note:	If the button is dimmed, there are no statistics entered for the Selected golfer and the Selected Course.


Listing Entered Courses

If you have entered courses into the PGT database, you can display them by clicking on this button. You will see a listing of the course par for each hole, the nine and eighteen hole totals, course rating, and Slope.

You can also list courses by clicking on List under the Course menu.

Note:	If the button is dimmed, there are no courses entered into the PGT database.


Listing Golfer Rankings

If you click on the Golfer button, PGT will display a listing of all golfers in the database. Displayed will be the average or differential score on nine and eighteen hole rounds for each golfer. You decide to display averages or differentials under the Options menu. Averages on par 3's, par 4's, and par 5's are displayed along with handicaps with the first few letters of the titles you have selected under the Custom Handicaps window found under the Rounds menu.

You can also list golfers by clicking List under the File menu.

Note:	If the button is dimmed, there are no rounds entered into the PGT database.


Consistancy Graph
The Consistency Graph

The Consistency graph is displayed by clicking on Consistency under the Graphs menu. You can also click on the left hand graph button on the Tool bar.This graph displays your highest and lowest scores you have entered on the Selected course.  The highlighted area indicates your average score on each hole. This graph can help you get an idea of your consistency on a hole by hole basis.  As with all other PGT calculations, the information is filtered by the Oldest and Newest dates.

Calculations are made based on the Selected course. This helps you see how you are doing on any particular hole on a particular course.


Statistics graph
The Statistics Graph

This graph is displayed by clicking on Statistics under the Graphs menu.  You can also click on the right hand graph button on the Tool bar.  This graph displays six graphs of the statistics you are tracking.  The graph shows the most recent twenty rounds entered.  To see more rounds, open the Statistics menu and click on the Statistic name you want to see.  As with all other PGT calculations, the information is filtered by the Oldest and Newest dates.


Distribution graph
The Distribution Graph

This graph is displayed by clicking on Distribution under the Graphs menu.  You can also click on the middle graph button on the Tool bar.  This graph displays your count and percentage distribution of birdies, pars, bogeys, etc. for the Selected course. As with all other PGT calculations, information is filtered by the Oldest and Newest dates.


Detailed statistics graph
The Detailed Statistics Graph

Open the Statistics menu and click any statistic name on which you want to view a graph.  The window will display the last 100 rounds.  The graph is automatically scaled and is a good indicator of your improvement for the statistic you are tracking.  If you want to see all statistics graphs together see The Statistics Graph.  As with all other PGT calculations, information is filtered by the Oldest and Newest dates.


Shareware
Definition of Shareware

Shareware distribution gives you a chance to try software before buying it. If you try a Shareware program and continue using it, you are expected to register. Individual programs differ on details -- some request registration while others require it, some specify a maximum trial period. With registration, you get anything from the simple right to continue using the software to an updated program with printed manual.

Copyright laws apply to both Shareware and commercial software, and the copyright holder retains all rights, with a few specific exceptions as stated below. Shareware authors are accomplished programmers, just like commercial authors, and the programs are of comparable quality. (In both cases, there are good programs and bad ones!) The main difference is in the method of distribution. The author specifically grants the right to copy and distribute the software, either to all and sundry or to a specific group. For example, some authors require written permission before a commercial disk vendor may copy their Shareware.

Shareware is a distribution method, not a type of software. You should find software that suits your needs and pocketbook, whether it's commercial or Shareware. The Shareware system makes fitting your needs easier, because you can try before you buy. And because the overhead is low, prices are low also. Shareware has the ultimate money-back guarantee -- if you don't use the product, you don't pay for it.


