What is the first duty of a caddie and who is your favorite?

[Jay Flemma]

I had dinner a few months back with all the Black Mesa family and we had an interesting conversation.  We went around the table and everyone said what they thought the most important they wanted out of their caddie.  Everyone had a different answer, all seven of us...

For me, the first thing I want him to do is read the greens for me and do it accurately.  If I'm at a course I don't know, it's a big help.  If it's a course I know, I use him for an idea bounce board, but it's a team effort.

What about you?  What's the most important thing a caddie is supposed to do for you?

The best caddie I ever had was Bobby Hill at Pinehurst.  He read those greens so easily for me, I made lots of putts and saved eight shots or more.

[JESII]

Help have fun...forget the caddy stuff! Other than keeping up...

[Jay Flemma]

Have you got a fave?

[RJ_Daley]

I've only had caddies a handful of times that I played.  I probably really don't have a good overall idea of what having good caddies, vis-a-vis various courses, is really like.  Of the ones I've had, I can only think of one that was actually worth it.  That was at Whistling Straits the very first year they opened.  I had a grizzly older gent named Dick, who was a jr college golf coach somewhere along the line.  He took a hard look at me warming up, and then really seemed to get a good idea of how I hit my clubs, and was very helpful in pulling irons and directing me around the course with yardages and where to try to hit it.  He also would look at the putts and then look at me and wait to see if I'd ask first.  

[JESII]

I caddied with Rocky at Pine Valley probably 50 times and never saw a single player have anything other than a great time with him. And I am sure many on here have been with him.

[Joe Hancock]

I haven't used caddies many times, but I look forward to the day that I have a caddy who is as concerned about my enjoyment of the round as I am theirs. (and I pay them how much?)

It's always a distraction for me, as I place the people in the game higher than the game itself.

So, no favorite...not enough data.

Joe

[JohnV]

Show up
Keep up
Shut up

And dont' read the putts unless I ask.

Also just tell me the basic yardage and let me figure out the rest.  If you've only caddied for me one time, what makes you think you know more about my game than I do.

I putt much worse with a caddie who is telling me it breaks 1.5 cups from the right than one who might just say it breaks right.  And if he tells me to hit it half way to the hole, I've been known to do that, leaving another fun putt.

Sorry, I get cranky when I have a caddie.  Probably because my back hurts more when I'm not carrying my bag.

[Wayne_Freedman]

A good caddy is like a gentleman's  "second" in the old days of dueling.

He knows, innately, what to say, and when. He allows you to focus your game.

He adds confidence. He take the guilt away on difficult putts.

And, he is an optimist. Always an optimist.

[Tommy Williamsen]

I want a caddy to tell me correct distances to front of the green and pin.
It really helps the enjoyment of round if he has a good sense of humor.  I like to talk and joke with my caddy. 

The best caddy I have had was Jimmy at Four Streams.  I had him every time I played for two years, until he changed jobs.

[Adam Russell]

I putt much worse with a caddie who is telling me it breaks 1.5 cups from the right than one who might just say it breaks right.  And if he tells me to hit it half way to the hole, I've been known to do that, leaving another fun putt.

Any caddie that tells you that either just got the job or is screwing with you. BTW, that post of yours makes you sound like the guy caddies pay other caddies twenty bucks not to take. And trust me, we can spot you from the parking lot.

The only job a caddie has is to make each person enjoy the round more in their own way. Some people enjoy constant talk and course numbers; others want silence and servitude. But all want to enjoy the course with someone else, and the caddie facilitates this.

[Jay Flemma]

I haven't used caddies many times, but I look forward to the day that I have a caddy who is as concerned about my enjoyment of the round as I am theirs. (and I pay them how much?)

It's always a distraction for me, as I place the people in the game higher than the game itself.

So, no favorite...not enough data.

Joe

Joe, you raise a good point.  I have a two problems with the modern caddie programs...first, you're paying double for half the service.  Caddies at these high end clubs end up costing $100, but they double bag, so yoiu get them half the time, essentially.  That leads to them hopscotching around trying to do well for both players, but you are all right when you say part of the experience for me is having a partner out there.  I caddied.  I caddied many weekends for the same guy and we got to be a team in a small, but important way.  There is a huge difference between having a caddie and having someone carry your bag, which is the second problem with caddie programs.

That's why I love Bobby Hill...he carried my bag only for $80 and we had a grand ol' time working together.  I highly rec Bobby.

I do have one other peeve, which is clubs that "randomly selected" my bag to be swapped out.  Going in a man's bag is like going in his wallet...bad form.  On each occasion I have been "swapped out" I have had to politely show them that they forgot to include my bee sting medicine, for "God Forbid," in the new bag. 

Plus its a shock to suddenly see your head covers and clubs in some strange bag.

Anyway, this is not the thread to bash caddie programs, this is the thread to talk about why you get a caddie and who is great.   Tommy, who else is great at Four Streams?  John VB, who do you recommend?

By the way, one last question...you know how people say "if you don't bother the bee, it won't bother you?"  Every time I have been stung I have been minding my own business, oblivious that there even was a bee until it was too late.

[Pete_Pittock]

   John Vanderborght is right, but the player has some responsibilities too. Get there early enough so he can see you hit shots on the range, chip and putt and you have time to figure out how to co-exist. If you have one expectation and the caddie another, it's going to be a long day, and the tip will be smaller.
   Caddie has to size up the player and figure out what he wants. Not much of a different dynamic than many other situations.
   Worst day, we met at the tee at Pacific Dunes. On the first green he misread the direction of the break, and missed how much it would break on by a yard. I had spent time on the range trying to get a hard draw working or the first tee shot. He didn't know that was my normal shot and on #2 by his aiming me on the 2nd shot I hit it great and lost it in the junk 25 yards right.
    Best caddie was Clinton Russell who had been on the junior cup team at Royal Melbourne. He has since turned pro. Got along great, had my game nailed after three holes. Kept my head on straight. Made the final day of the tournament (Kingston Heath, Yarra Yarra, Victoria, Kingston Heath) and got me on both courses at RM.


