No More Caddies?

[TheEdge]

Following on from a previous thread about Mr Rocks caddie, do we think it would be a good idea not to have a caddy at all? How about 1 tournament per year with no caddie?
I mean come on, surely part of the game is to pick your own club, line your own putt etc...Im pretty sure many of them are capable of remembering which pocket on the bag they put their drink in, banana etc...

So, what does everyone else think?

ps - How many shots per round do you think you would be with a caddie by your side every round? I would say at least half a dozen for me!

 

[GB72]

Todays Golfer did an article on this giving club golfers tour experienced caddies for a round. By the sounds of it they did not help much as they can give all the advice and yardages in the world but if your game cannot produce the shot it does not help a great deal.

My only experience was when I had to have a caddie in Thailand. She was very helpful for course management advice as I had not played there before but, as above, my game was not up to making the most of it.

 

[TaylormadePhil]

Caddies are required to turn up, keep up and shut up, nothing else is required of them apart of course carrying the bag.. very few caddies actually give the players help in lining up the putts and most will agree with the player when it comes to club selection for fear of getting it wrong. The caddies work is generally done on practice days for getting exact yardages from certain places on the course.

 

[John_Findlay]

I was thinking about this the other day.

I do a bit of caddying in my spare time now and in fact I was down at Luffness on Wednesday caddying for 2 gents who were playing a team scramble. One was off about 9, the other off 26. They got it round in 1 under par gross, I'd like to think partly thanks to my good advice and yardages. I just guided them away from trouble the whole round and it paid off bigstyle. Lining up the higher handicapper on his putts led to him holing some absolute beauties.

I've had a few caddies on some better courses and it has certainly saved me a few shots. A guy who caddied for Darren Clarke once caddied for me in Sun City and I shot a 75. He just picked the club for me everytime, lined up my putts and I had a great round. The last time I had one was at the Old Course and I shot a 74. I've no doubt they both helped me by 3 or 4 shots so I'm sure there's something in it.

Keep them would be my view.

 

[Robobum]

Caddies are required to turn up, keep up and shut up, nothing else is required of them apart of course carrying the bag.. very few caddies actually give the players help in lining up the putts and most will agree with the player when it comes to club selection for fear of getting it wrong. The caddies work is generally done on practice days for getting exact yardages from certain places on the course.

Really??

Perhaps you want to have a look at Graham McDowell's caddy at work on the 18th @ Pebble Beach. He pretty much took the decision and put the club in his player's hand.

I don't like the RR caddy rolling round on the floor thing, i would like to see it stopped but it would be difficult to word a ruling which would stop that but still allow discussion regarding line etc, which I think is fine.

 

[Fyldewhite]

In short, no. As far as I'm concerned they are part of the game and should continue to be. It's players who are slow, not caddies. All this talk of Mr Rock's caddy is nonsense. If it's slowing up play then the powers that be should be putting the boot up Mr Rock's backside and telling him to get a move on. His caddy is just doing as he's told.

 

[John_Findlay]

and most will agree with the player when it comes to club selection for fear of getting it wrong.

That would be the sign of a bad caddy. A decent one, like Billy Foster for example, will have the confidence to know he's right and convince his man to change clubs (or keep the same club and swing easier) in such a way that he remains entirely confident in the final decision. Standing over the ball in doubt, as we all know, is a recipe for disaster.

 

[Aztecs27]

No way. As it's already been stated, they are part of the game.

Whenever we've been on Holiday to Jamaica and played at the Sandals Golf Resort in Ocho Rios, we've had the same caddy every time (we've called ahead and requested). His name is Sugar and he is nothing short of awesome.

Having only seen me play for a handful of holes, he persuades me to club down from a 5 to a 6 iron for my approach shot into a hole (I forget which one) and he had it right on the money. My shot ended up pin high less than 10 feet from the hole.

Over the next few years when we'd go back, he would remember us and he definitely helped with my game around the course there on the numerous times I played it.

The caddies at that course get paid absolute peanuts and basically live off the tips they're given...And we never had a problem giving him a nice tip, buying him a drink/sandwich from the food cart because he was worth every penny. Cleans your clubs, looks for your wayward balls, gives you shot advice, course management advice and you can have a good time with them. Everything a caddy should be. They're not allowed to play with their clients (we asked the club if we could play a round with him one year), club policy apparently, but he would always hit a few shots with our clubs as we went round...Unbelievable golfer as it turns out.

A good caddy is worth his/her weight in gold.

 

[haplesshacker]

I also think that they play a huge part in the mental side of the game with their Pros.

 

[CannyFifer]

where did my post go regarding snooker?

 

[CannyFifer]

Wrong thread, sorry guys

 

[Bratty]

Wrong thread, sorry guys

Looks like someone needs a caddy to use the forum?

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Keep them. There is no coincidence that the better caddies are always employed and that despite havine an acquired skill for opening his gob before engaging his brain, Steve Williams still does the job for Tiger. A good bagman is part psychologist, part big brother and part skivvy.

 

[SyR]

I also think that they play a huge part in the mental side of the game with their Pros.

Exactly, caddies don't just carry the bag and keep the clubs clean. They support the player and give them confidence, keep them focused and manage the crowd.

 

[viscount17]

you won't get rid of caddies but you could curb the excesses. giving a line is surely 'you have 137 to the pin. your line is 10 foot inside the tallest tree. you're playing into a right to left sloping green so a fade will be ideal but land it soft as it won't bite.'

not all this 'a foot more left, now 6 in right, too much . . .'

 

[thecraw]

I bet Martin Laird now wishes he had a stronger caddie at the weekend. One who convinced him to lag the putt down the slope not to go for it and well, the rest is history!!!