Will COVID-19 Permanently Change Cart Culture?

[Bonvivant]

26 minutes ago, iacas said:

Yeah, but to be clear, I'm not talking about playing in the same cart under current conditions. I firmly support the "one player per cart" thing if you HAVE to ride in current conditions, or walking preferably.

Under regular conditions (say, hopefully next summer), @Bonvivant replied pretty well, so… what he said. Yeah, I usually grab my 8I, putter, and maybe a wedge, and walk to the green with two or three clubs.

I envy you for being comfortable with just those 3. Hopefully this summer my ball striking improves enough to be able to take 3 clubs out of a cart from 7 iron and in range. If I were better about knowing my misses I could do it now. I'm just not there yet. 

[CarlSpackler]

3 minutes ago, Bonvivant said:

I envy you for being comfortable with just those 3. Hopefully this summer my ball striking improves enough to be able to take 3 clubs out of a cart from 7 iron and in range. If I were better about knowing my misses I could do it now. I'm just not there yet. 

Using GameGolf is very enlightening about knowing your misses.You can get a Pro Unit for $99 plus tax. You can also just use the app on your phone for free, but that is a pain.

[Bonvivant]

1 minute ago, CarlSpackler said:

Using GameGolf is very enlightening about knowing your misses.You can get a Pro Unit for $99 plus tax. You can also just use the app on your phone for free, but that is a pain.

What I should said is that my misses aren't consistent enough yet. I'm aware of GG, but I like to play fast. The pro unit would be nice, but I play with multiple sets so I'd have to choose one (which I should do anyway)

[CarlSpackler]

1 minute ago, Bonvivant said:

What I should said is that my misses aren't consistent enough yet. I'm aware of GG, but I like to play fast. The pro unit would be nice, but I play with multiple sets so I'd have to choose one (which I should do anyway)

Why 2 sets (of clubs I assume)?

[Bonvivant]

Just now, CarlSpackler said:

Why 2 sets (of clubs I assume)?

Its 3 sets actually. Classic set for vintage rounds. My Nikes in my description were my gamers last year. Lastly, I picked up a set of 735.cm titleists with 2 vokeys to have a little bit of forgiveness (still not forgiving enough but for 100 bucks they were worth a shot) in the top of the iron range. I plan on gaming these this year, but if I struggle I'll go back to the Nikes until I can get properly fit. 

[CarlSpackler]

1 minute ago, Bonvivant said:

Its 3 sets actually. Classic set for vintage rounds. My Nikes in my description were my gamers last year. Lastly, I picked up a set of 735.cm titleists with 2 vokeys to have a little bit of forgiveness (still not forgiving enough but for 100 bucks they were worth a shot) in the top of the iron range. I plan on gaming these this year, but if I struggle I'll go back to the Nikes until I can get properly fit. 

It's not hard to change the tags. 10 minutes tops to do it, but I wouldn't put them in the vintage clubs to keep those off the books so to speak. At any rate, if you're genuinely interested in improving your game, I would definitely recommend these. It would have been a better investment than the 3rd set of clubs IMO.

[iacas]

20 minutes ago, Bonvivant said:

What I should said is that my misses aren't consistent enough yet. I'm aware of GG, but I like to play fast. The pro unit would be nice, but I play with multiple sets so I'd have to choose one (which I should do anyway)

Don't get PRO. Live is still better. And it's not a pace of play issue at all.

But anyway… I don't know if I recommend GG at all right now. Whatever.

[Bonvivant]

7 minutes ago, iacas said:

Don't get PRO. Live is still better. And it's not a pace of play issue at all.

But anyway… I don't know if I recommend GG at all right now. Whatever.

Yeah I saw that there were some problems going on with them. To me those kind of things were a pace issue, somewhat akin to a laser range finder. I have a garmin s20 that works great for a general yardage and I have to take 0 extra time to see my yardage as I start looking at it 10 yards or more before the ball to get a good idea.

I don't mean that it is a pace issue for a loaded course or anything, just that if it is wide open, I don't like to be slowed by anything. 

[CarlSpackler]

46 minutes ago, iacas said:

Don't get PRO. Live is still better. And it's not a pace of play issue at all.

But anyway… I don't know if I recommend GG at all right now. Whatever.

Doh! I meant to say Live, but their website appears to be down again, so maybe not a good idea...

35 minutes ago, Bonvivant said:

To me those kind of things were a pace issue, somewhat akin to a laser range finder.

I can outpace many golfers using my range finder and Game Golf. It only takes a split second to tap the end of my club to my belt. I am usually shooting my target while other players are taking 5-10 practice swings. It only takes a few seconds once or twice a hole to get a yardage, so it hardly slows me down even when playing solo.

[Bonvivant]

Just now, CarlSpackler said:

Doh! I meant to say Live, but their website appears to be down again, so maybe not a good idea...

I can outpace many golfers using my range finder and Game Golf. It only takes a split second to tap the end of my club to my belt. I am usually shooting my target while other players are taking 5-10 practice swings. It only takes a few seconds once or twice a hole to get a yardage, so it hardly slows me down even when playing solo.

