Managing Golf Cart Traffic Cancel The title field is required!

1. Brett Morris

   

   0 posts
   
   10/18/2012 2:10 AM

   I have a meeting tomorrow with my chair of member services about golf cart usage on course. Around 50% of our membership now prefer to use carts and from a revenue point of view it is good for our club. Over the past 12 months we have been pushing through constructing cart paths and now have 8 holes with a full length path. My preferred method in managing cart traffic to date has been via the scatter method because I don't want miles of rope, stakes and signs everywhere which doesn't look good. During periods of wet weather we restrict to rough only and paths where available, or if too wet then they are banned. We find carts however not adhering to policy at times, and the usual response of 'sorry, I didn't see the sign, etc, etc.', this can and has led to damage and turf wear.
   
   How do you manage your cart traffic?
   
   Thanks in advance.
   
   Brett.
   brett@brisbanegolfclub.com.au

   
   
   
   
2. David Callanan

   

   0 posts
   
   10/18/2012 4:10 AM

   GPS on the buggies is the only fool proof way of controlling where they are allowed on the course, you can set whatever restrictions you want like cart paths only, not within a 20 meters distance from a green/tee, speed restriction around clubhouse etc.

   
   
   
   
3. Clay Putnam

   

   33 posts
   
   10/18/2012 5:10 AM

   100% control will never be achieved without the GPS, as David mentioned. The best I always hoped for was 75% compliance. You'll go nuts if you set your sights on total control. As for turf damage, is it really that big of an issue to restrict carts? I realize there are the extreme weather-times when cart restriction is necessary, but it has been my experience that carts have little to no effect on the turf after a "normal" rain event.
   
   Having said all that, the two worse problems with carts and turf wear is at cart stopping areas (greens and tees) and at path radii. Golfs will always pull off the path when they stop the cart and they will always cut corners when the path makes a turn. It is impossible to lay enough asphalt to make a turn wide enough.

   
   
   
   
4. Smith Tim

   
   10/18/2012 9:10 AM

   Control? Whats control! 95% cart riders and they do what they want with no rangers. They run over cart signs,stakes, rope and small trees. It could be a full time job controlling them. Good luck!

   
   
   
   
5. Bobby Jaeger

   

   0 posts
   
   10/18/2012 9:10 AM

   Tim Smith said: Control? Whats control! 95% cart riders and they do what they want with no rangers. They run over cart signs,stakes, rope and small trees. It could be a full time job controlling them. Good luck!

   
   
   Agreed! We have marshalls,signs, (try to stay away from ropes) and it still seems like a free for all with the carts. I see it as if it weren't for golfers using carts, we wouldn't have jobs, so its just another thing to take into account when managing turf.
   
   Bobby Jaeger
   Superintendent
   Lake Tahoe Golf Course

   
   
   
   
6. Wydra David A

   
   10/18/2012 1:10 PM

   Ropes have worked the best for us. They are a major pain in the a$$, but are great for dispersing the wear and compaction caused by cart traffic. We don't have a lot of them. I would say I maybe spend 20-30 minutes every other day moving, straightening, fixing, etc. We use the 12" recycled plastic posts with 1/4" green/white poly rope. Fairly cheap and effective. The only signs we use are the arrow signs about 30 yards out from the green to keep carts away, and those seem to work for us also. For whatever reason, all other signage seems to be totally ignored - so we got rid of them.
   Dave Wydra
   Asst Supt
   Awbrey Glen GC
   Bend, OR

   
   
   
   
7. John Borcher

   

   0 posts
   
   10/18/2012 4:10 PM

   Good luck managing carts. We have all but given up. Golfers here drive right over blocks or pull between them and wiggle the front tires between 2 of them to make just enough room to fit through. I have golfers now that drive right up on the tee box and park and put one side of the tires on the green and step right off on to the putting surface .(not handicaped golfer)

   
   
   
   
8. Rosenthal Gregg

   
   10/18/2012 5:10 PM

   A total no win situation, throughout my career fought this battle public and private courses. No winning allowed! One does the best to get most to apply and move on...
   
   Gregg R

   
   
   
   
9. Ashton Alan W

   
   10/19/2012 7:10 AM

   I have always put out the least amount of signage and no stake and rope... seems like the golfers use both to drive right up next to them, which concentrates the traffic. I think less is more... a few will get to close to the green, or drive through a wet area... that's more manageable in my mind.

   
   
   
   
10. Taylor J Benjamin

    
    10/19/2012 7:10 AM

    Frustrating to say the least! Only thing more frustrating than observing a golfer disobey signage/ropes is seeing labor wasted moving ropes and signage. Makes me wish over and over that I could have influenced someone during construction to put curbs around tee and green complexs.
    
    With that in mind, I was considering painting boundaries in those areas as well as across approaches of greens. The idea being that when a golfer is at the tee box (we do have 100% cart path coverage as well) they would be parked beside a white line- in theory they are to never cross that white line.....it would lead them to the acceptable entrance to the fairway area (at which scatter ropes could be added to disperse traffic at the end of the lines). Golfers would then see the white line again when they get to the approach at which time they need to follow the line back to the cart path where that line would extend on the cart path thru the green complex(essentially trying to create 'painted curbing'). Anyone out there trying the same with any success?

    
    
    
    
11. Michael Wagner

    

    0 posts
    
    10/19/2012 9:10 AM

    My course has asphalt cart path through all 18 holes. In the spring and fall months we are generally very wet and limit the carts to the cart path but again it is impossible to get 100% control. We also have this posted on every cart right in front of the golfers face and they still can't seem to keep in on the path. Ropes don't help because golfers see this as an opportunity to test their driving skills by weaving in and out of the stakes dragging the rope behind them. Two weeks ago we were cart path only and a golfer was observed driving onto and parking in the middle of #7 green. He was then escorted off of the course by our golf pro and not offered a refund. I have noticed that the stricter you are with these types of rules the more word gets around and the less problems you will have. You will never achieve 100% control without a GPS system but it doesn't hurt to lay down the law.