You must be the worst caddie, ever. What a coincidence.

[Bob_Huntley]

A good caddy is like a gentleman's  "second" in the old days of dueling.

He knows, innately, what to say, and when. He allows you to focus your game.

He adds confidence. He take the guilt away on difficult putts.

And, he is an optimist. Always an optimist.

Wayne,

When duelling, the last person you would want on the job is a mercenary that you had just met for the first time.  That's generally what happens when you get a caddie today.

Bob

[Ed Oden]

I agree that the most important thing is just to add to the enjoyment of the round.  After all, I'm there to have fun.  If I enjoy the comeraderie, I rarely care what I shoot. 

But if we are talking about actually helping my score, then reading putts is the most important thing to me.  I love it when I get a really good read from my caddie very early in a round and make the putt.  That always makes it easy to trust him later when he reads a putt differently than I do.

And I have a couple of pet peaves that really bug me:

1.  I absolutely hate it when a caddie leaves the driver on the tee on the assumption that is the club I want to hit.  Maybe I wanted to hit something less to take the hazards out of play?

2.  I never want a caddie to give me a swing tip or tell me what he thinks I am doing wrong, even if he is right.  I pretty much know all the things that suck about my swing.  If I could stop doing them, I would have done so by now!

Ed

[Mike Nuzzo]

For playing non-competitiviely:

A nice kid to carry my bag.
I like to read my own putts and figure out where to hit.

I like the young guy me, Ran & Ben had in the Dominican Republic.
He didn't tell on Ran after he hit the maintenance worker with a one hopper.....

[Allan Long]

I do have one other peeve, which is clubs that "randomly selected" my bag to be swapped out.  Going in a man's bag is like going in his wallet...bad form. 

Jay--I've never heard of such a thing. Is this the club, for instance, swapping out a staff bag for a smaller carry bag?

IMHO, first duty of the caddy is keeping the clubs and ball clean. I don't want someone clubbing me who has never seen me play, but I will ask their opinion about what's up ahead, reading greens, etc., if I have never been there before. I do like to get to know who is caddying for me so I often try to engage them in conversation between shots and find out their interests. I can't say that I have a favorite since it is not a common occurrence any more, but I really like the guys that I have met at Sand Hills. They know the course, and make the day enjoyable.

[Joe Bentham]

I doubt Jay's bag was randomly selected.  On the contray it was selected for a reason.  And I'm guessing its because his bag is too big or too heavy.

[cary lichtenstein]

First duty of a caddie is to give you correct yardage. If that is all he can do, then that is enuf.

2nd duty is to accurately answer questions or offer appropriate suggestions, such as don't hit it past the pin as the greens to 2 levels and falls away from you, or this is a running green or this putt appears to be flat up it is actually uphill and against the grain.

[Jay Flemma]

A good caddy is like a gentleman's  "second" in the old days of dueling.

He knows, innately, what to say, and when. He allows you to focus your game.

He adds confidence. He take the guilt away on difficult putts.

And, he is an optimist. Always an optimist.

Wayne,

When duelling, the last person you would want on the job is a mercenary that you had just met for the first time.  That's generally what happens when you get a caddie today.

Bob

Bob, what can we do about that?  The way caddie programs seem to be moving is more cost, less service and no chance to really build a long relationship with a guy.  More than that, do the economics mean we, the customer, are going to have to endure getting fleeced instead of getting served?

Bob, who are your fave caddies?  Who is great at MPCC?

[John Kavanaugh]

How about not smoking a dime bag on the way to work.

[Jim_Kennedy]

Don't lose my ball.

[Jay Flemma]

Allen and Joe, no I carry a light carry bag with the two shoulder straps.  Moreover, my bag is light because I don't fill it with too many accessories.

Moreover, I'm a little guy (5'7", 134) and I carry my bag all over, so a medium sized guy should have no prob.  Rather than adjust the strap so he could carry it over one shoulder, they got lazy and swapped it out for another carry bag.  I also have a pet peeve about them switching my strap, but I understand they might want to do that if its more comfortable, but usually they do it so they can...gulp...double bag again.

[Joe Bentham]

Jay--
If a bag is manageable then any Caddie worth his salt is going to carry it.  I'll agree it shoudn't have been changed out until they talked to you but I'm sticking by what I said earlier.  The only person's opinion I'm intrested in is the Caddies when it comes to what he'll carry and what he won't.  A happy caddie is a good caddie.  And double bag caddies are almost always the best, it why they carry two. 

[Joe Bentham]

How about not smoking a dime bag on the way to work.

Golfers don't smoke weed?  At least as much as caddies anyway.   

[Adam Clayman]

Jay, If you refuse to listen to the caddies first advice, swapping out your bag, he should turn down the job.
It isn't so much about whether you think your bag is light enough. If he's not comfortable carrying your bag, you don't want him handling it.
 As easy as some of you think it is to carry, try doing it everyday. It is hard on the body.

The correct answer to this thread's Q is that there is no one correct answer. There are about 25,000,000. Each golfer is different and each situation is different. The first job a caddie has is sizing you up. Someone like JVB's attitude is the dream job for those who want to do very little work that day. My favorites were the corporate execs who, on the very first tee, humbly admits they suck and have no idea how to play well, since they only play five rounds a year.