Privacy policy

Effective October 15, 2026

Yardbird is a golf app made by Jay Aparo, an individual developer in New Jersey ("Yardbird", "we", "us"). We are preparing an initial iPhone (iOS) release with an Apple Watch (watchOS) companion. An Android version is in development but is not yet available. This policy explains what information the Yardbird app and yardbirdapp.com collect, why, and the choices you have. We wrote it to be read, not skimmed past.

The short version: Yardbird is being built around scorekeeping and social golf. Account details, rounds, player nicknames, and group results help the app work. The paired Apple Watch may store a recent round and pending score edits. GPS, weather-based club advice, and shot tracing are planned for later, not part of the initial release. We do not sell personal information or use advertising trackers. You can ask us about or request deletion of your data.

Information we collect

Information you give us

Account details. If you create an account, your name and email address from Sign in with Apple, Google, or an email sign-in code. With Sign in with Apple you can hide your real email, and we'll only see Apple's relay address.
Golf information. Your rounds, scores, putts, courses you choose, handicap information you choose to share, and any clubs, notes or game preferences you save when those features are available.
Hole notes. Notes you choose to save for a hole, if you use that feature. Personal notes are intended to be private to your account.
Website early-access signup. If you join the waitlist, we collect your email address, optional name, the platform you're interested in (Apple, Android, or both), whether you indicated interest in Apple Watch, and your consent to receive updates, along with the signup date. This is separate from creating an app account. The form does not send a confirmation email automatically.
Messages to us. Anything you send to support@yardbirdapp.com or hello@yardbirdapp.com, such as feedback or a request to join the beta.

Information from your phone

Location and GPS (future features). GPS distances, live location and map-based shot tools are not part of the planned initial release. If we add location-based features later, we will describe their data use and request applicable device permissions before enabling them. You can use core scoring without GPS.
Weather (future feature). Weather-based recommendations are planned for a later release and are not needed for scorekeeping or group games.
Voice features (future feature). Siri and spoken-distance features may be added later; they are not required to play or keep score.
Course mapping (future feature). Green-location marking and shared mapping data are not part of the initial launch plan.
Camera (future feature). Shot tracing is a future goal, not an initial-release feature. If introduced, the app will request appropriate camera permissions and we will update this policy to reflect how the feature works.
Photos (optional future feature). The proposed bag-scanning feature may ask you to choose a photo. This feature is not required for scorekeeping.
Diagnostics. Crash reports and basic performance data, so we can fix problems. We use Apple's built-in tools for this where possible.
Apple Watch companion. When you use Yardbird on a paired Apple Watch, round details, current hole, scores and game standings may be transferred between your iPhone and watch using Apple WatchConnectivity. Recent data, complication summaries and edits waiting to sync may be stored on your devices. A watch complication may show the last received score until it refreshes.

Information from other people and services

Group rounds. When you join a group round, other members may see your chosen display name or nickname, scores, and points. In public-game discovery, your chosen nickname and basic game details may be visible to other golfers. Your contact details and precise GPS position are not intended to be exposed to players through this feature. Handicap sharing depends on the round settings you select.
Weekly challenges. When you join a challenge, its other players see your name and your result for the challenge (for example "12 pars" or "31.5 putts"), worked out from rounds you finish during the challenge dates. They never see your rounds, scores by hole, courses or location.
Referrals. If a friend joins with your invite code, we record that link so we can count it toward your reward. We record whether your friend finished a first round, not their scores.
Purchases. If paid subscriptions become available, purchases will be handled by Apple and subscription-status information may be managed by RevenueCat. We do not receive your full payment-card details.

How we use information

To run the app: keep scorecards, run group rounds, calculate friendly-game points and, if enabled, handicap-based scores.
To save the account information and golf history you choose to sync.
To run the referral program and give you rewards you've earned, and to prevent fraud and abuse.
To provide or restore a paid plan if subscriptions are launched.
To answer your messages, send important service notices (like a reminder before a free trial ends), and fix bugs.
To contact people who voluntarily join our early-access list with beta invitations, availability and occasional product news for their selected platform. Joining the list does not guarantee an invitation.

