The Golf Cart Controversy

Around the U.S., municipal courses here and there are slowly adopting a new rule requiring the rental of a golf cart to play…and people are stomping mad. Course management claim that the sole purpose of having all golfers rent carts is to speed the time of play, making room for more golfers throughout a single day. However, the fact that courses can also make quite a profit by collecting golf cart rental fees from all patrons playing their course hasn’t gone unnoticed—leaving some to think it’s about the bottom line.

Golfers who traditionally walk the courses both for exercise and enjoyment feel that having to rent a cart takes away from the fact that golf is actually a sport---and makes it less accessible to people on tighter budgets. Lawsuits have already cropped up in several Florida counties defending the rights of walkers. The one municipal course in Myrtle Beach, Whispering Pines, still allows walking after 2 pm.