Simply swinging a golf club during the round is a full-body exercise. You can't do a large bucket of balls at the range if you're out of shape -- you'll wear o

Simply swinging a golf club during the round is a full-body exercise. You can't do a large bucket of balls at the range if you're out of shape -- you'll wear out first. Walking a course as a spectator, and playing with a caddy (to keep the comparison fair because you don't carry a bag either way), is a different physical experience. Also, most walkers in the golf world don't have a caddy. They're not available at most courses. Even quite a few private clubs with biiig membership fees don't have caddies. I just looked it up and a random link says 32% of private clubs have caddies. Of public courses, a few destination courses have them (Pebble Beach, Bandon, etc.).