Warranty and Disclaimer

Personal Golf Tracker is a copyrighted program.  By accepting and using this software, you acknowledge that it may not suit your particular requirements or be completely trouble free.  Properly applied this program should operate without error.  However, I am not  liable for your specific application or problems resulting from its use.  If the Personal Golf Tracker software does not perform as described liability is limited to replacement of the program and refunding the purchase price to registered users only.  There is no liability to you or any other person or entity for any damage or loss, including special, incidental, or consequential damages, caused by this software, directly or indirectly.  Some states do not allow the limitation or exclusion of liability for incidental or consequential damages, so the above limitation or exclusion may not apply to you.  This license agreement is governed by Tennessee law.  If any part of this agreement is found to be held invalid, the remainder will remain in effect.  This agreement may only be modified by the written consent of the author.


Using the menus

Click on the menu item above for information about using each menu item, or click on the topic below.

File Menu

Edit Menu

Course Menu

Rounds Menu

Graphs Menu

Statistics Menu

Options Menu

Help Menu


File Menu

New Golfer...	Select this menu item to add a golfer to the database.  Enter a golfer file name and a golfer name and click OK. After entering golfers, press Cancel to continue. You can find more detail under Adding Golfers.

Delete Golfer...	Use this menu selection to delete a single golfer or several golfers. Highlight the golfer you want to delete and drag it to the trash can, or press Delete. See Deleting a golfer for more information.

List Golfers	You can list all golfers in the PGT database by selecting List golfer from the menu.  To view a golfer's notes double click on the golfer. To select a golfer to delete press the Delete key after highlighting a golfer.

Sort Golfers by >	You can sort the golfers based on twelve different criteria. Check the way you want to sort them by clicking on this menu item, then select the sort criteria on the sub menu. After selecting the sort order, list the golfers by clicking on List Golfer under the File menu.

View Golfer's Notes	Highlight the golfer on which you want to read a note and click on this menu item.

Print...	Open the print dialog box and select the print criteria. For more information on printing see Printing reports.

Print Font Setup	Select this item to format the look of your printout. For more information on formating your printed reports see Print Font Setup.

Exit	Save the configuration file and exit Personal Golf Tracker.


Edit Menu

Copy	Click on Copy under the Edit menu to save the listing of golfers, courses, rounds, or statistics to the Windows clipboard. You can also press Control+Insert from the keyboard to copy the data to the clipboard.

When you click Copy while displaying a graph, a bitmap of the graph will be stored on the Clipboard which can be pasted into a graphics application such as Windows Paintbrush.


Course Menu

New...	Select this menu item to add a course to the database.  Enter course par for each hole, a course name, rating, slope, and notes and click OK. When finished entering courses, click Cancel to continue. You can find more detail under Adding Courses.

List	List the courses in the PGT database by clicking on list.

List course averages	Selecting this menu item causes PGT to calculate summaries for each course for the Selected golfer listing the courses, averages or differentials, averages on par 3's, 4's and 5's, and average deviations. Calculations for rounds are made based on the setting "Rank by..." under the Options menu.

Sort averages by >	You can sort the averages based on ten different criteria. Check the way you want to sort them by clicking on this menu item. Then, select the sort criteria on the sub menu. After selecting the sort order, list the courses by clicking on List under the Course menu.

Modify...	Click on Modify to modify a course that has already been entered. You can modify any element you wish except the course name. See Modifying Courses for more information. For information on why a course name cannot be changed, see Database linkages.

View Notes	Highlight the course on which you want to read a note and click on this menu item.

Delete...	Use this menu selection to delete a single course or several courses. Highlight the course you want to delete and drag it to the trash can or press Delete. See Deleting a Course for more information.


Rounds Menu

New...	Click New to add a round to the database. If the selection is dimmed you have entered the maximum number of rounds. To change the maximum number of rounds, see Modifying WINPGT.INI.

List	List the rounds in the PGT database by clicking on List. More data is available about listing rounds. If a "s" appears after the date see Adding Statistics. If an "n" appears after the date see Viewing Notes. To find the meaning of an "*" after the date see Date Filter.

Summarize	To cause PGT to calculate the percentages, averages, handicaps, etc. on the lower portion of the screen, select this menu item.

