CART WEAR – 2 CARTS
Posted on: 15 May
We have received some feedback regarding the re-introduction of the winter two cart policy.
Please take the time to read the below two articles from USGA regarding excessive cart wear with individual buggies.
A couple of interesting stats for Members to consider:
- Member play has increased over the last 6 years by more than 10,000 rounds.
- This financial year we are expecting 34,500 Member rounds whilst our visitor play has remained consistent at 20,000 rounds per year.
- Grass growth during winter slows significantly and turf recovery is impacted.
Let’s all do our part!
Reducing single rider golf cart use helps improve turf health and quality
JANUARY 8, 2013By Bud White, USGA Green Section
There is no doubt golf carts have been a major component of the golf industry in the U.S. for many years and probably always will be. In fact, many golf facilities could not survive without revenue generated from golf cart rentals. However, we know there is a detrimental side to golf cart traffic, predominantly increased turf wear and soil compaction. And it is not just routine traffic patterns that are the problem, because players seem to be so much more liberal in where they drive carts. I have observed instances where golfers will drive a golf cart where they typically would not venture with a four-wheel drive vehicle. With all this said, there is a relatively new issue with golf carts that needs to be addressed.
In the last four or five years, there seems to have been a significant increase in golfers using carts as singles. During Turf Advisory Service visits to golf facilities, I frequently see a foursome of players using four carts. I have even observed married couples playing together using four private golf carts.
When I asked each group why they chose to do this, the common response is, “It is too difficult to move my stuff to another cart.”
This is not just a trend with private carts, but also with the rental fleet from a golf facility as well. One facility shared with me that they received 24,000 rounds of golf the previous year, which should equate to about 9,000 cart rounds. However, they received so much single-cart usage that they estimated approximately 18,000 golf cart rounds, or double what was expected from a practical standpoint of cart usage.
The point of this example is that every unnecessary golf cart on the course adds unnecessary wear and compaction to the golf course.
Additional wear and compaction are best addressed by cart use guidelines designed to balance the ratio of rounds to rounds with carts. Some facilities that allow private carts require golfers to double up in carts when playing. This has been very effective. Other courses charge a trail fee for private cart use that is substantial enough to fund additional aeration, seeding/sodding, and fertilization in fairways and roughs needed in response to the added traffic. This should be a decision by each course for the good of the golf course.
Golf facilities that allow rampant single-cart usage from the cart fleet would be wise to put restrictions on this type of usage right away to eliminate additional turfgrass wear and soil compaction. Such restrictions should be managed through the golf shop and closely monitored to prevent threesomes with three carts and foursomes with four carts. To be successful, this effort must be supported by course officials.
Golfers rarely realize or understand the amount of wear and damage that can be caused by golf cart traffic. In the southern U.S., this is especially true in the spring when bermudagrass greens up and golfers immediately expect the density and quality of the surface to improve. This cannot happen until weather warms to the point that active bermudagrass growth fully resumes. Reducing cart rounds in the spring would improve fairway conditions significantly and often produces quality turf three to four weeks earlier.
If decreasing single-rider usage is a daunting task at your course, you should at least explain the advantage of keeping carts on paths near tees and greens. Take a look at the picture of a fivesome with five carts parked near the green. Three of the five carts are pulled off the path onto the turf where they all stay “grouped” together. If all carts would stay on the path at greens and tees, this alone would reduce wear and damage that additional cart traffic imposes.
For this reason, drivers should be encouraged to keep all four tires on the path at all times near greens and tees. This too is a program that should be implemented and monitored by the golf shop. In my experience, golfers are very good about supporting cart usage guidelines when explained the details of what the programs are and how they enhance the golf course. Another helpful exercise is to restrict cart usage on a particular hole or two and then monitor the improvement to the rough and fairway on these holes as compared to others. This quickly shows the visual impact cart traffic can have on turf and playing quality in these areas.
Golf carts have become important components of the game of golf in the United States, and this isn’t likely to change anytime soon. Nonetheless, we must protect the turf from added wear and soil compaction caused by unnecessary cart traffic. Restrict single-rider usage or develop effective guidelines and programs to reduce cart traffic damage. It is the responsibility of golfers to take care of golf courses and leave the turf in as good condition as they find it. Ballmark repair, divot replacement, and judicious golf cart usage are all examples of golfer etiquette that go a long way in producing and sustaining quality turf and playing conditions throughout the golfing season. Let’s all be sure to do our part!
Bud White is director of the USGA Green Section’s Mid-Continent Region. Email him at budwhite@usga.org.
ARTICLE 2
Double The Carts Is Not Double The Fun
April 24, 2020
Adam Moeller, director, Green Section Education
Single-rider cart policies mean more traffic and more wear and tear on the course. Doing our best to follow cart rules will help minimize the damage.
Golf carts have been a major component of golf in the U.S. for decades. They are invaluable for golfers that find it too difficult to walk while playing and they make golf more enjoyable on courses with extremely hilly topography or long distances between holes. Golf carts are also a major revenue source for golf courses, although there are many associated costs that are often overlooked. However, we know there is a detrimental side to golf cart traffic – increased turf damage.
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused many courses to institute single-rider cart policies to follow social distancing guidelines. Unfortunately, the increased traffic will result in more wear and damage to the course, especially if the grass is growing slowly. The short-term effects are likely to be thin lies and worn out turf in high-traffic areas.
The long-term damage from increased golf cart traffic over a period of weeks or months can be significant. In some cases, the grass cannot recover from the chronic wear and tear and bare spots will develop and expand. Courses with poor drainage or heavy soils – e.g., clay – are particularly susceptible to cart damage and soil compaction that could limit turf performance for years. Addressing these issues will likely require increased aeration and other intensive maintenance practices.
Wear patterns and thin turf will become most prevalent around tees, landing areas and green surrounds so it’s best to spread traffic out as much as possible in these areas. You may see more stakes, ropes, and traffic control signage as a result at some courses, while others have removed these items to increase mowing efficiency and encourage carts to scatter as much as possible. Golf courses that have a limited cart path network will have a harder time controlling traffic and are likely to experience more damage than those with a continuous path network.
Walking instead of riding is the best way to reduce cart traffic. If using a cart, we can minimize the damage by keeping carts on paths as much as possible, especially near tees and greens. Traffic control measures at cart path entry and exit locations can reduce damage. Courses may also restrict carts to paths on a hole or two for a few days at a time to help reduce traffic damage. Courses with continuous cart paths can rotate this restriction to give every hole an occasional break. Keep an eye out for educational materials in the golf shop, locker room, and even in the carts themselves that explain cart rules and help you navigate through the course with the least impact.
Golf carts have become an important part of the game in the U.S., and this isn’t likely to change anytime soon. Nonetheless, we must do all that we can to protect courses from added wear and tear caused by increased cart traffic. While superintendents will work to implement effective guidelines and programs to reduce traffic damage, we can all do our part by operating golf carts responsibly and following cart rules when we play.
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