Question: This case involves an accident concerning the use of a motorized golf cart by the Plaintiff, Rob Downy, at Gilmore Greens, a local Golf Club.
This case involves an accident concerning the use of a motorized golf cart by the Plaintiff, Rob Downy, at Gilmore Greens, a local Golf Club. Rob is a seasoned golfer. He is 40 years old and has been golfing regularly since he was 15. He has a full time membership at Gilmore Greens. He has played on courses around the world, and even owns his own golf cart. The incident in question occurred at hole # 10 at Gilmore Greens. Hole # 10 is a par 3, with a dramatic elevation change from the tee off box to the green. Essentially, the fairway is a steep downhill slope. While the slope of the fairway at hole # 10 is steep, it is not an uncommon type slope for a golf course. There were no signs in the vicinity of hole # 10 warning of the steepness of the fairway. Some courses in Canada with similar steepness have signage in the vicinity of the tee box advising of the steepness of the fairway. Rob had golfed at Gilmore many times. On this day, when he teed off at hole #10, he did not make a very good shot. His ball landed off the fairway on the left side looking down from the tee box, about halfway toward the green, in the rough. Rob proceeded down the cart path in a golf cart which he had rented from Gilmore, to the base of the fairway just below the green. Once at the bottom, Rob decided he would drive his cart directly up the # 10 fairway to locate his ball around where he knew it landed. When he got close to the ball's location, he realized that it was entrenched too deep in the rough for him to bother with it. He decided to turn the golf cart to the left with the intent of traveling across the fairway slope towards the cart path and travel again to the bottom of the green. However, after turning the cart to the left, he felt it slide on the fairway surface, and fearing that it would tip over, he jumped from it. He began to run down the hill, falling in the process, rolling part way down the slope. Unfortunately for him, the abandoned cart followed the same route as he did, with the result being that the golf cart struck him causing numerous injuries, one of which was a broken left leg. There have apparently been a couple of other incidents at hole # 10 aside from the one noted here which Gilmore management are aware of. Most notably there was an incident two years prior to Rob's incident, where a golfer lost control of their cart on the fairway and was forced to jump from it, but they were not injured.
Question
Does Gilmore Greens owe a duty of care to Gary Golfer? Why or why not?
Step by Step Solution
There are 3 Steps involved in it
Get step-by-step solutions from verified subject matter experts
