Will COVID-19 Permanently Change Cart Culture?

[trombettista_vecchio]

I don't think that I could play without riding anymore. 

I enjoy walking and often do, but not eighteen holes of hilly golf.

[dennyjones]

I could walk and would if my golf partners wanted to walk.   Most courses in my area are walker friendly but very few people do walk.  

[Bonvivant]

58 minutes ago, dennyjones said:

I could walk and would if my golf partners wanted to walk.   Most courses in my area are walker friendly but very few people do walk.  

Do you just feel bad for not splitting cart fee, or don't like to walk when others are riding?

[CarlSpackler]

13 hours ago, David in FL said:

Nope.  The big change here has been to single rider carts.  As a result, rounds are even quicker.

Played 36 holes in 5:45 today as a 4-ball.  Good stuff!

At first I thought that was a slow round until I noticed the number of holes played. That's awesome!

[pganapathy]

Personally I think I am going to return to my normal life once the quarantine here in India is over.  I will perhaps be a little more cautious and wash my hands a bit more, but unless I see a massive breakout in the neighbourhood I am living in, it will not affect me in one bit or lead to changes of any kind.  That includes golf.  I currently walk a lot and assuming I have my trolley with me, pull my bag.  Some courses are cart only and I will use them there.  In some cases, even with the trolley I will use a caddie.

[dennyjones]

16 minutes ago, Bonvivant said:

Do you just feel bad for not splitting cart fee, or don't like to walk when others are riding?

I just go with the group decision.   The price of the cart isn't a factor.  Golf here is very cheap compared to other places.

[Bonvivant]

18 minutes ago, dennyjones said:

I just go with the group decision.   The price of the cart isn't a factor.  Golf here is very cheap compared to other places.

Gotcha. I guess I just don't mind as much being the odd man of the group. I do ride sometimes but thats usually a course layout thing (neighborhood courses).

[tehuti]

People in general have short memories/attention spans. Right now it seems like we'll never be the same again. But I suspect once this crisis is over and things go back to some semblance of normal, so will the courses and everyone else.

Personally I have been trying to walk more this year anyway. So this will only motivate me even more. But I like riding as well.

[Rkrider99]

18 hours ago, David in FL said:

Nope.  The big change here has been to single rider carts.  As a result, rounds are even quicker.

Played 36 holes in 5:45 today as a 4-ball.  Good stuff!

I agree with @David in FL we've gone to single cart, single rider here, and the pace is so much faster, it may become a standard. Especially with 5 hour rounds in snowbird season.

[ghalfaire]

For me I walk often on some of the courses in the Phoenix Metro area.  Most are flat and  not too much distance between greens to the next tee.  But I am in my late seventies and there are some courses I just can't walk anymore because of the up & downs and/or they spread out with significant distances between holes. In my summer place here in the mountains of AZ I don't walk more than 9 holes. Just too much up and down for an old guy to handle and enjoy it. Maybe if I would fork over some bucks and get one of those electric powered push carts I could walk more.  Pretty expensive on a retire's budget. But I'll think on it.  To answer the OP question No I don't think I'll change much when we get back to normal and I somehow doubt many will.  Too bad as I like walking better and those that could walk more seem t want to ride.

[cooke119]

I love walking except three back surgeries means I can't. I can walk 9 but 18 is out of the question. 

[Yukari]

Golf cart no. It will however change our lives. 
I for one wash my hands a lot more frequently. I think that will and has become a habit already. I am also more cautious of touching anything when I go out. That too may stick around after COVID fades. 
 

[Slim_Pivot]

Permanent is a long time, almost as long as forever. People will forget.

(Before COVID) How many people were scared of catching an airborne virus because of the 1918 Spanish Flu? Not many.

There will be some culture change, but it’ll prob fade away.

[arturo28mx]

I prefer 9 holes walking than 18 holes in a cart. For me, walking is 50% the joy of golf. That's just me.

[Double Mocha Man]

12 minutes ago, arturo28mx said:

I prefer 9 holes walking than 18 holes in a cart. For me, walking is 50% the joy of golf. That's just me.

I play a lot of 9 hole rounds, sweeping the dew early in the morning.  I'm home before a lot of people are out of bed.

1 hour ago, Slim_Pivot said:

Permanent is a long time, almost as long as forever. People will forget.

(Before COVID) How many people were scared of catching an airborne virus because of the 1918 Spanish Flu? Not many.

There will be some culture change, but it’ll prob fade away.

911 was grotesquely horrible, but most people have moved on.  We'll move on from this and in 10 years someone will ask, "Covid what?"

Edited April 4, 2020 by Double Mocha Man
typo

[skywaterbanjo]

I belong to 2 courses here in Colorado. I walk one of them every time I play (unless I'm playing a scramble tournament) and the other is not walkable.  The walkable course is open now, with specific rules.  Many ride that course, one person per cart, 6' distance, etc.  The other course is not open yet but we have a private cart for that one.  It won't affect my play at all.

 

[70sSanO]

On 3/31/2020 at 2:22 PM, Bonvivant said:

I think you missed what I was talking about. If people that love to golf enough, but normally ride and can't right now, still go out and walk and play they might find a new appreciation for walking. I don't think that this will be the experience for most, but I hope that some people find a new way to enjoy the game, and stick with it. Carts are a very American thing, and I think that it stems from some form of convenience that American's value more than other people.

All this talk of putting speakers in carts is making me sick though. Do y'all actually play music while you are golfing? If so, do you think that it doesn't bug others?

 

Sorry, I mis-interpreted the word permanently.

John

[David in FL]

On 3/31/2020 at 4:08 PM, Bonvivant said:

. I was just hoping that some people that truly love golf but always ride, would find a new way to enjoy the game (a way that I find more enjoyable myself) due to the circumstances.

It seems a bit arrogant to think that the way you or I enjoy the game is somehow better than the way someone else does.

You’re young.  Enjoy it while you can.  Some day you may find that riding allows you to continue to enjoy the game as you get a bit older.  People can love the game, whether they walk or ride...

Just sayin’...