Pat, you're talking out of both sides of your mouth. First you say that 2 caddies can do the same job as 4. Now, you say that there isn't that dramatic a drop in service. In other words, you're basically agreeing with me - there IS a drop in service. You just don't give a rat's ass! Some caddie you must have been. 
Now, as to this stuff about making half as much, that's fine and dandy and 100% true in terms of actual dollars. But by your logic, one caddy should carry all four bags and make twice as much as the guy carrying doubles....are you espousing that? I don't think so...
The bottom line is that you're simply choosing to ignore all of the offsetting factors, such as the fact that the job of carrying one bag is a hell of a lot easier than the job of carrying two or the fact that when a club sends out singles, the caddies get out a lot faster, thereby minimizing the dead time you make such a big deal of (as if sitting around shooting the shit with their buddies in the caddyshack is a job actually worthy of compensation ).
Finally, you forget that caddies are paid in CASH. Even including your non-job down time, a guy who shows up at 7 am and gets out by 8 and is in by noon getting $60 for the loop is paid $12 per hour (even though for one of those hours, he did absolutely NOTHING). $12 a hour is the after-tax equivalent of $15 or so. That is not a bad wage whatsoever for typical high school labor (the same kids get half that at McDs or whatever) and they have FUN in the process ... and with a single bag on their shoulder, it's not very hard work, either. In fact, it's barely work at all...they're not doing anything more than they'd be doing when they carry their own bag playing... you can hardly say that about a kid carrying doubles...
Glad you decided to read my last post thoroughly enough to actually read into a "that" so deeply. Italicizing a
that does not mean I'm talking out of both sides of my mouth...two caddies can and most often do provide the same level of service that four caddies can. This is certainly true when the only way you can get four kids into such a setup is when they are young and inexperienced...therefore lowering the overall service level, but keeping the cost down, which somehow validates the caddy experience for you.
If only it were physically possible for a caddy to carry four bags your point would then make any sort of sense.
This paragraph is totally wrong:
The bottom line is that you're simply choosing to ignore all of the offsetting factors, such as the fact that the job of carrying one bag is a hell of a lot easier than the job of carrying two or the fact that when a club sends out singles, the caddies get out a lot faster, thereby minimizing the dead time you make such a big deal of (as if sitting around shooting the shit with their buddies in the caddyshack is a job actually worthy of compensation ).
1) Carrying one bag is not really easier than carrying two for a somewhat experienced caddy. Perhaps in your days as a 12 year old single looper making .50 a bag when bags were still leather that was the case, but in modern times the difference is minimal at best. Any sort of additional labor needed to carry the additional bag on the other shoulder is well worth it for an extra bag's pay.
2) Caddies may be "shooting the shit with their buddies" in the caddyshack but that is time that the caddy should be compensated for in one way or the other as that is a direct service to the club. It's not a privilege waiting for a loop at a private club but necessary in order to run a program at a busy club. Discount this from a caddies average pay and try running a caddy program at a local private club with no tee times when you don't have any caddies waiting for loops.
Also, I don't know what caddy in the world
wouldn't want to wait for a double loop over taking a single and waiting less. For example:
Single bagger gets to club at 6am, waits until 8am to get out, done at noon: 6 hours time spent making $60= $10/ hour tops.
Double bagger gets to club at 6am, waits for double bag loop at 10am, done at 2pm: 8 hours spent making $120= $15/ hour.
Tell me again why an experienced caddy would rather get out faster and make less caddying for you?
Finally, you forget that caddies are paid in CASH. Even including your non-job down time, a guy who shows up at 7 am and gets out by 8 and is in by noon getting $60 for the loop is paid $12 per hour (even though for one of those hours, he did absolutely NOTHING). $12 a hour is the after-tax equivalent of $15 or so. That is not a bad wage whatsoever for typical high school labor (the same kids get half that at McDs or whatever) and they have FUN in the process ... and with a single bag on their shoulder, it's not very hard work, either. In fact, it's barely work at all...they're not doing anything more than they'd be doing when they carry their own bag playing... you can hardly say that about a kid carrying doubles...
Yes, caddies make cash as they are technically independent contractors.
Your example is flawed from the beginning as there is NO club where a caddy will show up at 7am and get out at 8am consistently. The caddying vs. McDonalds argument is a tired defense that you've made before and makes zero sense. Plus you seem to think that kids, or adults, who caddy somehow find the process "fun" and just love waking up at the crack of dawn in order to lug a bag around a golf course for you because "they would be doing the same thing
if they were playing themselves"...they're not playing themselves, they are working, and it's not fun. If it were fun kids would do it for free.
You also discount the process of having a caddy by saying that it's "no work at all" but then rattle off a ten commandments of earning $60 from you.
As I said before, don't take a caddy if you don't want to pay for the service. But then don't expect a service at a discount in order to justify the value to yourself.