Golf carts in Ontario have been vanishing. Here’s what’s going on

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Golf carts have been vanishing from courses across Ontario over the past couple of years, with the most recent incident occurring last month.

The phenomenon has shaken golf course owners, who told CBC News they suspect that thieves are working together to pull off these crimes. There have been over 190 carts stolen from 18 courses since 2021, golf magazine Turf & Recreation reported. The majority of carts were stolen between 2022 and 2024.

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Which golf courses have been targeted?

Golf courses in cottage country appear to be a popular place for thieves to frequent.

Just last month, on May 30, a dozen golf carts were stolen from Wolf Run Golf Club. The carts that were taken from the course, located in the Kawartha Lakes area, were discovered by police officers during a search warrant on a property in a nearby township days later.

A 44-year-old man was arrested and charged with possession of property obtained by a crime over $5,000, breaking news site Kawartha 411 reported.

In another instance, golf carts were stolen from the Settler’s Ghost Golf Club in Barrie in April. Security footage shared with CBC News showed at least two men working together to load 11 carts onto a trailer attached to a pick-up truck.

The keys were not in the carts at the time and they were located in a parking lot with bright lighting, general manager of the golf club David Graham told the publication.

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“It’s that violation feeling,” he said.

The stolen carts were worth around $8,000 each, according to CTV News.

In one of the largest heists, 44 golf carts were stolen from a golf course and winery in the Niagara region in 2022. The golf carts were valued at $10,000 each, the St. Catharines Standard reported.

Golf course owners believe the crimes are being committed by professionals.

In order to do what they’re doing, the thieves “need to be working as a team,” Blair Breen told CBC News. Breen is the regional director of central Ontario for the National Golf Course Owners Association Canada.

He theorized that moving multiple golf carts requires thieves to be organized and work together.

Experts believe that the stolen carts could be resold or used for parts, especially since the cost of carts went up during the pandemic.

How can owners keep their golf carts safe?

Golf cart owners can use special locks to keep their carts from getting stolen, insurance company Progressive suggests online.

Some locks are quick and easy to implement, like a steering wheel lock, a wheel boot or a lock on the accelerator pedal. Other methods can be more costly, like installing a unique ignition starter. (Many golf carts use a “non-unique” ignition key, meaning that most keys would work for various makes and models. Therefore, installing a unique ignition starter would prevent a “non-unique” key from being used to start the cart.)

Alternatively, owners can install a kill switch that would make the golf cart inoperable to anyone who was unaware of it. As is the case for other types of vehicles, golf cart owners can use tracking devices, security cameras and motion detecting spotlights to keep thieves away. The insurance company also suggested that owners can use golf cart covers and store them in a garage or shed.

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