Modify...	Click on Modify to modify a round that has already been entered. You can modify any element you wish. You must first highlight a round before this menu selection becomes active. See Modifying Rounds for more information.

View Notes	Highlight the round on which you want to read a note and click on this menu item. Items marked with an "n" after the date indicate that a note has been added to the round.

Custom Handicaps...	Personal Golf Tracker gives you several options that you can select and modify to customize handicap calculations. Click this item to open a dialog box to customize handicaps. For more information see Handicap calculations.

Delete...	Use this menu selection to delete a single round or several rounds. Highlight the round you want to delete and drag it to the trash can or press Delete. See Deleting a round for more information.


Graphs Menu

Consistency	Also called a "Hilo" graph or "Bandaid" graph, it shows your hole by hole comparison to par, bogey, or double bogey depending on the setting on the Options menu. See Consistency graph for more information.

Distribution	Displays the number and percentages of eagle, par, bogey, etc. of scores for the Selected golfer on the Selected course. See Distribution graph  for more information.

Statistics	Displays "mini graphs" of the six statistics you have selected to track. You choose the statistics names under the Statistics menu item. See the Statistics graph for more information.


Statistics Menu

Change Names...	If you want to change the names that are provided as defaults by PGT, this is where you do it. You can enter any name you want. Additional details can be found in Statistics names. You can also enter Control+N from the keyboard to change names. Statistics names are "global". Therefore, the name you assign should apply to all courses. Assigning a name such as "PuttsOn#4" would be valid only for a single course. You would be misled if you use this name for statistics on a different course.

List	Click List to display statistics entered for the Selected golfer on the Selected course. Total, highest, lowest, deviation, and average are displayed at the bottom of the screen.

Detailed Statistics	This menu selection enables you to "zoom" in on a graph of a single statistic that you are tracking. It gives more detail and includes more rounds, so it may be more meaningful to you than the six mini-graphs that can be shown by selecting Statistics on the Graphs menu


Options Menu

Par	Checking Par causes the default percentage calculation to compare hole by hole performance to par on the lower portion of the screen.

Bogey	Checking Bogey causes the default percentage calculation to compare hole by hole performance to Bogey.

Double Bogey	Checking Double Bogey causes the default percentage calculation to compare hole by hole performance to Double Bogey.

Calculate as averages	Click here to display all averages for front, back, and eighteen hole rounds as the average score for rounds entered. This does not become a problem until calculations are made that include more than one course. If you prefer to show average scores, be aware of how you can be misled. For example: If you play on courses that have pars lower than full regulation courses such as par three courses, your averages will be misleading. In such cases, it is more accurate to show calculations based on differentials.

Calculate as differentials	Click here to rank and display nine and eighteen hole calculations as differentials. Displaying results as differentials is a better measure of performance if the courses in the database have different pars. If par on the courses you play tend to be 70 to 72, you may want to calculate as averages.

Best score by nines	There are two ways you can display the bottom line (BEST SCORE:) on the main screen: Checking "by Nines" on the menu causes PGT to show you the best front and back nine you have entered.

Best score by holes	If you check "by Holes", PGT will show you the best score you have achieved on each hole. Some people call this "Fantasy Best".

Automatic Recalculation	As shipped, PGT does not automatically recalculate summaries when a change is made that would cause summary data to become invalid. Instead, when this occurs, PGT clears the bottom display area to indicate the need for recalculation. You can cause Personal Golf Tracker to automatically recalculate and display summaries after changes by checking this menu item.

Confirm Delete	Checking this menu item causes PGT to confirm your decision when deleting courses, rounds, or golfers. This can help you confirm your wishes a second time. Keep in mind that when you delete a golfer, all rounds associated with that golfer are deleted from your hard disk and can no longer be accessed from within PGT.

Note:	Remember that calculations are made for rounds that are within the Oldest and Newest dates assigned on the main screen.


Help Menu

Index...	Displays the Personal Golf Tracker help file.