I don't doubt that you can play quickly with these items, but I do doubt that you can play as fast as I can with or without them. Not that it's a race, but my records around Dales are 0:58 riding and 1:52 for walking (18 holes). This is the pace that I wish I could play at all the time, but that's not how things go obviously. I just feel I play/swing better when I don't take much time over the ball/don't have to wait. More gadgets would mess with my mojo I think.

[iacas]

57 minutes ago, Bonvivant said:

I don't mean that it is a pace issue for a loaded course or anything, just that if it is wide open, I don't like to be slowed by anything. 

Huh?

You tap your hip as you're taking your stance. Literally zero difference.

Hell, especially if you're walking, tag it as soon as you take the club out of the bag and you're moving around to get set up to your ball.

[Darkfrog]

1 hour ago, Bonvivant said:

I don't mean that it is a pace issue for a loaded course or anything, just that if it is wide open, I don't like to be slowed by anything. 

Getting a little off the carts topic here, but thought I'd chime in. Have you tried the S20 shot tracking feature? I used it for awhile, but found it tedious because unless you have the expensive Garmin club tags, club selection after a shot is manual, and the post-round editor is garbage, imo.

Now I use a Shotscope system, which doesn't require tagging a club before a shot, but does require wearing a large, annoying watch. The watch does have a good GPS system, with info similar to the S20. If you already use a watch (like I previously used the S20), you eventually get used to the larger Shotscope device (at least I did), but the size still bugs me (e.g., gets in the way of taking on/off layers, etc.) Shotscope is supposed to be releasing a new, smaller version of the watch in May, but it's not clear how COVID-19 impacts their timeline. Also Shotscope doesn't feature the most intuitive interface for statistics so using the data to determine specific practice areas takes a little more analyzing by the end user. I think Game Golf shows where you gain/lose strokes compared to the average for your handicap, which I think is really cool.

So, I after a couple years, I am lukewarm on the Shotscope. Still waiting on a company to come up with the perfect combination of GPS/shot tracking/statistic features. Every now and then I just go out with a scorecard and my rangefinder, and I don't find using the rangefinder is any more intrusive than looking at a watch, but everyone plays with their own rhythm, so I understand how it could be disruptive.

Edited April 7, 2020 by Darkfrog
GPS, not GSP, the great MMA fighter

[iacas]

14 minutes ago, Darkfrog said:

large, annoying watch

Yeah, I got one for review and offered to send it back because I wouldn't wear such a large watch to play golf. Especially not in addition to my Apple Watch.

[Darkfrog]

On the original topic:

I think that some folks might switch to walking after the Coronavirus pandemic gets to a point where we can start resuming normal activities again. I walk because that is my preference, even on hot days, or rainy days or some of the brutally hilly courses in my area. But I grew up camping, hiking, and backpacking, and I walk 5-6 miles a day during my lunch break for exercise, so it's not a physical or mental burden for me. I've even converted some of my friends to walkers, because of the exercise/health benefits.

But I expect most will return to cart use. There are plenty of reasons to use a cart, need-based and otherwise. I have a friend who isn't in great shape, who also had both hips replaced in his early 30s, and he definitely wouldn't play without a cart. Another friend packs so much crap for a round of golf that it would be nearly impossible for him to walk without being completely exhausted after a round. I also think, as much as I hate to admit because I fancy myself a fast paced player, that carts speed up pace of play for the majority of golfers.

There have been times when I wished I had taken a cart rather than walking. In a tournament last year, on a very hilly course, I chose to walk. After the round, my iPhone's step tracker showed that I had walked around 7.5 miles. I was physically beat down, but the others in my group, riding in carts were fresh. My score was certainly negatively impacted by fatigue, and the 2nd round the following day was even worse, because of cumulative fatigue and choosing to walk again 

[dagolfer18]

I don’t believe that COVID-19 will impact cart culture. Probably 95% of the other golfers I encountered on the course before COVID-19 came to the US were using a cart. I’m almost positive that they’ll go right back to the carts once this pandemic is over.

[Double Mocha Man]

3 hours ago, CarlSpackler said:

All of these problems would go away if they would bring back caddies.

Caddies are a dying breed.

[CarlSpackler]

27 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

Caddies are a dying breed.

My son caddied for me when he was younger. I paid him $5 and bought him a coke in the clubhouse after. It was a great way to play, and he thought he struck it rich. 🤣

[Double Mocha Man]

29 minutes ago, CarlSpackler said:

My son caddied for me when he was younger. I paid him $5 and bought him a coke in the clubhouse after. It was a great way to play, and he thought he struck it rich. 🤣

I caddied at a country club as a kid and was in heaven when my guy bought me a Snicker bar at the turn.  Not to mention I'd been sitting in the caddie shack since sunrise waiting for a loop but the old men regulars got the first and best loops.  We dregs went out late and hungry.