Carter Plantation condition

Overbooked, as usual. Plan to spend the day.

Played yesterday morning and didn’t have to wait for the group in front of us, good pace of play.

The course is in great shape for the time of year. The greens on the front 9 seemed much faster than the greens on back 9. Approach shots were rolling off the green most of the time as well

What are the green fees these days, $170?

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How is the course looking?

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Always good

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how is pace of play?

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Always bad.

3.5 hours is okay, 4 is miserable, anything over 4 is just intolerable



Pin the post, it's as sure as the sun rising in the east

4 hours for a 5some is pretty good pace anywhere you play. Not sure why you’d think that’s bad when most courses assume 4:30 for 5 players.

USGA says average round takes 4:17. And that’s with the majority of courses only allowing 4somes.

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Not sure why you’d think that’s bad when most courses assume 4:30 for 5 players.

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I went private because I don't agree with "most courses" or the USGA's opinion of pace of play. We routinely play 5 in less than 4 hours and 3.5 is about our average for a group of 4.

Resort / vacation golf is different so I expect that to take a bit longer but the bullshite that causes 4+ hour rounds on public courses like tee times to close together, people playing the wrong set of tees, not parking at the back of the green, sitting in the cart while your cart mate hits rather than walking to your ball if it's nearby, hitting multiple balls when the tee sheet is full, grinding over 4' putts then taking a gimme anyway, hunting for balls, not playing ready golf, etc.

There are occasions and courses when 4 + hour rounds make the most sense but taking 4 hours on a Tuesday afternoon at a muni and even most private courses in our area (especially Carter) is because of slow play, regardless of what the USGA says. They've got groups of 4 and 5 flat out playing the wrong set of tees.

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Bad golfers play public courses generally. Bad golfers hit 25-30% more shots. Bad golfers spend time looking for lost balls. Bad golfers aren’t as familiar with etiquette.

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And play the wrong tees on a course where the tee times are too close together. This is Carter; this is why it takes "too long" (for me). It's not just a Carter problem but there are things they could do to make it better and don't. I'm not mad about it, I just decided to take an alternative route. The lack of public golf courses from Baton Rouge to Mississippi makes it even worse because there's just nowhere else to go.

If I had the option to pay $55 to play Covington Country Club or Oak Harbor or Carter, for $70, I'd probably go to Carter too and did so frequently when in that situation.

I don't think anyone should have to play my pace but as much as I play and want to play, 4 hour rounds are MISERABLE. If I am on a 4:30 pace, I'm quitting after 9, rain check or not. It's just not enjoyable when it's so avoidable. When its not avoidable (vacations with photo ops, mid round drinks / lunch, etc) it's a different story but thats not Carter.

I’m not defending Carter. I rarely play there because you’re often talking 5-hour rounds. They had tee times 7 or 8 minutes apart which is a damn joke plus no one was telling people to get moving. There was a starter and no one else. Not sure if it has improved with the 9-minute spacing.

But I’ve played CCL and UClub and rarely finish under 4 hours for a typical round. My only rounds at BRCC were tournament related, so no real experience there. I’m a member at a semi-private where members get preferential tee times. If you go off prior to noon, you’ll finish at 4 or better even allowing 5somes. But if a round lasted 4:15, I wouldn’t be miserable at all.