About PGT...	Displays information about the PGT version number and serial number.

Print Registration Form	Prints the Shareware registration form on the printer. You are encouraged to register using this form to help the author improve the program.


Notification of the Need to Summarize the Rounds

Often you will notice that when you change something such as pressing a Tool bar button, adding or modifying rounds or courses, changing Custom handicaps, etc. causes the bottom (summary) section of the screen to clear. The reason this occurs is because the action you have taken would cause the summary data to become invalid. When this happens, it is necessary to press the summarize button on the Tool bar to cause PGT to recalculate summaries based on the new parameters you have selected. The reason PGT behaves in this way is to increase the speed of response. You can, however, have PGT automatically recalculate summaries. Check Automatic Recalculation under the Options menu to enable automatic recalculation. When you have entered many rounds into the database, you may not want automatic recalculation turned on because calculations can take some time to complete.

Note: If no rounds have been entered for the selected golfer on the selected course, the Summation button on the Tool bar will be dimmed.


Recalculation of Summaries and Handicaps

When listing Golfer rankings you will notice PGT recalculate handicaps and/or summaries from time to time. This occurs if you change anything that would invalidate the displayed data. For example: If you modify course par, all rounds attached to that course by all golfers in the database will have invalid data. Personal Golf Tracker will automatically make the necessary recalculation and re-display the rankings. Because these calculations can take some time on large databases (many rounds and many golfers), PGT makes the recalculation when displaying rankings only. A meter is provided to help you keep track of the progress.


ASP Ombudsman

"This program is produced by a member of the Association of Shareware Professionals (ASP).  ASP wants to make sure that the Shareware principle works for you. If you are unable to resolve a Shareware-related problem with an ASP member by contacting the member directly, ASP may be able to help. The ASP Ombudsman can help you resolve a dispute or problem with an ASP member, but does not provide technical support for members' products. Please write to the ASP Ombudsman at 545 Grover Road, Muskegon, MI 49442- 9427 or send a Compuserve message via CompuServe Mail to ASP Ombudsman 70007,3536"


Differentials

A Differential is the difference between your score and course par or rating. A score of 95 on a par 72 course would result in a differential of 95-72 or 23.


Adding Notes to Golfers

Add notes to a golfer by first adding a golfer into the database. Select File New from the menu and enter the golfer name and the golfer file name. Having done that, click on the golfer name in the golfer name list box (lower right hand list box) to which you want to add a note. That will activate the Notes button. Click the Notes button and enter your note and click OK. You can enter up to 256 characters in a golfer note. To exit the New File dialog box click on Cancel.


Adding Notes to Courses

Add notes to a course by clicking on the Notes button on the Add/Modify Course dialog box. Enter your note and click OK. After other course information is entered, click on Add/Modify to add the course along with the note to the PGT database. Up to 256 characters are allowed in a course note.


Scope of Averages

Since many golfers want to see summaries of their performance in many different ways, you need to understand the scope of calculations made by Personal Golf Tracker. PGT provides three different ways to look at averages:

1.	Your average performance on a single course.

2.	Your average on each course - ranked the way you choose.

3.	Your average across all courses on which you have entered rounds.

Your average on a single course is shown on the bottom display panel. The calculations presented on the panel are always calculated against the Selected golfer on the Selected course. Because many golfers play more than one course, it is desirable to rank your performance on each course in such a way that you can compare your performance on each course. Since there can be many golfers entered into the database, you may want to compare golfers to each other. Such a feature is useful for ranking golfers for league play and for families with more than one golfer. PGT provides all of these capabilities.

As mentioned above, the lower panel shows performance for the Selected golfer on the Selected course.

By clicking on List course averages under the Course menu you can rank your performance on each course you play. You will notice that the calculations on the Selected course match the calculations on the same course when they are ranked.

By clicking on List golfers under the File menu you can rank the golfers in the database. In this case, all courses played are used in the calculations.