We do not sell or rent your personal information, we do not use it for advertising, and we do not track you across apps or websites owned by other companies.

Who we share it with

Players in your rounds, as described above.
Service providers that run parts of Yardbird for us, such as cloud hosting and databases, sign-in (Apple, Google), subscription management, email, and crash reporting. They may use the information only to provide their service to us.
Apple, for TestFlight, App Store purchases and subscriptions.
When the law requires it, or to protect the safety and rights of our users or others.
If Yardbird is sold or merged, your information may transfer to the new owner, who must keep honoring this policy or tell you before anything changes.

Course names, tees and scorecards may come from licensed course-data providers as the beta evolves. Search terms or a course selection may be sent to a provider to return a scorecard. Advanced satellite maps and GPS-based distances are future features, not part of the initial release.

How long we keep it

Early-access list: Waitlist registrations are stored using Cloudflare D1. We'll keep them while they're useful for beta and launch communications, or until you ask us to remove yours. To leave the list or request deletion, email hello@yardbirdapp.com from the registered address. We don't require an app account to make that request. We do not currently use the signup form to send automatic emails.

We generally keep account data and synced golf history while your account is open, unless you request deletion or a shorter retention period is required by law.

When you request account deletion, we will delete or de-identify personal information associated with your account, subject to legal, operational and backup-retention requirements. You can request deletion through available in-app controls or by contacting support@yardbirdapp.com. Deleting an account does not automatically cancel an Apple subscription.

Limited technical records and backups may persist for a period before scheduled removal. Apple separately retains purchase and account records under its own policies. We will describe verified retention periods more specifically before public release.

Your choices and rights

Delete your account. Use the account deletion option if available in your beta build, or email support@yardbirdapp.com. If you play without an account, use any available local-data erasure option or contact us for help.
Device permissions. You can manage any requested location, camera or photo permissions in iPhone Settings. Core scoring does not require GPS.
Public games and handicap sharing. Joining public games is optional. Use a nickname if you prefer not to display your name, and review group settings before sharing handicap details.
Early-access emails. You can stop early-access communications and request removal from the list by emailing hello@yardbirdapp.com. We will include an unsubscribe option in marketing messages we send.
Access, correction and copies. Email us to get a copy of your information or to correct it.

Depending on where you live, including California, Colorado, Connecticut, Virginia and other U.S. states, you may have rights to know, access, correct, delete or get a copy of your personal information, and to opt out of sales, targeted advertising and profiling. We don't sell personal information or use it for targeted advertising. To use any of these rights, email support@yardbirdapp.com. We won't treat you differently for using them. If we deny your request, you can appeal by replying to our answer.

Children

Yardbird is not directed to children under 13, and we don't knowingly collect personal information from them. Junior mode is meant to be used on a parent's or guardian's phone and account; children shouldn't create their own account. If you think a child under 13 has given us information, email us and we'll delete it.

Security

We use encryption in transit, supported sign-in providers including Apple where configured, and access controls on our systems. No system is perfectly secure, but we work to protect your information and will tell you if a breach affects you as the law requires.

This website

yardbirdapp.com is hosted by Cloudflare, which processes basic technical information (like IP addresses) to deliver and protect the site. To limit spam and abusive signups, we use Cloudflare Turnstile, which may analyze browser and device signals, IP addresses, and other security information to assess whether a submission appears automated, as described in Cloudflare’s privacy disclosures. Cloudflare may use cookies or similar technologies necessary for security. We also rate-limit signup attempts. Waitlist contact information submitted on this site is stored in a Cloudflare D1 database accessible to the developer. We do not use the signup form for advertising trackers, and our fonts are served from our own site.

Changes

If we change this policy, we'll update the date at the top. For significant changes, we'll also let you know in the app before they take effect.

Contact

Questions or requests: support@yardbirdapp.com