The Traditions Golf Club at Royal New Kent is one spread out golf course.

The Irish links style layout in Providence Forge has more than 12 miles of cart paths. The club has gasoline powered golf carts. Surely, in these times of rising gasoline prices, Royal New Kent is feeling the pinch.

"We're more worried about the wear and tear on the carts than we are with the gasoline prices. They don't use that much," Andrew Bemis, general manager and head PGA professional, said. "Per round it doesn't affect us that much."

How much gas do you think a cart uses for an 18-hole round? One gallon? Two gallons? More? Bemis says the carts use a quarter to a half gallon for 18 holes.

To figure it out, he filled a cart's tank, played 18 holes and drove around some more to simulate extra yardage. He topped off the tank when he got in to figure out the usage.

That's how he figures the gasoline budget for a course that does about 30,000 rounds a year. Because of rising prices, the overall cost may go up $8,000 to $10,000, but "it's just the cost of doing business," Bemis said.

Despite the economy, golfers wanting to play Royal New Kent or elsewhere in the Richmond metropolitan area are unlikely to experience higher fees even though the cost of maintaining courses (fertilizer, seed, machinery) is going up, too.

"We're going a little bit backwards," Independence Golf Club superintendent Dan Taylor said. "We raise our budget three percent and the cost of fertilizer goes up 20 percent. We cut back on how much we put out. We cut back on how much sand we put down."

Passing higher costs on to golfers is one option, but it's low on the list for people running daily-fee/public courses.

"There are ways to work around your maintenance budget without directly passing that cost on to the golfer," Independence Golf Club head PGA professional Mike West said. "You have to get creative. When times get tough, you have to do some different things and think of different ways to say, 'OK, we have 'X' number of dollars coming in to spend. What do we do to make sure we don't spend more than we have coming in."

Said Taylor, "We'll continue to have a quality golf course. We're just going to get better and more innovative. That's the way I see it."

Despite the economy, people are going to spend money for entertainment. They will just be more particular about how and where they spend it.

Charlie Donato said the economy isn't going to have a big impact on how often he plays, but it will have some effect. "I'm going to play the same places, but I might walk more. It's better for me and it's better for the wallet," said Donato, director of internet and corporate communications technology at Dominion.

"They are still going to play golf. They love it too much," West said. "They may end up playing more golf. They will just play it locally. They aren't going to take as many trips. I think you may see some of the resorts struggling a bit."

More than 25 golf courses in the Richmond metropolitan area are open to the public. Golfers staying close to home have quality choices no matter the compass direction.

Some courses, such as Caroline County's Mattaponi Springs and Pendleton and Royal Virginia in Hadensville are destination points and suitable for a day trip.

Richmonders should consider a trip to Dogwood Trace Golf Course, the former Lee Park, in Petersburg. The area's newest course opens April 24.Gasoline prices might have more of an effect on getting golfers to outlying courses such as Royal New Kent . You can obtain a membership that includes play on the three, plus The Crossings in northeastern Henrico County. It's a good deal, but Richmonders have to travel I-64 beyond New Kent to play Stonehouse in Toano and Kiskiack in Croaker.

"I think golfers are going to car pool more," West said. "Instead of a foursome driving four cars, you'll see them come to the course in one or two cars."
Contact Arthur Utley at (804) 649-6559 or autley@timesdispatch.com.