You Know We're Doomed When There's A Push Cart Debate

The electric golf cart, which makes grown men and women look utterly ridiculous as they tootle around a perfectly walkable links while doing immeasurable turf damage, does not offend.

But some young lads with nice GPA's at one of the world's great universities deciding they have a physical advantage using a small, harmless-to-turf push cart? Now that's just wrong!

Bo Van Pelt, who pays someone to carry his oversized piece of luggage around every week, expressed disdain for the players not carrying their bags with outraged former NFLer Trent Dilfer, as John Strege noted in an excellent piece at The Loop about the positive role push carts may play in having a healthy back (I'm pretty sure the walking aspect doesn't need to be explained).

Strege talked to Dr. Neil Wolkodoff, medical director of the Colorado Center for Health and Sports Science, who has conducted a study on the physical benefits of using a push cart vs. carrying.

As for the the notions that a push cart looks bad or was not how the game was meant to be played is an archaic one, Wolkodoff said.

“That’s a stupid way of looking at the game of golf,” he said. “Think about it, 1880 in Scotland, guys…didn’t have near as many clubs as we lug around. As for a cart, you would have to have taken wagon wheels, and a two-wheel cart would have weighed 400 pounds. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do it now.

“Things have changed. Golf has accelerated the demands on the body over the last 20 years. Practice schedules are far more rigorous. It’s a full-time endeavor [at the college level]. If we can do something to help ameliorate it we should do it.

Of course this is an entirely American phenomenon, as the rest of the world has no issue using trollies. I noted this in a Golf Digest story on The Australian Way three years ago. Also note the quotes from the USGA's Mike Davis supporting their usage.

Video: Pinehurst No. 2's Sixth Hole

The par-3 sixth calls on another demanding right-to-left shaped shot that probably should fly to the green. While the opening appears generous to land one short, the deep swale and bunker left of the green will attract a lot of seemingly good shots.

This 219-yard hole for the men, 175 yards for the women, was added in 1923 by Donald Ross when he modified this portion of the course.

The USGA flyover: