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BAL.ON Smart Kit Review

Jman

Jman

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Earlier this year at the 2025 PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando, among all of the golf swing training devices out there was one in particular which captured the attention and curiosity of the THP Staff when we saw it, that was the BAL.ON Smart Kit. Learning how to use your feet, weight shift, and the […]

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Super interesting and informative device there. Similar to you, I struggle with weight shift, at least that’s what I’ve been told in the past. The idea that there is a system out there that will show, through video and heat maps exactly how bad I am is pretty damn cool.

I am not the target audience for the device as I wouldn’t use it nearly enough to justify the cost, but it doesn’t take away from how interesting and cool the data garnered is.

Well done @Jman (also digging the kicks)
 
It is really cool to see tech that continues to get worked into golf. This is something that has caught my eye as weight shift is the number one thing that always gets brought up lessons for me (and half of my fittings, lol). I’ve never felt comfortable on those balance board things or the little balls you can press down. My instructor bailed on using a small squeeze ball drill after seeing my second swing with it. While a decent chunk of money, absolutely obtainable in my opinion for someone who knows they will be diligent with the work.
 
This is an interesting training aide. I am sure I do not use the ground properly to extract all I can out of my swing. I might have to dig into these more.
 
The sensor on the outside of the shoe is a little odd, but I love stuff like this. Especially the fact that you said these provide an "immense amount of data", that's a pretty big sell from a guy that knows alot of data. I feel like this kind of stuff does so much for me, super interesting.

Sooooo...when you picking testers? :sneaky:
 
That was a killer rundown of this device, @Jman. Seriously, you really captured it all.

I've had the Smart Kit for a while now and have been working with it as I can. I'll dive in more over time with feedback, but as @Jman said - the amount of information available borders on overwhelming. They do suggest focusing on a single touch point at a time, which helps.

One simple thing that I think many of us don't necessarily know is just how weight should be distributed at address. You can set up the Bal.On app to show you real-time feedback on that, meaning I was able to set up to the ball, check my weight distribution at address, and then adjust until it was in the right window. Then you just sort of take that feeling in and try to replicate it until it becomes natural.

I'll admit weight transfer is a huge issue for me and working with this has not been what I'd call easy by any means. To get myself in the right windows for the backswing alone takes a massive effort for me. It's a work in progress.

I think it would be most effective with an instructor in many cases.
 
Very cool write on what looks like a great product. Definitely something I could use some help with but the costs along with the warning of overwhelming data probably not something I will be jumping into as it's likely too much for me. Would be cool to see what the numbers are though.
 
Hawk said:
That was a killer rundown of this device, @Jman. Seriously, you really captured it all.

I've had the Smart Kit for a while now and have been working with it as I can. I'll dive in more over time with feedback, but as @Jman said - the amount of information available borders on overwhelming. They do suggest focusing on a single touch point at a time, which helps.

One simple thing that I think many of us don't necessarily know is just how weight should be distributed at address. You can set up the Bal.On app to show you real-time feedback on that, meaning I was able to set up to the ball, check my weight distribution at address, and then adjust until it was in the right window. Then you just sort of take that feeling in and try to replicate it until it becomes natural.

I'll admit weight transfer is a huge issue for me and working with this has not been what I'd call easy by any means. To get myself in the right windows for the backswing alone takes a massive effort for me. It's a work in progress.

I think it would be most effective with an instructor in many cases.
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Any initial thoughts on how one might turn the fire hose of data coming back to you into a more manageable water fountain as they are getting into it?

That is one thought I’ve had as I know some of us will dive deep into numbers and not necessarily come out the other side and a better place for it.
 
Scooby45 said:
Any initial thoughts on how one might turn the fire hose of data coming back to you into a more manageable water fountain as they are getting into it?

That is one thought I’ve had as I know some of us will dive deep into numbers and not necessarily come out the other side and a better place for it.
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One aspect at a time. They have drills/routines to dial in the various points of the swing - address, backswing, transition, etc.

It's hard not to look at it all and say, ok I need to fix this, this, and this. It was much more manageable to just think about one thing at a time and be a bit more methodical about it.
 
