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Is Your Course Walker Friendly?

ranger1989

ranger1989

Rangers Lead the Way!
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Seeing some posts in my other thread (https://www.thehackersparadise.com/forum/showthread.php?90099-Walk-or-Ride-When-Golfing-Why) got me thinking about this.

Lots of folks saying that their course is not walker friendly and I even belonged to one at West Point, NY. And as a walker that really made me unhappy.

Should courses be walker friendly? Is this not taken into consideration when designing a golf course? Or is it pushing/forcing golfers to pay for cart fees? Carts equal faster rounds...faster rounds equal more through put? Thoughts?
 
My course is definitely walkable, but there are a few long jaunts in between holes.

Yes I think it should go into the design more often than it does. Most courses in my neck of the woods are designed with development in mind. They are trying to get the most houses on the course, not anything else.
 
Ours is very walker friendly with only a couple of holes that going hiking from green to tee.

Just because you're walking doesn't mean you're taking longer to play, we can walk as a 6some in under 4 hours. Summer is kind of a beating towards #15 but nobody ever pushes us.
 
Some are some are not. Carmel Mountain Ranch and Mt Woodson definitely are not
 
Most of the courses I play have walkers now and then. I'd like to do the same a few times this year.


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Matthew said:
Ours is very walker friendly with only a couple of holes that going hiking from green to tee.

Just because you're walking doesn't mean you're taking longer to play, we can walk as a 6some in under 4 hours. Summer is kind of a beating towards #15 but nobody ever pushes us.
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I agree with this statement. An example of where it could take more time is my old course at West Point had over 1/4 mile between #9 & #10 then almost the same #15 to #16...mostly uphill. It was not pleasant at all and time consuming.
 
There is a lot of courses in the UK where you can only walk.
 
Most courses can be walked but most don't allow it during peak hours due to "pace of play". That's for another thread though. The courses owned by the city allow walking anytime though and we walk frequently.

JM
 
Many of the courses I play here aren't walker friendly so I have to ride most of the time.
 
ranger1989 said:
I agree with this statement. An example of where it could take more time is my old course at West Point had over 1/4 mile between #9 & #10 then almost the same #15 to #16...mostly uphill. It was not pleasant at all and time consuming.
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That kind of distance is just stupid and a poor design. Granted when we played Blackjack Crossing, that course is un-walkable strictly due to the terrain, I sure would have hated to know I had to walk it.
 
My home course is friendly to walkers.
 
The old course was. The new course, the front nine is. The back nine is tougher to walk.
 
It really is pretty easy to walk. Not a lot of substantial hills in south GA. There is one stretch from 15 green to 16 tee that adds another par 4 to the round from a distance perspective, but other than that it is very walker friendly.
 
Yes, the worst trek is from #1 to #2 and it isn't that far but just straight uphill. It is an older course though and that seems to be the major difference I have seen most of the newer courses are developments not just golf courses.
 
Very walkable. Some up and down but nothing drastic. Only downfall is no water stations on course so you have to have water or beverage with you. You do pass close enough to clubhouse after 3rd hole to grab a drink before teeing off on four then again on 9.
 
I walk 85/90% of my rounds each year, so this topic is very important to me. My local course is "walker friendly", however they do not offer a 9 hole rate, so I try to get in as many holes as possible when I walk if I can't squeeze in 18.
 
Our home course is very walkable.
 
My course is about 2400 yards and 9 holes. Its pretty walker friendly.

~Rock
 
McRock said:
My course is about 2400 yards and 9 holes. Its pretty walker friendly.

~Rock
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Oh I love those. Wish there were some like that around me. Here you still have to pay for 18. And can't even start on the back 9 :-/ (which is much nicer)
 
My course is walkable but the layout is tricky. The 9th hole is the furthest away from the club house. However, there is a layout that mixes the back and front to create a 9 that has you finish on 18.

I don't mind it as other than that issue it's an easy walk, only a few hills.
 
for an average course I suppose considering what is walkable comes down to personal opinion and how one feels about walking a given course. My 5 county courses are all walkable, However two of them (and they are a pair of sisters of the same complex) are what I would consider about at the (or my) walking limit. The holes are spread apart much more than normal and some good amount of hills. But it is doable and plenty do walk. Though more do ride vs all the other county courses.

As others mentioned riding is not always faster for many reasons. Mostly player awareness of how to go about it and in fact the lack of such awareness can often make them slower. especially when spraying balls all over the place and the sometimes given cart restrictions.
 
Mine is not walker friendly and I prefer non walker friendly courses as holes are not back and forth and tees and greens are not on top of each other


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Very much so. Rather flat, many holes have the next tee box try close to the previous green. A couple decent walks, but nothing more than 30-40 second hike.

One of the reasons I like playing it so often, it is challenging but fair and I can walk it with out going into cardiac arrest.
 
Not in my book. I'm not a member and cart fee is included in the very fair greens fee. Walking isn't discouraged that I know of but in 15 months, I've only played with two walkers and seen maybe 10-12 more. All teens except for one.
 
yes and no. The last 3 holes on each 9 are back up hill which make it a little tougher on hot days. There are also some areas in which walking paths from green to tee could be raked or cleared to make it a bit of a quicker route. I understand it though, more money comes in the course when they rent a cart or a golfboard.
 
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