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Golfers are generally banned from using carts in competitive play, and fatigue can end up influencing the outcome of a round as a result. It’s a bit hard to imagine there’s any way they could gain an edge if their caddies were allowed to ride, but that issue nonetheless led to one man losing a tournament in Arizona after ending up in a playoff.
Golf carts started to appear on courses in the 1950s, and the majority of amateurs who hit the links opt for that particular mode of transportation while playing a round. However, with the exception of the Champions branch of the PGA Tour, they’re few and far between in serious tournaments.
Golfers on the PGA Tour can only use a cart if they have a medical condition that prevents them from walking 18 holes (an exemption stemming from a lawsuit Casey Martin filed in 2001 that made it all the way to the Supreme Court).
I can’t point to any solid evidence that proves that rule is designed to give detractors who argue golf isn’t a Real Sport more ammunition to work with, but it theoretically makes fitness and endurance a factor at the highest level of the game.
The “no cart” rule also tends to be in effect at most high-level tournaments, including this year’s U.S. Mid-Amateur at Troon Country Club in Scottsdale, Arizona. It ended up being the source of some drama at the event, as one player ended up losing in brutal fashion after his caddie made a critical mistake.
Paul Mitzel lost his match at the U.S. Mid-Amateur because his caddie accepted a ride in a golf cart
The U.S. Mid-Amateur, which is essentially a national championship for amateur golfers over the age of 25, kicked off in Scottsdale on September 13th. The first two days saw the 264 people who qualified partaking in 36 holes of stroke play to make the round of 64, which features a single-elimination format where match play is used to determine the winner.
Paul Mitzel, a 35-year-old who hails from Seattle and played golf at Washington State, earned a spot in the bracket and found himself facing off against Ryan O’Rear, a 34-year-old Texan who was a member of the golf team at Baylor, in the first round.
The two men found themselves deadlocked after 18 holes, and they subsequently headed into a playoff to decide the match. Things were still tied up after the first hole, but things took a turn before they teed off on the second after a rules official informed Mitzel he’d lost the hole and the match courtesy of the caddie who had arrived to the tee box on a golf cart.
According to Golf, the violation in question concerned Model Local Rule G-6, which states, “During a round, a player or caddie must not ride on any form of motorized transportation except as authorized or later approved by the committee.”
Mitzel said his caddie accepted an offer from a shuttle driver who asked him if he wanted a ride from the 19th to the 20th hole, noting players and caddies had been transported via cart from the 14th to the 15th during the round and had also gotten a ride from the 18th green back to the opening tee at the start of the playoff.
He stressed he didn’t put any blame on the man responsible for the mistake that cost him the hole and, in turn, the match, saying:
“My caddie doesn’t deserve any fault. He’s the man and an awesome friend. I’d do the same thing in his shoes. We were having so much fun, it’s too bad.”
If this sounds familiar, a similar situation unfolded on the Korn Ferry Tour at the Lecom Suncoast Classic in 2023 after three players were penalized for taking rides that were offered to them by a tournament volunteer, including one golfer who missed the cut as a result.