Player Guide
Last updated: May 2026
Features will expand — this guide will be updated accordingly.
Contents
1. Getting Started
Joining Your Team
- Open app.birdielab.net in your browser.
- Tap Sign Up and enter your email address.
- Create a password — minimum 8 characters, at least one uppercase letter, and at least one number. A strength meter guides you as you type.
- When prompted for a Join Code, enter the code your coach gave you (e.g.,
7CHT88). - That's it — you are now linked to your team and your coach can see your rounds.
Forgot Your Password?
Tap Forgot password? on the sign-in screen. Enter your email address and you'll receive a reset link. The link expires after 1 hour — if it expires, request a new one from the sign-in screen.
2. Installing BirdieLab on Your Phone
BirdieLab is a Progressive Web App (PWA). You access it through your browser, but installing it as an app icon gives you the best experience — full-screen layout without a browser bar, and push notification support.
iOS (iPhone / iPad) — Safari
- Open app.birdielab.net in Safari (must be Safari — other browsers on iOS do not support installation).
- Tap the Share button (the box with an upward arrow) at the bottom of the screen.
- Scroll down and tap "Add to Home Screen".
- Confirm the name (BirdieLab) and tap "Add" in the top-right corner.
- The BirdieLab icon now appears on your home screen. Always open the app from this icon, not from Safari.
Android — Chrome
- Open app.birdielab.net in Chrome.
- Tap the three-dot menu (⋮) in the top-right corner.
- Tap "Add to Home screen" or "Install app".
- Tap "Add" / "Install" to confirm.
- The BirdieLab icon now appears on your home screen. Open the app from there.
4. Board — My Performance
The Board tab is your home screen — it gives you a full picture of your game at a glance.
Quick Actions
- Log Round — opens the round logging flow immediately.
- Practice — opens your Drill Sessions screen.
Team Feed
Near the top of your Board, a Team Feed section shows the 3 most recent announcements from your coach. New (unread) updates are marked with a colored dot. Tap any item to read it in full, or tap View all to see the complete feed history.
Assigned Drills
If your coach has assigned drills to you, a My Drills card appears on your Performance Board listing them. Tap any drill to open it, or tap the card header to go to your full drills list.
Scoring Average
Your Scoring Average is the centerpiece of the Board — a large card showing your overall average relative to par, plus a trend line comparing your last 5 rounds vs. the previous 5. Tap My Report to open your full player report.
Activity Streak
A streak tracker shows how many consecutive days you've logged a round or practice session, plus a 7-day dot grid. Your week count and streak badge update automatically.
Score Trend Chart
A chart of your recent rounds appears once you have 3 or more rounds logged. Use the L5 / L10 / L15 buttons to change the time window. Green dots indicate under-par rounds; orange dots indicate over-par. Tap a dot to see the course name and date.
Am I Improving?
Trend cards compare your most recent 5 rounds against the previous 5 for Scoring Avg, Putts / Round, and GIR %. Each card shows a mini sparkline and a plain-language summary.
Strokes Gained
Once you have logged at least 3 qualifying rounds in the last 90 days, a Strokes Gained section appears showing SG: Putt, SG: App, SG: OTT, and SG: Total. Trend arrows appear at 6+ qualifying rounds.
My Targets
Performance goals your coach has set for you, each showing your current number vs. the target. Targets show as "✓ Met" (green) or "In Progress" (orange).
My Goals
A personal goals section where you can set and track your own objectives — separate from coach-assigned targets.
- Process goals — things you do consistently (e.g., "Stretch before every round"). A 7-day dot tracker and a + Log button let you check in each day.
- Metric goals — statistical targets you set for yourself (e.g., "Get GIR% above 50%").
Coach Notes
Notes your coach has written for you appear at the bottom of the Board.
5. Rounds — My Rounds
The Rounds tab is where you log rounds, browse your history, and manage match-play matches. It has two sub-tabs: Rounds and Matches.
Logging a Round
Tap Log Round in the header.
Step 1 — Setup
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Saved courses | Courses your team has added. Tap one to auto-fill per-hole par and yardages. |
| Course search | Search the Golf Course API by name to find and auto-fill any course. |
| Manual entry | Type any course name if it isn't in the catalog or search results. |
| Date | Defaults to today; change it to log a past round. |
| Round type | Practice, Qualifier, or Tournament. |
| Qualifier | Appears when Qualifier is selected. Choose which open qualifier this round counts toward. |
| Holes played | 18 holes (default) or 9 holes. |
| Logging mode | During round (hole by hole as you play) or After round (all scores at once when finished). |
Round types:
- Practice — a casual or training round.
