Over the last couple of years many golfers have encountered a course that was allowing only one person to cart. During those rounds, it was discovered that it significantly speeds up the pace of play because everybody goes to their own golf ball rather than sitting around waiting for someone to hit before moving on.
As the calendar moved forward, rules became more lax and we are back to two in each cart when riding, despite courses being busier, slower and more expensive. This draws back the unique precedent set during the pandemic of faster golf being obtainable even with courses as busy as ever.
Enter the single rider carts. Have you used any of the models out there? Did you notice the impact on pace of play? What have you tried and most importantly, did you enjoy it?
If you have two slow golfers in a cart it’s ALWAYS going to take them longer. Go to the first guys ball, piddle around choosing a club, get distance 3x, do 5 practice swings, then finally hit. Get back in drive to cartners ball and repeat that whole process.
How is that not slower than each guygoing directly to their ball and doing the same thing? At minimum your cutting out drive time. Maybe a couple minutes a hole. Over 18 that could be close to 30 minutes saved.
Two fast players in a cart will outpace two fast walkers every day of the week.
As much as I’d like to disagree I can’t based on my own personal experience as a walker/pusher.
I know I’m fast but it still takes me around 3 hours to walk a round. When Im with my dad and we get a cart I can cut that to around 2:30
(on an empty course)
Fixed that for you a little bit, because I play with these guys.
You can buy a brand new Finn for less than that and have way more fun.
Since the restrictions have been removed we are back to 2 persons per cart.
What I’ve observed regarding the last few years is that even after the restrictions have been removed there are now more people walking at our course than ever before.
Our course has a number of holes with long gaps between the green and the next tee box, this adds significantly to the distance walked and time required when walking compared to other courses with greens and tees that are close together.
The other thing I’ve noticed is that our cart fleet has not fared as well. The carts have worn out faster. Batteries have required replacing sooner. Tires are wearing out sooner.
Because of single ridership more carts were on the course at one time and those carts had to be run more often.
We are seeing carts die more often from discharged batteries and our outside staff having to deliver fresh carts during a round. We are having to replace the carts probably a year sooner than the previous fleet due to wear and tear.
I don’t know of any courses near me that allow Finn or other outside carts. It’s obviously a revenue thing. My last club didn’t even allow outside push carts and forced you to rent theirs for $8/round. Thankfully my current club allow outside push carts and will even store battery powered push carts for a $100 annual fee. So far they haven’t agreed to allow me have a Finn or similar scooter even though they store 125 powered push carts for members. My buddy is on the board so this may change after the next board meeting – at least they’ve agreed to vote on the scooter topic.
I’m going to keep pushing and hopefully my next club will allow me to have a Finn. Otherwise I’ll walk most of my rounds like I do now.
Of course, I’ve modified my electric cart and it now tops out at 45 mph, so that helps too. The other guys have "normal" carts though. What I’ve noticed is with the extra speed I can get to my ball faster and actually take more time with my pre-shot/reading putts, etc. and still easily keep up. I’ve really enjoyed it.
Totally agree, unless you’re close to each other it takes a lot more time. I’ve noticed that with league when we have 4 people all the time that it just takes forever it feels like.
This is what I’d like to do to save money, but the guys I play with use carts. Could someone walking keep up if they had a push cart do you think? I’d probably be able to find my ball faster at least.
It depends on the course, and it depends on the golfers you’re playing with. On a course that has long transitions from the green to the next tee, you’d have a hard time keeping up with a pushcart. If you’re playing with fast golfers who keep their ball on the short grass and don’t waste time screwing around between shots, you’d have a hard time keeping up with a pushcart. If the course is designed well for walking (tee boxes near greens) and the guys you’re playing with aren’t rabbits, you can reasonably keep pace.
I walk once in a while, and at my current course I can keep up pretty well because it’s an older course and was designed for walking. At my previous club, there was no way – several holes had 1/4 mile or more between greens and tee boxes, and by the time the walker would make it to the tee box the other guys in carts would have all hit and been sitting there waiting for you.
