Caddy v Pro

[longdrive23]

You could take this to a higher level. Why do any sports professionals or entertainers get paid what they do? I remember the days when baseball and football players had off season jobs. (insurance, real estate..etc)

True. Simple economics of supply and demand. All driven by fans/craze which is utilized by big corporations. Still can't believe that golf has such big prize money, reminds me of the stock market/real-estate bubble that we went through...

[WUTiger]

With a short checklist for a specific player (every player has different "needs") and another for common etiquette, you'd be a champion caddie in 10 minutes. It's not brain surgery.

It's not brain surgery, but it does take awhile to build relationships. Players are different in what they want their caddies to do. The first few rounds with a pro, the caddie is probably not going to do much coaching.

Some things a caddie can bring to his/her pro: * Knowledge of the player's swing * Knowledge of the local course Caddied in one pro tournament, a small PGA regional event in St. Louis in 1969. Total purse was about $12,000. A pro from Memphis was grateful that I had played the course a few times, and knew some of the funny bounces.

[sean_miller]

It's not brain surgery, but it does take awhile to build relationships. Players are different in what they want their caddies to do. The first few rounds with a pro, the caddie is probably not going to do much coaching.

I caddied in the Alberta Open a couple times (Canadian Tour) at Wolf Creek. I'd played the course a few times from the blacks, but the players I caddied for didn't want advice. They wanted some pleasant conversation, common sense ettiquette, and a guy who knew when to shut up and stay out of the way, and someone who could hoof their way around the course for 72 holes without fear of getting drenched while holding an umbrella over his clubs.. "My player" made the cut both times - I didn't distract them from their game plan, but other than looking for balls, they didn't actually require my input either. I guess everyone's experiences are different.

[CG031]

playing golf on that high of a level takes extreme skill - caddying is more of experience/knowledge.

[Shorty]

..and the answer is..because fans continue to pay overly inflated prices for tickets to events. (im just sayin')

This is not the case in golf or any other sport.

Pro golfers' income has nothing to do with gate receipts and ticket prices. The money generated by tickets ales wouldn't cover the cost of erecting temporary grandstands, let alone security and everything else added up. Do you think that they add up all the ticket sales and distribute that money to the players? Companies sponsor events and players and TV rights are sold by the PGA Tour. Nike (or whoever) pay Tiger (or whoever) because the amount of screen time and column inches he generates is a fraction of what that would cost in advertising.

[shades9323]

I think this is a great idea. But why stop at golf? Race car drivers should change their own tires and fill their own gas tanks!

[jetsknicks1]

I think this is a great idea. But why stop at golf? Race car drivers should change their own tires and

That's funny. I can just see the drivers pulling up to a regular gas pump, pulling out their credit cards, entering their zip codes and waiting for their receipt before they can continue the race. :)