Note:	Unless you are aware of the scope, you can be confused because the averages for the Selected golfer and the same golfer listed in the rankings can have different results. Also keep in mind that your averages for front, back and eighteen hole rounds can be listed as differentials or averages. If you display your performance using averages you can be misled because courses you play may not have the same par, such as with par three courses.


Print Font Setup
Using Different Fonts when Printing

The Print Font Setup menu selection opens a window which allows you to select the font, and to a lesser degree, the point size of information you want to send to the printer. You select the section, character type, point size, font, and capital letters, and click on the Assign button. This will assign the selected character type for the part of the printout selected. You can confirm the assigned character type in the status display in the lower, center of the window. Also, the character type will be displayed in the type you selected in the center of the window. Keep in mind that you have to click the Assign button to store your font selection for each type of character formating. This would be four clicks of the Assign button to handle all four sections of the printout.

PGT has been purposely setup so that listings can be printed on standard 8.5 by 11 inch paper in the vertical (portrait) orientation. Since many fonts have different character widths, selecting a wide font in a large point size and assigning it to the Numbers or Text/Notes style may cause the numbers to run together or not fit within the page boarders. The best advice is to experiment with different typefaces and sizes to get an understanding of what works and what doesn't.

There may be times when the point size you select may not be available. An example of this is if you select the Courier typeface and eight point type. Since Courier is not available as standard in eight point type, Windows substitutes its closest font and size that is available. This can cause problems in the graphs which use eight point type of the character format assigned to the Text/Notes style.

Another problem that can occur is in the sample display in the center of the window. The font name listing shows fonts that are available on the printer. Some of these fonts may not be available as screen fonts. If that happens, Windows substitutes the closest font and size that is available for screen display. PGT will not warn you of these problems. With the introduction of Windows 3.1 and True Type fonts, both screen and printer fonts are resident and these problems seldom occur.

Types of Character Formats

Title:	This is the character format you assign to the top of each page which includes the program name and the print date. Selecting a decorative font in all caps with bold and italic letters with a point size of 12 makes a pleasing appearance.

Heading:	This character format prints when a heading is required to clarify the meaning of a printout such as the golfer name, course name or graph name. Selecting the same font as the title with a slightly smaller point size works well for the heading.

Numbers:	This character format is used for all main listings such as golf rounds and summaries. Usually a standard Serif or Sans Serif font of eight or ten points works well here.

Text/Notes:	This character format is used to print the notes you have assigned to rounds, golfers, and courses. It is also the font used for the graphs. Note that PGT uses eight point type on the graphs regardless of your size selection. The point size you choose is valid for all other information, however.


Using the Points Feature

You can enter/assign points to each round as it is entered. What the points mean and how you assign them is totally up to you. One possible use are for leagues. For example: You may have a nine hole league of two person teams. You could add the golfers into the database as a team name such as John and Linda and assign points the their rounds based on those earned during a match. By printing out the golfer rankings, you can show the rankings sorted the way you want. Select the sort order by selecting "Sort golfers by..." under the File menu.


Using Shortcut Keys

Personal Golf Tracker has a host of key combinations you can use to speed up access to the program's functions. Below is a listing of the keys and their actions:

F1	Invoke help for PGT. You will get help on the item you're interested in.

Ctrl+C	Add a neew course to the PGT database

Ctrl+D	Delete a round from the PGT database

Ctrl+G	Add a new golfer to the PGT database

Ctrl+H	Change the handicap calculation settings

Ctrl+Ins	Copy graphs or text to the Clipboard

Ctrl+L	List rounds for the Selected golfer on the Selected course

Ctrl+M	Modify the round selected in the rounds listing

Ctrl+N	Change the statistics names used with Personal Golf Tracker

Ctrl+P	Print reports on the Windows default printer

Ctrl+S	Recalculate the rounds and display the summary information

Ctrl+V	View the notes assigned to the round selected in the rounds listing

Alt+F4	End Personal Golf Tracker