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Mandatory Carts - What are your Thoughts?

TMax14 said:
Local course doesn't require carts, but is the same price whether you walk or ride. Hard to justify walking when it is no cheaper.
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It depends on how you justify it. Money wise, true. For me, if I'm allowed to walk and it's no cheaper, I'll still walk because I want the exercise (exception being that my group wants to ride, because I don't want to be antisocial!). Admittedly I'm a bit of a fitness freak, but I almost feel like I'm getting less value out of a riding round because I don't get as much exercise, so I have no problem paying the same to walk.
 
If I was forced to pay cart rental then I wouldn't and couldn't play as much as I do. If its about the money (which I believe is most cases) then why not just charge a higher greens fee and make the cart optional. Unless holes are indeed much too far apart I don't believe it solves any pace issue at all. Imo carts can be faster but only when the occupants do it efficiently. Otherwise if both players are spraying the course it takes some understanding and efforts to make it work efficiently, so riding in that circumstance can also be slower vs everyone for the most part heading to their own balls. With of course some exceptions where carts are needed due to distances, the average course doesn't imo play any faster either way and carts are about as little as responsible for pace as tee choice is. Imo two misguided logics and just imo about the least things responsible for real pace problems. Of course playing alone is faster because no coordinating with someone else needs to be done but playing alone should never be a pace issue anyway so that point is moot. But back to the money thing, just make a high greens fee and still allow one to walk. Either way the round will cost the same and those who cant afford it wont be playing there anyway. One of which would be me or at least playing less often.
 
If no walking, I may play the course once or twice a year but will certainly not frequent it.
 
I have never ridden here in the UK, I have always walked and don't know of any courses where it is mandatory to use a cart - maybe some of that comes down to how courses are designed and laid out here as opposed to in the US? I often see courses in the US that are lined with houses and long distances from green to tee, but I do think if that is the case then carts should maybe be included in the cost of the green fee (and make that slightly higher if necessary)

My only experience riding was in the Caribbean and to be honest, it wasn't essential but because I was on holiday I decided to take a cart for a change. The second time I went back there I played with a friend and although we hired a cart, we both walked a lot of the time while the caddy drove the cart as neither of us felt it fair to have him carry both bags - we did see some caddies carrying 2 bags and there is no way we would have made our caddy do that

If the course layout is easy enough for people to walk then I don't see any reason to force carts on everyone and charge for them as it is obviously just an attempt to make money - my question to courses that do that is how much do they truly make once they factor in the upkeep of all of the carts?
 
If the course is walkable, I'd at least like to be given the option to walk. Totally understand carts for courses that have long distances between holes.
 
I prefer to walk myself, but I'm not put off when it is required to rent a cart. CPO and required to take a cart is dumb, but I'll have that KLVN bag soon enough to mitigate that issue…
 
Doesn't bother me at all. I enjoy walking but I'm not going to get bent out of shape if I'm forced to ride. I like to ride sometimes and will generally ride a new course if I can the first time.
 
I walk every round, but it doesn't bother me when a course requires a cart. It is usually a high end course when I come across this situation and I can't really complain if the course is in pristine condition. I'll accept the cart only rule to enjoy a great course.
 
I'm primarily a walker, and I would generally not play a course where carts are required, unless:
- layout dictates that it's the reasonable approach
- going to play with some friends, or in an outing, and that is the course/transportation chosen
- I'm recovering from some sort of injury or whatever, where I'm not able to walk a full round at that time.
 
I guess I've never been surprised on a course that is cart mandatory, in that it would be a tough walk and pace of play would get delayed a ton.
 
A large part of why I golf is for the exercise. If I can help it, I don't ride. If I'm playing with someone who either has to ride, or really does not want to ride, I will ride to play with them. Cost is not a factor to me. It's the exercise that I want. Also, I usually play much better when I walk.

I've had back problems most of my life and riding a cart bothers my back. Walking makes me more tired, but after the first few rounds of the season, and when the weather warms a bit, I don't get very tired unless the course is a tough walk.

