Golf Gaming App Chirp Debuts Just In Time For The U.S. Open

8AM Golf, whose holdings include Golf.com, GolfLogix, Miura, the Nicklaus Companies, and True Spec Golf, have teed up their entry into the gaming arena with Chirp.

The number of betting apps where fans can try their luck at predicting the outcome of sporting events seems to grow every month, but this newcomer is offering a unique golf-specific experience. Along with allowing users to make bets on round and tournament winners, the free-to-play platform also serves up prop bets (Will Phil Mickelson shoot under 69 in Round 1?), match-up bets (Collin Morikawa vs. Justin Thomas), and live bets (Will Rickie Fowler sink this 20 foot putt?) on individual shots and shot sequences right before they take place.

The app chimes every time a live betting opportunity presents itself and users can place wagers on whether a golfer will make up-and-down for par, a birdie putt, a fairway in regulation, and much more. The pace of play on decision making is fast and furious with a thirty second countdown clock ticking down the window to wager.

Golf fans can just play for kicks and to test their predictive powers or they can create leagues and compete with friends and co-workers for bragging rights. There are real prizes on the line for the bettors that build the biggest virtual bill stacks over the course of a tournament. U.S. Open prizes up for grabs include a two-night stay at Cabot Cliffs in Nova Scotia, a Tru Spec fitting for a full set of clubs, a round of golf for a foursome at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas, and a one-hour lesson with George Gankas—Matthew Wolff’s swing coach.  

“We truly believe we are at an inflection point in the way fans interact with all sports. The ‘in-game’ or ‘live betting’ opportunity to engage both casual and hardcore fans is the future of watching sports,” explains Chirp president Charlie Grace.

“The ‘set it and forget it’ wagers will always be available but having the ability to predict in real-time whether Tiger will make his 10-foot birdie putt on Sunday afternoon at Winged Foot is the future of gaming apps.”

We grilled Grace on how Chirp intends to carve out a niche in a crowded sector, user growth projections, and what the future holds for the sports gaming app sector.

Mike Dojc: The number of sports gaming apps keeps growing. Does Chirp being golf specific give it an advantage among fans of the sport?

Charlie Grace: Chirp’s focus on golf definitely benefits from the social nature of the sport and its fan base, and we are excited to bring those fans together around a new digital experience that transforms the way they engage with live golf.  Additionally, the most important element of Chirp being golf specific is that it has actually been optimized for golf. Existing golf gaming apps have largely taken what works in other sports and straightforwardly replicated that functionality for golf.

MD: Do you think Chirp is more geared towards casual golf fans looking to amp up the excitement of watching a round or for hardcore fans who spend hours poring over statistics?

Grace: Chirp was built from the ground up to provide the most compelling experience possible for the golf fan, and we think that the product we are introducing will be able to engage die-hard and casual golf fans alike in a way that pick’em leagues don’t. Our goal in building Chirp is to enable new social behaviors among die-hard golf fans, to engage casual fans more deeply, and to bring a whole new audience to the game. Much as fantasy football has been so impactful for the game of football, we hope that this new format we are introducing with Chirp will be great for the game of golf. 

MD: While Chirp was being beta-tested, did anything surprise you regarding user engagement?

Grace: We were pleasantly surprised by the level of engagement throughout the beta testing. The average user made close to 50 wagers per tournament. More importantly, “Live Bets” have been the most popular bet type, which demonstrates the power of engaging fans on every shot down the stretch of a tournament.

MD: Take me through Chirp’s revenue model?

Grace: Chirp’s current revenue model is based on select partnerships with both endemic and non-endemic sponsors. For this week’s U.S. Open, Cisco will serve as Chirp’s launch partner and focus on delivering technology solutions to connect fans while growing the game. As the Official Technology Partner of the USGA, Cisco’s video collaboration and networking solutions will help to power the 2020 U.S. Open at Winged Foot, delivering a one-of-a-kind virtual experience for players, fans and media.

MD: In the future do you foresee Chirp rolling out a pay-to-play feature or is the plan to stick with the free-to-play model?

Grace: We are really focused on delivering the Chirp experience to as many users as possible and continuing to improve that experience to make it the best possible. We hope that Chirp will bring more fans to the game of golf and make watching golf a more social experience. By offering compelling prizes & experiences weekly, we hope Chirp will get fans excited to compete weekly.

MD: How many users do you forecast will give Chirp a try during the U.S. Open?

Grace: Chirp allows users to create their own custom leagues and invite friends, golfing buddies, colleagues, and others to join them in the action. As the number of personalized leagues grow, we expect the user base to grow exponentially. I would hope to see more than ten thousand Chirpers gearing up for live bets this Sunday afternoon when the tournament leaders make their way to the back nine at Winged Foot.

 MD: How many active users do you expect to have by year end?

Grace: We expect to continue growing our user base throughout the fall leading up to the rescheduled Masters in November. We believe more and more users will want to create their own leagues with friends, increasing the number of new users every week. Our ambition is that Chirp will be the most used golf app in the world over the coming years.  

MD: What do you predict the future has in store for sports gaming apps?

Grace: We think the future of sports gaming apps will be apps that are optimized to create an amazing experience for each particular sport as opposed to today’s landscape of generic experiences that are ported over from one sport to another.

Today, the experience that has been led by fantasy football has been applied across all other sports. Moving forward, we believe that innovative companies will try to deliver the excitement and gratification that fantasy football delivers to its fans through specific and differentiated user experiences on a sport by sport basis.