(Design concepts) Course accessibility

Recent headlines from New York show some golf courses are as unexpectedly in the dark about the Americans with Disabilities Act as they would be during a solar eclipse at noon.

A former New York police officer who had been permanently injured in the line of duty wants to golf again. Like many of us, he is an avid, mid-handicap golfer. And like many of us, one of his dreams is to play the famed Black Course at Bethpage State Park. But unlike many of us, he needs to use a cart because walking 18 holes is impossible for him.

Unfortunately, the course denied him use of a cart because the Black Course doesn’t permit motorized carts. Fortunately, the police officer knows the public course should comply with the ADA. Fortunately, this has cost the course only some bad press so far. Unfortunately, should this officer take the case to court under the ADA as he threatens, Bethpage could face substantial court judgments or governmental fines.

Given that Casey Martin used the ADA in his case against the PGA Tour and that ADA legislation, which occurred in 1990, applies to employment and all life pursuits, it’s surprising public officials and others in golf don’t know for sure if the ADA applies to them.

All courses, including almost all private clubs, are considered places of public accommodation and are subject to the requirements of the ADA. It’s not just a nice public relations idea, it’s mandatory.

Specific golf design guidelines were published in 2002. Texas is one of only four states that require designers to apply for a permit fee; submit plans specifically showing accessibility routes for greens, tees and fairways; and arrange for inspection after construction by a state-approved inspector to assure compliance. In most other states, enforcement isn’t as strong, but the law still applies.

Regardless, I implement ADA accessible designs on all new and renovation designs based on principle. Your course needs an ADA compliance plan, which is likely to require a combination of policy and design.

Given the unique designs of facilities nationwide, the law only requires you make reasonable accommodations. This wording is vague, and no design guideline or written policy can cover every situation. And because each disability is different, you might find yourself honoring requests for: specially flagged disabled carts that would allow access closer to greens and tees than other carts, the use of spiked shoes on a spikeless course, allowing special assistants to ride for free, and allowing a multitude of other devices such as crutches. Discretion and common sense should be the unifying element of your plan.

Your course should have a written ADA policy clearly stating the conditions of access, assistive devices and helpers, as well as a policy that shows the circumstances in which you might deny cart access. The National Golf Course Owners Association’s Web site has several sample documents that might be helpful. You might already have a policy, but perhaps your staff needs some additional training. The simple policy is to smile and welcome disabled golfers like any others.

You don’t have to remodel your course specifically to provide ADA access, but whenever you remodel, you must comply. All new courses must comply with the golf design guidelines, which aren’t particularly onerous and seek to maintain the traditions of golf. They mandate greens and teeing areas must have a wheelchair accessible route from the main circulation path. Turf areas must have a maximum vertical rise of 5 percent and a maximum cross slope of 2 percent and can’t include any impediments such as curbs.

One or two tees on every hole need to be accessible. Wheelchair routes to elevated back tees aren’t required provided other tees are accessible. Adding special tees would be reasonable on older, tighter courses in situations where no access exists. Greens have the same access requirements as tees. On fairways, wheelchair access to the fairway must be provided once every 75 yards. Presently, there are no limitations on green contouring to ensure complete accessibility, and wheelchair access to sand bunkers isn’t required. Many players use modified rules for the disabled, allowing disabled players to move the ball to the bunker edge for play.

Multicourse facilities must provide access to all locations, and practice areas require accessibility. However, you don’t need to add cart paths if you don’t have them.

None of this is hard to achieve, although it can be a challenge on floodplain sites, where greens and tees need to be raised, and on some rugged properties.

Most golf course compliance issues occur in parking lots, structures and course restrooms. A typical violation is using the space above your offices in the maintenance building or any second floor space not serviced by an elevator for storage, which might prevent a disabled employee access in the normal course of his job.

Working together, each disabled person should provide his own assistive devices and helpers, while many courses should have a reasonable number of golf carts specifically adapted to disabled needs.

You may restrict all golf car traffic, including disabled carts, when maintenance-related conditions would result in safety issues or turf damage. You may request proof of a disability, such as a government-issued, permanent disabled car placard. However, common sense dictates you should allow golfers to claim disabled status on their honor.

ADA complaints come first from individuals requesting special course or policy modifications for their needs. Individual resolution is your best option because the ADA is further enforced by lawsuits and the Department of Justice, who might institute a mediation process or file its own lawsuit. The Department of Justice embraces the rights of the disabled and expanded access. Avoid it by being extraordinarily reasonable when denying access.

There will always be people who abuse the ADA. And some fear the ADA will legislate great golf features, such as dramatic contours or sand bunkers, out of existence in the name of wheelchair accessibility for a few. Some traditional features might disappear, like “perched” greens, but hopefully not enough to change golf’s character. If that happens, it will be a sad day. However, it’s even sadder that anyone who’s enthralled by golf, and able to play with a bit of help, would be denied that enjoyment. Perhaps the biggest problem with the disabled playing golf is that in too many cases it takes special laws to achieve it. GCN

Jeffrey D. Brauer is a licensed golf course architect and president of GolfScapes, a golf course design firm in Arlington, Texas. Brauer, a past president of the American Society of Golf Course
Architects, can be reached at jeff@jeffreydbrauer.com.