- Qualifier — counts toward a tournament selection window. Make sure you pick the right qualifier in the picker.
- Tournament — an actual competitive round.
Step 2 — Scoring
During round (one hole at a time): Use the large − and + buttons to set your score. Tap the par badge to cycle par. Record per-hole stats — Fairway (Hit ✓ / Miss ✗, par 4/5 only), GIR (Hit ✓ / Miss ✗), and Putts. Add a hole note if you want to remember something. Navigate forward and back with the hole buttons; tap Finish Round on the last hole.
After round (all holes at once): A scrollable scorecard shows all holes. Each row has FW✓/✗, GIR✓/✗, and a putts stepper. The Round Stats panel auto-computes totals from your hole entries — no double-entry needed. Tap Save Round when done.
If a game plan exists for the selected course, a Plan button appears in the scorecard header — tap it to read strategy notes without leaving the scorecard.
Step 3 — Mental Check-in (optional)
| Item | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Confidence | 1–5 — how confident did you feel going into this round? (1 = low, 5 = high) |
| Anxiety / Nerves | 1–5 — how anxious or nervous were you? (1 = calm, 5 = tight) |
| Pre-round routine | Toggle — did you stick to your pre-shot routine throughout? |
| Focus goal | Short text — what were you trying to focus on? |
| Post-round reflection | Free-text note — how did the round feel mentally? |
You can skip the check-in and add it later from the round detail page.
Viewing Past Rounds
Tap any round in the Rounds tab to open the full detail view: hole-by-hole scores with result labels, per-hole stat chips, score breakdown, shot stats, hole notes, and mental check-in. Use the Front 9 / Back 9 tabs to switch between halves.
Tap the pencil icon in the header to edit the round, or scroll to the bottom to delete it. Only you can edit or delete your own rounds.
Head-to-Head Matches
Tap the Matches sub-tab in the Rounds header to see your match-play history. Tap New Match to challenge a teammate — choose your opponent, course, and date. Your head-to-head record is tracked over time.
6. Practice — Drill Sessions
The Practice tab opens your Drill Sessions screen. Log practice sessions here to track how much time you're spending on different areas of your game.
Logging a Session
Tap + to log a new session. Choose a session type (short game, putting, driving range, on-course, etc.), duration, and add notes.
Assigned Drills
If your coach has assigned drills to you, they appear on your Performance Board and in the My Drills section of the Practice screen. Each drill shows the name, category, instructions, target metric (if set), and your current status (Not started / In progress / Complete).
Work through assigned drills during practice and tap Mark Complete when done. Your coach can see completion status from their dashboard.
Assigned Practice Plans
If your coach has assigned a practice plan to you, it appears at the top of the Drill Sessions screen.
- Tap the plan card to preview each section with its time allocation and coaching notes.
- Tap Start Plan to begin an execution session.
- Work through each section and tap the checkbox when complete.
- You can log actual time spent on each section.
- When all sections are complete (or you tap Finish), the session saves to your practice history and your coach is notified.
7. Team — Your Standing & Feed
Your Standing
A card at the top shows your ranking, average, and best round relative to your teammates.
Team Feed
Below the standings, the Team Feed shows announcements from your coach. New (unread) updates are marked with a colored dot. Tap any update to read it in full.
8. Qualifiers
You can view all qualifier windows from the Team tab or via the Qualifiers entry point on your Performance Board.
| Group | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Active | Currently open qualifier windows. Tap a card to see live standings and how many days remain. |
| Upcoming | Scheduled qualifiers that haven't started yet. Review in advance so you know when to start logging. |
| Past | Ended qualifiers with final standings. |
9. Settings
Accessible by tapping your avatar in the top corner of any page. Here you can update your profile photo, name, handicap index, and view your team join code. Use Switch Team to join a different program.
Push Notifications
You must have BirdieLab installed on your home screen (not open in a browser tab) for notifications to work.
- Open the app from your home screen icon.
- Go to Settings (tap your avatar).
- Scroll to Notifications.
- Tap Enable.
- When your device asks for permission, tap Allow.
If the button shows Blocked, go to your phone's Settings → Notifications → BirdieLab and re-enable it there.
What you'll be notified about:
- New team announcements from your coach
- New drills or practice plans assigned to you
Security
Scroll to the Security section to change your password. You must enter your current password first. New password: minimum 8 characters, at least one uppercase letter, at least one number.
Pull-to-Refresh
On data pages (Performance Board, Rounds, Team Feed), pull down from the top of the screen to load the latest data. A green spinner appears while refreshing.