Privacy Policy
fourBallBuddy is built on trust between golfers. We collect only what we need to connect you with great playing partners, and we never sell your personal information to third parties.
1. Who We Are
fourBallBuddy ("we," "us," or "our") is a mobile application and platform that connects amateur golfers to fill open spots in tee times. We are based in Florida, USA. If you have questions about this policy, contact us at support@fourballbuddy.com.
2. Information We Collect
Information you provide directly
- Account information: First and last name, email address, username, date of birth, and password
- Profile information: Location (city, state, ZIP, street address), home golf course, handicap index, skill level, preferred pace of play, screen name, and profile bio
- Equipment information: Golf equipment details you choose to share (ball, driver, fairway woods, hybrids, irons, wedges, putter — brand and model)
- Round data: Scorecards, hole-by-hole stats, putts, fairways hit, greens in regulation, and other performance data you enter
- Tee time data: Rounds you host or join, course selection, tee times, green fees, and notes
- Communications: Messages sent through the in-app chat, reviews and ratings you submit
Information collected automatically
- Device information: Push notification token (for round reminders and alerts)
- Usage data: Features you use, screens you visit, actions you take within the app (collected via PostHog analytics)
- Location: General location (city/state level) used to show nearby tee times. We do not continuously track your GPS location.
Data sharing consent
During registration, you are asked whether you consent to your anonymized play data being used for aggregate analytics and future personalization features. This is optional and can be changed at any time in Settings.
3. How We Use Your Information
- To create and manage your account
- To match you with compatible golfers for open tee times
- To send you push notifications for round reminders, invites, messages, and reviews
- To display your profile, ratings, and reviews to other players
- To power the AI Caddie feature with your equipment and performance data
- To calculate and display your player statistics and rating
- To send transactional emails (account confirmation, support)
- To improve the app through aggregated, anonymized usage analytics
- To detect and prevent fraud, abuse, or violations of our Terms of Service
4. How We Share Your Information
With other players
When you post or join a tee time, your profile information (name, handicap, skill level, pace preference, rating, and equipment) is visible to other players on that round. Your location is shown at city/state level only.
With service providers
We share data with trusted third-party service providers who help us operate the platform:
- Supabase — database and authentication hosting
- Expo / EAS — mobile app builds and push notifications
- PostHog — anonymized usage analytics
- Anthropic — AI Caddie feature (your equipment summary and queries are sent to the Claude API)
- Resend — transactional email delivery
- Google Maps / Places — course search and address autocomplete
- Railway — backend API hosting
We do not sell your data
We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third-party advertisers or data brokers. Any future data monetization will be based on aggregated, anonymized insights only, and only for users who have provided explicit consent.
Legal requirements
We may disclose your information if required by law, court order, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of fourBallBuddy, our users, or the public.
5. Your Choices and Rights
Discoverability
You can opt out of appearing in player search results at any time via Settings → Discovery. This does not affect your existing rounds or connections.
Push notifications
You can manage notification preferences in Settings → Notifications, or disable push notifications entirely in your device settings.
Data sharing consent
You can update your data sharing consent at any time in Settings.
Account deletion
You may request deletion of your account and associated data by contacting us at support@fourballbuddy.com. We will process your request within 30 days. Note that certain data (such as reviews you have written, which are tied to other players' profiles) may be retained in anonymized form.
Access and correction
You can update most of your profile information directly in the app via Settings → Personal Info. For other requests, contact us at support@fourballbuddy.com.
6. Data Retention
We retain your personal information for as long as your account is active. Round history, reviews, and ratings are retained to maintain the integrity of the platform. If you delete your account, we will remove your personal information within 30 days, though anonymized statistical data may be retained.
7. Security
We use industry-standard security practices including encrypted data transmission (HTTPS), row-level security policies on our database, and authenticated API access. However, no method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure. We encourage you to use a strong, unique password for your account.
8. Children's Privacy
fourBallBuddy is not directed at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have inadvertently collected such information, please contact us immediately at support@fourballbuddy.com.
9. Third-Party Links
The app and landing page may contain links to third-party websites or services (such as golf course websites or Google Maps). This Privacy Policy does not apply to those third-party services. We encourage you to review their privacy policies.
10. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of significant changes via in-app notification or email. Your continued use of fourBallBuddy after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy. The effective date at the top of this page will always reflect the most recent version.
11. Contact Us
If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or your personal data, please contact us:
- Email: support@fourballbuddy.com
- Website: fourballbuddy.com