The question: “What is the difference between a golf push cart and a golf pull cart?” came up in a discussion the other day. Once recovered from the ‘really?!’ look of surprise it was decided that maybe others had this question, too.

So, golf push cart vs golf pull cart. One obvious difference is that a push cart is pushed and, you guessed it, a pull cart is pulled. The biggest difference in the products is the number of wheels. The traditional pull cart, or trolley as they’re called in the UK, is a two-wheeled cart used to carry one’s golf clubs around the course. Golf push carts added an extra wheel to allow it to be pushed, and then later generations sometimes added a fourth wheel.

The purpose is the same, to carry the weight of the clubs so the golfer doesn’t have to.

The two-wheeled pull carts were the only option for decades. In the 1990’s the founder and owner of Sun Mountain Sports, Rick Reimers, saw someone jogging with a baby in a three-wheeled jog stroller and thought, “I wonder how that would work for golf?”

Well, it worked quite well as a matter of fact. Pushing is way easier than pulling and is less taxing on the shoulder muscles, muscles better used on the swing than on pulling a cart.

It makes sense; golf push carts efficiently transfer energy from the natural walking position to the wheels. Push carts take advantage of the forward momentum of walking and also offer ergonomic handles that reduce the strain on golfers’ shoulders from reaching back for a traditional, two-wheeled pull cart. Further, golf push carts are much better at rolling straight down the fairway than pull carts that are often zigzagging and putting additional strain on the shoulders.

The Sun Mountain Speed Cart was first introduced in 1999 and the push cart market was born. In a later move to protect against copy-cats, Sun Mountain was awarded a patent for this invention in 2004. Since that time, the three-wheeled Speed Cart has been tweaked and improved and the four-wheeled Sun Mountain Micro-Cart was introduced, offering a push cart that folds smaller.

The latest iteration introduced in 2015 is the Reflex golf push cart which opens up about the same size as the Speed Cart but folds down to the size of the Micro-Cart AND offers even more adjustability of the handles for even more ergonomic advantages.

So, the purpose is the same – reduce the weight being carried – but the form has evolved from a therapeutic-looking device to an athletic piece of sports equipment.

Happy Walking!