99 Limousine Cart Courses Priced at 200,000 Won
Only 18 Courses Charge Less Than 80,000 Won for Cart Fees
204 Courses Charge Over 100,000 Won, Accounting for 81.3% of All Courses
It has been found that the number of 200,000 won limousine carts has rapidly increased.
According to a survey on cart fees at public golf courses released by the Korea Leisure Industry Research Institute on July 10, among 254 public golf courses with 18 holes or more, only 18 courses charged less than 80,000 won per team for cart fees. In contrast, the number of public golf courses charging 100,000 won or more per team reached 204. The number of six-seater limousine carts, which are much more expensive than the standard five-seater electric carts, surged from 28 courses in 2023 to 66 in 2024, and to 99 this year. Of these, 60 were public golf courses, which is higher than the 39 at membership golf courses.
Looking at the proportion of public golf courses charging less than 80,000 won per team, it was 65.3% in 2019, but dropped to 28.6% in 2022, 9.7% in 2024, and 7.2% this year, showing a continuous decline each year. By region, Honam had the highest number with 10 courses, followed by Yeongnam with 3, and Jeju Island with 2.
When looking at the number of public golf courses charging 100,000 won or more per team, there were only 3 in 2019, but this increased to 64 in 2022, 159 in 2024, and 204 this year, showing a sharp annual increase. The proportion of these courses among all public golf courses was just 1.5% in 2019, but rose to 22.7% in 2022, 64.8% in 2024, and 81.3% this year.
As golf courses raised cart fees, the total amount spent by golfers on cart fees reached 1.1551 trillion won last year, up 41.7% from 2019. Seo Cheonbeom, head of the Leisure Industry Research Institute, pointed out, "It is an abuse of power by golf courses to keep raising the rental fees for electric carts, which can recoup their investment costs within half a year, every year."
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