Funny story

My backswing weight transfer is bad. I mean, almost non-existent compared to what is recommended. I'm in what I'd call pretty good physical shape, but my rear end was absolutely burning in pain after a couple sessions. I was working muscles in ways they've never been worked.
 
Super cool to continue to see the strides that are made in technology
 
I think this is super cool tech. As @Hawk mentioned probably best to work with a coach to digest all the info but man its cool
 
Hawk said:
Funny story

My backswing weight transfer is bad. I mean, almost non-existent compared to what is recommended. I'm in what I'd call pretty good physical shape, but my rear end was absolutely burning in pain after a couple sessions. I was working muscles in ways they've never been worked.
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It’s funny you mention that, as I had a range session the other day when I was really trying to focus on using the ground and I woke up sore in spots that I typically don’t after a lot of golf. Downside for me as I have no idea if I was making any meaningful progress without the feedback that something like this could provide.
 
How does this one compare to Salted?
 
Hawk said:
That was a killer rundown of this device, @Jman. Seriously, you really captured it all.

I've had the Smart Kit for a while now and have been working with it as I can. I'll dive in more over time with feedback, but as @Jman said - the amount of information available borders on overwhelming. They do suggest focusing on a single touch point at a time, which helps.

One simple thing that I think many of us don't necessarily know is just how weight should be distributed at address. You can set up the Bal.On app to show you real-time feedback on that, meaning I was able to set up to the ball, check my weight distribution at address, and then adjust until it was in the right window. Then you just sort of take that feeling in and try to replicate it until it becomes natural.

I'll admit weight transfer is a huge issue for me and working with this has not been what I'd call easy by any means. To get myself in the right windows for the backswing alone takes a massive effort for me. It's a work in progress.

I think it would be most effective with an instructor in many cases.
Click to expand...
Are you seeing with starting with proper weight at set up has helped you game as you work through the other areas
 
MikeG said:
Are you seeing with starting with proper weight at set up has helped you game as you work through the other areas
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That's a hard question to answer, but I think so. Tbh, I wasn't far off with that aspect.
 
Honestly, these look like they woul dhelp someone who struggles with weight transfer a ton. My sequencing is all kinds of out of whack, and as a result my weight transfer is all wrong.... and my results are reduced because of it.

I love the idea of the product, and think it would be immensely helpful. The price point is just very tough to swallow. Definitely looks quality, just outside of my budget unfortunately.
 
AuzzieMatt said:
How does this one compare to Salted?
Click to expand...
These are backed by Continental and are a more solid product. So much information available as well but @Jman can probably elaborate
 
Woah. This looks packed with tech and data goodness. I would be afraid to see just how bad my weight transfer is with a heat map, but I imagine that info would be immensely helpful.
 
Cool to see a review on these. My company makes/sells these. I bring them into the country.
I think people will like these once they start seeing & using them.

@Jman --> another good article by you.
 
I tested a similar product a few years ago. The biggest struggle was correlating the data to what you are / are not supposed to do. EG, my left heal is red at X spot of the swing...okay, is that good? bad? Why am I doing it that way? How do I fix it? What should it be? The review shows a great deal more information made available to the user here, which could potentially be very helpful, such as the graph with the 100 scale on the Y axis. Interesting evolution of the concept.
 
I have the salted insoles and I thought they were really cool but a bit glitchy. These seem like a solid upgrade from those.
 
Templet0n said:
I have the salted insoles and I thought they were really cool but a bit glitchy. These seem like a solid upgrade from those.
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These appear to be significantly better and will have support and such unlike salted.
 
jdtox said:
These appear to be significantly better and will have support and such unlike salted.
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support is a good thing. lol. I wonder if these guys tried the salted soles and then said "we can do way better"..
 
Performance is pretty solid. The app had some pages that didn't yet seem functional - the tips section in particular, but there were others that did.

I like to see a bit better integration with the instruction and feedback, because they are located in different spots right now. It would be helpful to have some sort of guided practice routine with feedback if that makes sense.
 
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