We, The People, Not So Worried About Golf Carts On Florida Golf Courses
Florida Golf Courses do not allow walking because motorized golf carts produce buckets of rental money and they move golfers through the course more quickly, clearing the way for more golfers.
"It pays a lot of bills," John Cameron, director of golf for Daytona Beach's courses, said of cart rentals.
Golfers are hard-pressed these days to find a course that will let them walk at all, Cameron said. The two public courses he supervises have fairly liberal rules, allowing walkers in the early mornings and afternoons.
This is not good enough for 71-year-old Zurla, who believes government-owned courses that restrict walking violate the Constitution's 14th Amendment, which prohibits states from depriving people of "life, liberty, or property, without due process of law . . ."
Acting as his own attorney, Zurla took his case to circuit court and lost.
Then he lost an appeal.
Then he was rebuffed by the Florida Supreme Court.
Most people just threaten to take their cause to the U.S. Supreme Court, but Zurla did it.
And got nowhere.
Undeterred, Zurla wrote a 72-page book that chronicles his legal battle and outlines his philosophy.
Zurla spent $7,500 to publish The Case of a Civil Right: The Freedom to Walk a Public Florida Golf Course, and he sent hundreds of copies to Congress and the White House, resulting in about a dozen brief, noncommittal letters of thanks.
Zurla followed up in late January with a trip to Washington, D.C., where he tried to call on the president and several Cabinet leaders.
They would not see him.
Zurla does not understand why others fail to grasp the simplicity of his argument, which he summarizes on page 17: "Liberty means that a person can walk on public land."
Zurla is right, but so was Quixote.
Golf is a game best played on two feet, not four wheels.
Carts hasten what should be a leisurely game. They promote laziness and obesity. They scar the Florida golf course with asphalt paths. They make a pricey game even more expensive.
Only occasionally do they allow someone to play who is not physically able to walk 18 holes on a Florida golf course.
Golf carts are obnoxious, but they are not tyrannical.
People have the right to walk on and use public lands, but with limits.
I can walk on the beach, but not on sand dunes because I might damage the plant life.
I can kayak up the Silver River, but cannot swim at Silver Springs.
I can play golf on a publicly owned Florida golf course, but I cannot go running on that Florida golf course at night.
Yes, people should be able to walk on Florida golf courses, but something tells me John Adams would not get too excited if he were forced to rent a cart.
"It pays a lot of bills," John Cameron, director of golf for Daytona Beach's courses, said of cart rentals.
Golfers are hard-pressed these days to find a course that will let them walk at all, Cameron said. The two public courses he supervises have fairly liberal rules, allowing walkers in the early mornings and afternoons.
This is not good enough for 71-year-old Zurla, who believes government-owned courses that restrict walking violate the Constitution's 14th Amendment, which prohibits states from depriving people of "life, liberty, or property, without due process of law . . ."
Acting as his own attorney, Zurla took his case to circuit court and lost.
Then he lost an appeal.
Then he was rebuffed by the Florida Supreme Court.
Most people just threaten to take their cause to the U.S. Supreme Court, but Zurla did it.
And got nowhere.
Undeterred, Zurla wrote a 72-page book that chronicles his legal battle and outlines his philosophy.
Zurla spent $7,500 to publish The Case of a Civil Right: The Freedom to Walk a Public Florida Golf Course, and he sent hundreds of copies to Congress and the White House, resulting in about a dozen brief, noncommittal letters of thanks.
Zurla followed up in late January with a trip to Washington, D.C., where he tried to call on the president and several Cabinet leaders.
They would not see him.
Zurla does not understand why others fail to grasp the simplicity of his argument, which he summarizes on page 17: "Liberty means that a person can walk on public land."
Zurla is right, but so was Quixote.
Golf is a game best played on two feet, not four wheels.
Carts hasten what should be a leisurely game. They promote laziness and obesity. They scar the Florida golf course with asphalt paths. They make a pricey game even more expensive.
Only occasionally do they allow someone to play who is not physically able to walk 18 holes on a Florida golf course.
Golf carts are obnoxious, but they are not tyrannical.
People have the right to walk on and use public lands, but with limits.
I can walk on the beach, but not on sand dunes because I might damage the plant life.
I can kayak up the Silver River, but cannot swim at Silver Springs.
I can play golf on a publicly owned Florida golf course, but I cannot go running on that Florida golf course at night.
Yes, people should be able to walk on Florida golf courses, but something tells me John Adams would not get too excited if he were forced to rent a cart.
posted by John at
7:57 AM
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