So, occasionally I'll ride if someone really wants to, but I wouldn't join a club where it is mandatory.

Later,

John
 
I'm ok with walking or riding but when I walk, I won't carry but use a push cart as I have some arthritis/stenosis in my neck and shoulder.

There is a really great public course near my PA home (Glen Mills) that has a policy I just don't understand. You can ride a cart or walk but they do NOT allow push carts. I was talking to the starter about it yesterday and he says he scratched his head about the policy too.
 
Doesn't bother me either way. I am about 50/50 with walking and riding so I just kind of go with the flow.
 
I have no real issue if you have to ride. I would rather ride then have a course close. I walk some rounds which is fun and I play better. The rounds I book through golfnow, which is a lot of them, almost always include a cart so I ride.
 
If the carts are free of charge and included in the greens fee, I'll ride. I walk because it's healthier and carts are too expensive.
 
I have no real issue with mandatory carts.
 
It doesn't necessarily bother me. Their course their rules. It's definitely an inconvenience though when it's whet and they have a cart path only rule. I had lugging 3 or 4 clubs and my club stand across the fairway and back.
 
I walk most rounds at my club because it is pretty walker friendly and they charge $20 a pop for carts for everyone. That starts to add up quickly.
 
I love mandatory carts.
I go to the gym for exercise and go to the golf course for good times with buddies :)
 
Scrap Iron said:
I hate when they force you to pay the extra 20 bucks to take a cart. I will say at a few courses I get it and don't have a problem with it and I played another course (crowsnest pass) where they need to make it mandatory. I felt like a freakin mountain goat truckin around that course.
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I didn't have any problems at Crowsnest Pass :alien:

As for this topic I don't have a problem with it as long as the cost of a round is advertised as the final price that includes the cost of a cart.

If they advertise a round for a cheap price and then force you to pay $20 a person for a cart without telling anyone in advance then I have an issue with it

As long as a course is honest and up front then I'm fine with them requiring whatever they want but people need to know before they get to the course
 
I love walking, and did it for the majority of my rounds the past 6 or so years. Not nearly as much "dead" time for me on the course when I walk. Usually by the time I get to my ball, the group ahead will have cleared.

I also loving kicking back and relaxing on a cart as well though. What I don't love about the cart is seeming to hurry up and wait, hurry up and wait. Always waiting for someone to clear ahead of us. Too many courses have long distances between holes here, pretty much making a cart a necessity.

Taking that option away from a golfer though, and making the rental of a cart mandatory, I feel takes away a bit from the game. We grew up walking, noticing things, struggling to carry our gear around the course. The experience makes you appreciate golf a bit more later on when you are always taking a cart.
 
I don't like it, but I understand it. Courses have to make money somewhere.

I have to ride at my course before 3pm which is annoying because I prefer to walk when I can and it's feasible. I'll even walk sometimes when I book on GolfNow and I've gotten a few odd comments and funny looks before too.
 
When use NorCal THPers got together last weekend I noticed that most of the 'deals' offered by the course were only to people who were riding. At Poppy Ridge you could get lunch at the turn included if you rode and at Poppy Hills you could get a $25 gift card. Kind of silly to me, but it is what it is. If I knew a course had a mandatory cart policy I wouldn't play there unless I was with a group.
 
I prefer to walk if there's an opportunity but if a course is carts only I'm not going to let it bother me. Very few things are worse than CPO IMO but even then I still enjoy the game to the fullest.

The only thing that really grinds my gears is if a course is enforcing a mandatory cart rule but hasn't built it into their prices. If you're going to force me to ride it better be included in the price of all affected and advertised tee times.
 
Mandatory Carts - What are your Thoughts?

Long distances between holes then I'm okay wth mandatory carts. Otherwise it's complete BS. I'm always the first one to the green when I'm walking and my partners are riding.

Golf was meant to be walked.

I should also add that I always willing to pay the cart rate even if they let me walk.


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