Short answer. There is one Ringer. The iPhone app, the website at www.ringer.golf, and the version you add to your home screen all show the same rounds, games and money for the same account. The app is a native shell around the live site, so a fix on the site is in the app the moment it ships, with nothing to update.
How it works
Sign in with the same email and password anywhere and you are looking at the same account. Start a round on your laptop, keep score on your phone, and let your crew follow the board from whatever they have.
What the iPhone app adds
- Push notifications. Round reminders and organizer messages can arrive as push alerts. Push is iPhone-app only; the website and home-screen version use text and email instead. See Notification preferences and the iPhone permission.
- Haptics. A light tap when you enter a score, a firmer one on a warning.
- Ringer Live on the Lock Screen and Dynamic Island. The scorekeeper can enter scores from the Lock Screen, and everyone else can follow standings there without unlocking the phone (following needs iOS 18 or later). Scores entered offline are queued and posted when the app is next opened.
- Links open the app. Once the app is installed, tapping any ringer.golf link, such as an invite or a scorekeeper link, opens it in the app.
- Picks up where you left off. On a cold launch the app returns to the last screen you were on, and it refreshes the round when you come back to it.
Permissions the app asks for
All are optional and asked for only when you use the feature:
- Camera and Photos to import a paper scorecard, a GHIN card screenshot, or a profile photo.
- Location while using the app to sort courses near you.
- Microphone and speech recognition to dictate a round with Round Recall. Audio is not uploaded.
- Notifications when you choose to enable round reminders.
The app never asks for background location or your Contacts, and it does not track you across other apps.
Good to know
- Look for Ringer in the App Store. If you cannot find it yet, the website installs to your home screen and works the same way. See Install Ringer on your phone without the App Store.
- There is no Android app. Android phones use the home-screen install.
- The app is free with no in-app purchases or ads. Ringer never processes payments or holds money; side games are private arrangements between friends.
- Because the app loads the live site, it needs a connection. Offline you will see "You're offline — Ringer needs a connection to load. Check your signal and try again — your scores are safe."