Niall,
Thanks for your retraction. I most certainly advocated for caddies at Mach Dunes. I was flown over there to help determine how best to create a quality program. And then they sadly opened without a proper one. There has not been a course built in the last 50 years that was more naturally crafted...and it SCREAMED for a proper caddie program given the wildness and vague definition off the tees and edge-areas of play. It WAS buried by the press and reviewers that played it unaccompanied...it was land of the lost golf...in its worst presentation.
Most reviewers that visited there: having no counsel became frustrated, didn't enjoy it, and had no one there with them during their round that could explain what to expect and why. The project has suffered. MD could have emerged with a FAR better reputation as no project I'm familiar with had more superb environmental positives in how it was created. It should have been hailed as a model for doing quality links with the lightest possible footprint. Instead, in the main it got slammed as a rough, confusing, half-baked presentation. Sad, as it is sooooo much more. A quality caddie dynamic on that property, EVEN in the difficult economic climate that opening faced, would have dramatically altered the negative perceptions that greeted their early days. It's still trying to recover.
You still seem to have difficulty accepting the fact that many of golf's most devoted, passionate champions and contributors found the game...AS A CADDIE! That avenue is what is at stake. Don't fret, the U.K. golf scene isn't going to be corrupted by some mass reverse-migration of caddie golf back to the Isles. The Scottish caddie/professionals helped drive the game in the U.S., and caddie golf offers excellent promise in other emerging golf nations if they really want participation/access from enthusiastic golfers of all in society.
It costs money to stay in the game and last time I checked Junior Golf or some First Tee program didn't offer youth a job. Industry greed and others ignorance are what threaten it. Caddies flourished in the Depression. It ain't just all dollars and cents. It's a mentality. Of course many who caddied went on to learn other skills. But where did their entree begin?
The game is often cheap and affordable...worldwide...in many places. But like anything else, there are different levels. And those costs vary. Streamsong has at least made an effort to have the caddie dynamic present as an option for the player. I applaud their effort and hope a local community component, particularly involving teenage youth, finds its way onto the property.
Cheers,
Kris