A bunch of places are walking only, ADA excepted. Bandon Dunes is a big one. But the courses are designed for walking.
Snowman nailed it. It might be best to know the course first to know if it’s walkable. There are some courses I wouldn’t walk because it would be too challenging, and if I’m playing a new course I’d also be more likely to ride.
Totally agree. The first two courses I’ve played on would be good for walking, especially the first one as the next tee was always right next to the green. But the last one we played some of the holes were really spaced out a lot.
My group last weekend did use two of the scooter boards. However, I don’t feel we were much faster then a normal pace for weekends.
Did the course have standard 2 man carts on the course in front of them? If so then that actually proves that a foursome playing with single carts is faster, they would not be waiting on the group in front of them if they were not. So, if all the groups in front of them had single carts…….. pace is faster.
Obviously they can, but why would a course not allow a personally owned rise like that? It’s like someone bringing their own push cart in my opinion
But that’s only the bike/board types…don’t they have some others that are more like traditional carts with only one seat?
I think the only issue would be the Course notifying their insurance carrier and letting them know people will be riding scooters, mini motorcycles and that they are covered in the event of injury. The main difference between a scooter/ mini motorcycle and a golf cart is the potential for injury to the rider themself if say for example they hit a pothole or some other defect in a cart path and then end up with an injury. If its covered or can be covered under the courses liability policy then its not a problem. If its not i can see a course not allowing it because of the risk to them.
That’s what I was thinking, a simple waiver..
For a business decision, the course may say no outside motorized/electric ride ONS try and increase revenue, but they would then need to supply those types.. and I think as people commented already, they either take a cart or walk.. now if they got rid of all their carts and only offered single ride on that’s a different story
How much is a 2 person golf cart vs a Finn for example? Maybe an even better long term profit margin for them if finns or similar are less expensive
I think it is a solid sell..
Majority between $5k and $10k for double rider carts…so 2 Finn scooters is about $7k
Weather is an issue with those since the double carts have a roof
But I think the standard golf carts are on a leasing program usually, so courses don’t eat $100k every 5 years
They both enjoy them and when I am playing with them, it does speed up the round over riding together in a cart.
The wife and I already have a cart and I don’t see us buying a cycle of any kind in the future, but I sure would like to try one out. (I really miss my motorcycle)
And another one. There are a ton of examples coming out of single user carts. Not sure I like this one more than others but it is an option.
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This option is significantly cheaper than a Finn…and if you take off the golf bag attachment, it’s an electric bike
He paid $1850 for it and the website says it will do 30mph on the street.
So far he likes it a lot. I do worry about the kickstand small footprint in the grass though.
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There are all kinds of single carts. The terrain would have no bearing on the idea of pace.
The question I was referring to was how golf courses would walk away from single rider carts if they were hilly/uneven terrain. But I’d guess it’d only be if it was the board or bike types because of risk of injury
You were and are correct.
I played such a course last week. The Ohoopee Match Club.
Going to Ireland & Scotland next month and most of the courses require a doctor’s note to get a cart.
That is very cool to know, especially considering that’s where the game originated!
That’s because most people are lazy and/or use carts wrong. Drive to a’s ball, b takes a club and walks to their ball and gets ready to hit when it’s their turn. After they hit, a comes and picks b up, and they proceed onward and repeat wherever possible. I enjoy doing it that way because not only is it faster, I also get more exercise. I’ve seen idiot foursomes where all four golfers (both carts) go to one ball, that guy hits, then they all four go to the next ball, and so on. Like a bunch of lemmings.
Today we were in carts (two to a cart) behind three walkers with motorized pushcarts and one guy in a solo cart. They were each going to their own ball, but we still waited for them all day, on every single hole. Slow golfers are gonna be slow no matter how they’re getting around the course.
All the Bandon courses are walking only. You have to jump through hoops to get a handicap cart there and then your caddie has to drive it. I walked all of my rounds when I was in Scotland/Ireland a few years back. Chambers Bay was walking only when I went in 2011.
So the answer is yes there are walking only courses.