Benefits of Walking

golf must stay a sport so we must to walk.

I support the idea that golf needs to get back to its roots and that golf is intended and becomes more pleasurable to the player if he/she walks. There are clearly major benefits that are exclusive to “walkers only” that are not contingent with players who use golf carts. It is my wish that people who play golf seek to find the passion in the game that can only come from a walkers perspective. We need to stop industry from selling us “better ideas”. I was playing golf the other day and watched as a golfer got out of his cart to play his approach shot, when he got out his range finder binoculars to measure the distance, and I thought to myself why doesn’t he love the game? I have come to realize that each new technology that has been invented for golf in the last 40 years has wittled away at the beauty of the game and has left newer generations devoid of appreciation for what this game really has to offer. We don’t need more “assist’s” that stunt skill development and impair enjoyment of the game, we just need to ourselves understand that joy comes from developement of ones self and ones own abilities rather than giving in to gadgetry. This idea needs to spread like wildfire if the essence of golf is not to be lost.

Robb,

I played 9 holes the other day, and I was the only one walking the very walkable golf course. I teed off alone but eventually caught up to a twosome in a cart. The experience of playing on foot while all the other groups around you playing in carts is somewhat like playing golf on a street in heavy traffic. The carts criss-cross around you as you walk to your ball. The motorized traffic noise. It can be an unpleasant experience. As far as pace of play, unless the golfers in the carts are scratch golfers, they tend to slow us walkers down as well.

If the Society wishes to build momentum in raising awareness about the benefits of walking the course then there will need to be a greater presence in the club houses of our nation’s golf courses. A visual reminder as one prepares to pay for their round may help the cause. Walking golf awareness will require placing smelling salts under the noses of able-bodied players who normally gravitate to carts in a zombie state of mind. Golfers in America need a reminder that playing on foot is the better, quality way to play golf!

As all members of this society know, there is no better feeling than to walk down the fairway straight to your ball with the “tools of the trade” right at your side. No jumping in and out of carts grabbing a fist full of clubs only to find out when you get to your ball on the other side of the fairway that none of the clubs in your hand is the right club for your next shot. How distracting and time consuming!

What do you consider to be action items that course management should do to improve the walking golf experience? I can name a few…

1. Mowed grass paths between tee grounds and fairways. Eliminate circuitous routes wherever possible.
2. Construct bridges to cross ravines, or create earth ledges around the edge of ravines.
3. Where possible, group walking tee times together and group cart golfers to a different time frame.
4. Provide adequate drinking water stations.
5. Maintain grass paths away from cart paths to avoid wearing down the cleats on your golf shoes, and allow for a more comfortable walk.

I’d like to hear from other society members that can add to this list.

Strolling the Fairways,
Glen

I am due to visit Michigan in late September and will be taking my golf clubs does any one know of any suitable walking golf courses around the EAst side of the lake? Any where within 200 miles fro Grand Rapids?

I’m very fortunate to belong to an old MacKenzie course in Northern California, which I have had the pleasure of walking for over 20 years. For me the “walk” is only one part of the spiritual game. A place away from the work, where we have to do to feed our selfish gratification or the other needs to survive.
Here are all the parts:
There is a mystique in the game; begins with entering the club house (of which is guys only) being greeted by Romie (behind the bar), entering the locker room (yeah, that smell), changing into my golf attire (plus 4’s)….. Yes, I’m a traditionalist…. And, now a bag that truly fits my personality (that Todd made for me at The MacKenzie Golf Bag Company).
The “walk” is the romance and never ending…….
I’ve read some of the blogs and say; why should we try convince people to walk if they don’t want to. Let them go on thinking; that golf is just a game………. Thanks Todd for the great bag…….

Twain’s suggestion concerning building a funicular at Crystal Downs reminds me of was done at Rockrimmon Country Club in Stamford, CT. Because of the steep incline from the 9th green to the tenth tee box, a “golfalator” or tram was built from old train tracks and equipment which takes players about 50 feet up to the top. In fact, it crosses the state line between CT and NY and is, therefore, the shortest interstate rail system in the United States! So, there is precedence for what Twain is suggesting.

Walking is the natural and intended way to play golf, and it leads to an enhanced skill level. When you stretch your legs, you get better leg action and more distance. Walking makes you looser and more flexible overall, which aids every aspect of your game. And aesthetically there is no comparison.

Glen: I think you could say that a discount for walking is as much an inducement to walking as it is an avoidance of wear and tear on the carts. What they ought to do, of course is publicize. They probably don’t publicize it prominently because their lawyers would then make them put up equally prominent signs about the risks to people with heart trouble or asthma or every other disease known to man, and the whole thing would become a big bother.