In all likelihood, your game is going to be a bit different when you walk the course as compared to when you ride. Will it be better, or worse? Well, that is yet to be determined, but it is safe to say that it will be different. The experience of playing golf while riding in a cart is quite different from the experience you have walking the course, so it shouldn’t be surprising that there are likely to be changes in your game as a result.

We can’t predict exactly what will happen to your game when you decide to walk, because each player is unique. However, we have listed below some of the various possibilities. Keep these in mind if you decide to walk so you can make the necessary adjustments.

• Watch for fatigue. This is an obvious point, as you may wind up getting tired near the end of a round when you walk the course. Your legs may wear down late in the round, and you might have trouble getting through your shots fully as a result. For a right-handed golfer, this is likely to manifest itself in shots that are either blocked out to the right or hooked to the left. When your legs don’t fire through the ball properly, those are the two misses which are most common. If you are making your way toward the end of a round and you notice those kinds of misses popping up, you can respond by using an extra club and swinging easy. So, for instance, you might choose a six iron in a situation where you would have otherwise used a seven iron. With an extra club in hand, you will know that a max-effort swing is not needed, and you can make a more relaxed, comfortable swing. This adjustment might not fully negate the effect of tired legs, but it should help.
• You might find a better rhythm. For some golfers, walking the course instead of riding is a great way to get into a rhythm with their swing. When you walk the course, the game has a natural tempo which can help you make smooth swings. You will hit one shot, walk for a few minutes, and then hit another shot. Assuming you don’t have to wait extended periods of time for the group in front of you, it is actually quite easy to get into a rhythm. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen when you ride in a cart. With cart golf, you hit a shot, jump in the cart, rush up to the ball, and get ready to hit again. If there is no one in your way, you can play the game extremely quickly. This is not always good news for your tempo. And, even if there are other groups to slow you down, most of your time is spent simply sitting in the cart, waiting for the group in front to move out of the way. This works out okay for some players, but it presents a problem for others.
• Gain a better understanding of the course. Walking up the fairways has yet another benefit in the form of allowing you to see the whole course as you play. When you ride, you’ll typically be on the cart paths for a majority of the day, meaning you will miss out on some of the subtleties of the course. You might not notice a certain slope that you would have spotted if you were walking, or you might not see how the condition of the grass is changing as the day wears on. Simply put, players who walk the course have an opportunity to be more in tune with what is going on around them.

You won’t know exactly how walking the course is going to affect your game until you are able to try it out. Many players feel like they play better when walking, while some feel the opposite. With any luck, you’ll be able to enjoy the experience of walking the course while also seeing your scores move in the right direction along the way.