What Is the Deal With Courses Going Cart Only?

[ShaftFarmer]

The only course I know of that's walking-only around me is one that's super hilly

[StuM]

In Troy, MI there are 2 muni courses.  One allows walkers and one requires carts.  The difference it the terrain.  Sylvan Glen is mostly flat and they allow walking.  Sanctuary Lake is built on a former landfill and several holes play up or down the "Mound"  and walking would be difficult.  Both courses have holes with long distance to next hole but Sanctuary Lake has more long distances between holes.  If it was a money-grab I would suspect both city courses to require carts.

As for walking vs riding, I ride more often than walk  but am trying to walk more this year but only on 9 holes and only if not excessively hot.  Even on a flat course for only 9 holes my ankles are destroyed and I can barely walk the next day.

[flopster]

I think courses should at least have info available on the cart that explains how to use one, way too often you'll see a group in front of you just not think when having the cart actually slows pace of play. 

[mohearn]

On 8/10/2022 at 6:44 PM, StuM said:

As for walking vs riding, I ride more often than walk  but am trying to walk more this year but only on 9 holes and only if not excessively hot.  Even on a flat course for only 9 holes my ankles are destroyed and I can barely walk the next day.

Credit to you for walking even nine holes. Pushcart, yes?.  All the coolest players are walking these days.  Seriously, it gets better with time, way to go.

[imsys0042]

The weather is out of the 90s where I live and I'll be walking tomorrow afternoon.   I leave early most Wednesdays and play golf late afternoon and evening.   Took a couple of towels off my bag, the umbrella and range finder to make it easier.   I miss the days of growing up in Central NJ where all the courses were all farmland and flat.

[StuM]

10 hours ago, mohearn said:

Credit to you for walking even nine holes. Pushcart, yes?.  All the coolest players are walking these days.  Seriously, it gets better with time, way to go.

Yes, push cart.

[Bucki1968]

Being able to walk the golf course was probably the main reason my wife and I joined a private club years ago. There weren't many options in our area to walk unless you were a member at a private club. We usually only walk about half the year (the other half being the hotter months in Florida), but I would rather walk if I can. For some reason (and I have tried to figure out why), I play better when I walk.

[WUTiger]

On 4/30/2022 at 11:33 AM, phillyk said:

Pace of play and it’s enforcement are some reasons. Most of those courses will likely have gps or at least trackers in each cart to let the pro shop know pace of play and if any groups are out of place. 

Not just pace of play, but location monitoring. GPS trackers help courses enforce "no go" areas on the fairway and rough. If a cart goes into the rough, or into a soggy area, the cart shuts down. Then, you have to back up slowly to the safe area before the cart will function normally. It's the hassle of "car path only" without clearly being able to see where the path is.

Another factor involves the sprawling residential golf clubs which mushroomed in the 1990s. Developers envisioned taking them as private equity ventures once the membership filled up. To appeal to golf families, as many home lots as possible were sited to provide fairway frontage in either front or back yard. Thus, these courses had clusters of holes interspersed with stretches of suburbia.

But, too many competing developments emerged for the market to handle, and to stay afloat, developers had to chase the $45 a round public golfers to play their spread out tracks.  If No. 3 green is a quarter-mile from No. 4 tee, you need to have people ride carts to keep traffic moving. My wife and I tried to walk such a courses a decade ago, and we always got overrun from behind by cart-mobile cavalry.

Edited January 5, 2023 by WUTiger

[phillyk]

4 hours ago, WUTiger said:

Not just pace of play, but location monitoring. GPS trackers help courses enforce "no go" areas on the fairway and rough. If a cart goes into the rough, or into a soggy area, the cart shuts down. Then, you have to back up slowly to the safe area before the cart will function normally. It's the hassle of "car path only" without clearly being able to see where the path is.

The course I worked at previously had zero reception. So all the geofencing was wonky. Couldn’t effectively enforce cart path only or cart rules in general. But yes, free marshals are usually nice. 

[flopster]

I see I posted here on this topic a while ago but I think single rider carts would be a big help.

[StuM]

5 hours ago, flopster said:

I see I posted here on this topic a while ago but I think single rider carts would be a big help.

There are many options for purchase.  I think a few courses rent them.

[snapfade]

42 minutes ago, StuM said:

There are many options for purchase.  I think a few courses rent them.

You're just begging for that dude to show up and start crying about lazy people only take carts and how he is better than anyone who rides. haha 

I have mentioned this before somewhere, but there is a guy at my course that has a tricked out bike specially designed for carrying clubs. The scooter thing you show I can see that winding up in a pond or a bunker. Looks fun though, I'd give it a whirl.

[flopster]

On 8/2/2023 at 5:55 AM, StuM said:

There are many options for purchase.  I think a few courses rent them.

Haha I like it and no doubt much lighter than the 2 seaters so less wear and tear on the course.

[SEMI_Duffer]

On 8/2/2023 at 8:55 AM, StuM said:

There are many options for purchase.  I think a few courses rent them.

If I go back to playing and if I find myself playing a lot and if my local courses allow those, I can see myself acquiring one.  They look like they'd be a hoot 

[snapfade]

1 hour ago, SEMI_Duffer said:

If I go back to playing and if I find myself playing a lot and if my local courses allow those, I can see myself acquiring one.  They look like they'd be a hoot 

 

[SEMI_Duffer]

Meh.  That one ^^^^^ not so much.