The History of the Golf Cart

The humble golf cart has a long and illustrious history that has resulted in it becoming a permanent fixture on golf courses around the world. While the ancient game of golf comes from Scotland over 500 years ago, golf carts were invented in the United States in the 20th century to help speed up and improve the game, eliminating the need for golfers to walk long distances across wide swathes of grass in order to play. This brief history of the golf cart will tell you more.

Prior to the 1950s

Following the invention of the automobile at the end of the 19th century, enterprising innovators everywhere tried to use some of the same principles in other modes of transportation. Golf carts were one particular offshoot of this, but their first iteration was likely not engine-powered at all, but electric. 

Disabled golfer Lyman Beecher created the first golf cart in 1932 in his home state of Florida. Due to his inability to walk over long distances, Beecher created a rickshaw-type cart that a couple of caddies could carry. His invention debuted at the Biltmore Forest Country Club in Asheville, North Carolina. Beecher improved upon his initial design by adding six car batteries and two more wheels to make it independently operated, albeit for very short distances.

The 1930s saw further creations in this same vein, with electric golf carts being developed by several other inventors. However, the high costs, low range and bulkiness of the early golf carts meant that most golfers looked at them askance and chose to keep on walking.

1950s to 1970s

All that changed in the 1950s, when a Texas oil tycoon named R.J. Jackson invented a gas golf cart that had three wheels. He dubbed it the “Arthritis Special” since disabled golfers were once again the primary clientele. Unfortunately, golf courses disliked the noise and smoke that these gas carts produced, so they were typically banned.

During the 1950s, other manufacturers developed their own gas golf carts and the designs were improved to reduce both noise and smoke. Once the golf courses recognized the lucrative potential of renting carts to golfers, the gas golf cart really took off.

End of the Century

Thanks to further improvements over the rest of the 20th century, both gas and electric golf cart models began to proliferate across the United States. Soon, people used them for off-course riding, including at the beach, on islands, in retirement communities and through residential neighborhoods. The golf cart has become a staple of the golf course and beyond!

When you’re ready to join the long legacy of golf carts, stop by one of our dealerships in Kentucky to view our current stock of new and used golf carts for sale. Dever Golf Car Sales serves our Kentucky customers in Lexington and Louisville.