Staff WriterBy any measure, the best golf innovations don’t usually come from boardrooms or blueprints—they’re born on the fairways, often out of frustration, obsession, and a relentless pursuit of improvement.
That’s exactly how Shot Scope, the Edinburgh-based tech company now trusted by over 300,000 golfers across 160 countries, got its start.
Shot Scope, a name now synonymous with performance tracking and game improvement, began as little more than three sheets of scribbled paper and a 16-handicap golfer desperate to break through a plateau.
That golfer was David Hunter, who now serves as the company’s founder and CEO.
“I started to play golf at 22 and instantly fell in love with the game. It’s frustrating, it’s demanding, it’s rewarding. I was obsessed,” Hunter says.
“I started to work on my game, but I wasn’t improving, and at that stage, I started to record every single shot on paper and pencil.
My handicap went from 16 to five, so one weekend, I started to work on an idea and on three pieces of paper, thought up the idea that effectively is now Shot Scope.”
From those humble beginnings, Shot Scope has become a heavyweight in golf technology, offering laser rangefinders, GPS devices, and performance-tracking systems that are quietly revolutionising how amateur golfers understand their game.
But unlike many in the wearable tech space, Shot Scope doesn’t charge a subscription fee—a conscious decision rooted in the brand’s ethos of accessibility and value for the everyday golfer.
And that’s what makes this team tick: a shared history with the game, not as bystanders, but as players—competitive, thoughtful, and deeply invested in the sport’s growth.
Take Scott Robertson, Shot Scope’s global head of sales and a former PGA teaching pro with over a decade’s experience helping players at every level.
“I coached ‘everybody,’ which was brilliant because it gave me such a broad spectrum of knowledge across the whole game of golf,” he explains.
“Every golfer should be using technology and Shot Scope takes what golfers are doing on the golf course without their coach present, then pulls that information back so we understand exactly what we’re doing and whether or not that’s working.”
Now, with half of its users based in the United States, the Shot Scope team is preparing for a stateside surge in 2025.
That means new product launches, fresh ad campaigns, and expanding partnerships with PGA of America professionals and golf retail giants.
The playbook is aggressive, but Hunter’s not one to shy away from a bold tee shot.
Driving that ambition are two key members of the leadership team: Chief Commercial Officer Gavin Dear and Marketing Manager Jennifer Saxton—both elite players who’ve turned their competitive insights into business strategy.
Dear, once a Walker Cup stalwart for Great Britain & Ireland at Merion in 2009—sharing the course with the likes of Rickie Fowler and Brian Harman—is now channelling his experience toward helping amateurs achieve their personal best.
“Having had a journey of improvement myself within golf, I wanted to go and help others and to believe that technology could be that pathway,” he says.
Saxton’s improvement arc is equally impressive. Since joining Shot Scope, she’s moved from scratch to a +5 handicap, powered in part by the same data analysis she now helps others unlock.
A member of Scotland’s national ladies’ team and winner of the 2022 St Rule Trophy at the Old Course, her belief in the system is data-backed and personal.
“I look at data day in and day out and I can see where you can improve and what golfers should be doing on the course,” she says.
“What we’ve seen consistently across all Shot Scope users, is that they improve by an average of 4.1 shots.”
The Shot Scope story isn’t just one of technology—it’s about community. That’s something Lyndsey Whitefield, head of marketing and a rising amateur golfer herself, takes seriously.
“Our customers and community are at the heart and soul of our business,” she says. “Whether you’re elite or new to golf, Shot Scope has a product for every golfer.”
Indeed, it’s the dialogue with users—feedback loops, stories, on-course experiences—that continues to shape Shot Scope’s development.
As Dear notes, “It’s a great experience getting feedback from the users of Shot Scope technology.
How they see and engage with our products has been a great driver of our product development.”
And while their tech may be cutting-edge, the philosophy is timeless: golf is a game of inches, and those inches are won with insight, effort, and heart. Hunter, ever the candid Scotsman, sums it up best.
“We started as a small company based in Edinburgh, so when I now look out and see that we are stocked in more than 160 countries worldwide that can only make you proud, and it shows the tremendous job that the team have done in building a product that is truly universal,” he reflects.
“We’re motivated to move our business forward, but we’re also motivated to help golfers. That’s why we’re here. It’s incredible to see so many people in one place that want the same thing. It’s a lovely feeling to see the team work every day to try and improve golfers worldwide.”
Shot Scope isn’t just another golf gadget company. It’s a rallying cry for players who believe improvement is possible—and measurable.
For more, visit ShotScope.com.
