Why I’ve fully embraced my remote-control push cart | I Tried it

When it comes to transportation during a round of golf, call me a purist, but the only way to play the game is to walk.

I’m all for carts to expand the access of golf for people who can’t otherwise stroll an 18-hole golf course, but for an able-bodied and (all things considered) healthy young person such as myself, there’s no reason I can’t walk the requisite four to eight miles. Even my 70-year-old dad does it just about every time he plays.

That does not mean, however, I believe you should always have to throw your golf bag over your shoulders.

While I enjoy carrying, I realize that it can be the difference for some people between walking or not. I carried my bag almost exclusively until about four years ago, when I realized that almost everyone at the Oregon club to which I belonged used a push cart. No one carried.

When I moved back east, I was happy to learn that the irrational stigma against push carts had largely subsided and I began using one for most of my rounds. That was until I received an MGI Electric Caddy.

What is an Electric Caddy?

OK, so an electric caddy is not an android-like robot that walks beside me and gives me the sass and attitude I would expect from a looper at your local country club. An electric caddy is what MGI calls their motorized and remote control push carts (known as power trolleys by our friends in the UK).

The model I have is the MGI Zip Navigator, which comes with a remote that allows me to direct the cart wherever deep, dark and horrible places my golf ball ends up, but still fold up to neatly fit in my small SUV.

MGI offers many different models, from options with GPS or ATV capability, and with and without a remote. The Zip Navigator fit my eye thanks to the remote function and the foldability.

What do I like about my Electric Caddy?

Now I know what you’re thinking: “What’s a healthy 28-year-old single-digit golfer with no history of back problems doing using a motorized push cart?”

Fair question, but here’s how I’ve been answering it. Is my back significantly better right now because I am no longer carrying my golf bag when I play? No. But in 10, 15, 20 years, is my back going to appreciate that I haven’t been carrying my bag for that long? Definitely!

Compared to a regular push cart, we’ve all gotten to that point in a round where your mid-back starts to get stiff from pushing your cart. Add in hills and pushing can just be no fun.

When I use my electric caddy, it truly feels like I’m walking with a human caddie, minus the witty quips! The remote makes controlling it super-easy and while I never let it wander too far from my attention, it frees me up to do other things. Just the other day, I was pushing my nephew along in a stroller while the Zip Navigator took care of my clubs! How’s that for multitasking?

All that and I get the same health benefits and satisfaction from walking a golf course like I normally would.

Controlling the cart with the remote takes some getting used to, but once you get the hang of it, it becomes natural. For those who play the same course every day, it pays to look for where trouble spots might be and keep your cart away from them! The anti-tip wheel on the back of the cart will save you more than a few times, but you still need to pay attention.

The Zip Navigator has a bunch of great features for improving my time on the course from the Gyroscope Straight Tracker that keeps the cart from veering off when it crosses a slope, a 36-hole battery life, and lots of attachment points for accessories.

After my round, I remove the battery and fold it up to put back in my trunk. It adds about two minutes when I’m putting away my golf clubs.

What could be improved?

My one critique of my electric caddie is that since I am a walker through and through, I only ever use smaller stand bags and the arms to hold golf bags that are better suited for larger cart bags.

This was an easy fix, as MGI sells a stand bag adapter bundle with a shorter lower strip and a slightly weighted block to get a smaller bag in the right position. But I also picked up a Clicgear Bag Cozy, which allows you to add velcro blocks to the arms of the cart that go in between your bags’ stand legs and stop it from twisting.

Bottom line

MGI Zip Zavigator Electric Caddy

Perfect for the modern golfer who wants power, style and performance. Featuring a fresh, seductive matte black gloss design, complemented with a striking gloss top box, the Zip Navigator stands out on the course.

If you enjoy walking and carrying your bag, then you’re going to love walking and piloting around your electric caddy.

At first I thought using an electric caddy was silly and unnecessary, but then I started to see how much my dad appreciated it for allowing him to continue walking the course for the foreseeable future.

There will come a day when he, and eventually I, are no longer able to walk the course, but that day is significantly further away now because we both use our electric caddies.

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