Bubba Gets Mad at his Caddie

[RadioCop]

I'm surprised there's no thread discussing Bubba going off on his caddie Ted Scott on the 16 hole at the Travelers Championship. The caddie does more than just carry clubs. He's expected to know the course layout and make club recommendations in certain situations. In this case Ted Scott recommended the wrong club and paid for it. So is he at fault or should it be Bubba since he ultimately swung the club.

[BostonBrew]

Its been in discussion in the Travelers Championship thread.

[Golfingdad]

I hadn't had a chance to see it until now.  Certainly these caddies are depended upon, but for me the jury is still out on this one.  At one point Bubba said "So that's the right yardage, huh?" implying that he didn't believe whatever number his caddy gave him was correct.  If, in fact, it was not, then it's pretty much 100% the caddies fault.  That's his main job other than carrying clubs.  On the other hand, if Bubba was just griping about a club recommendation based on a correct yardage, then I'd say it's pretty much 100% Bubba's fault.

David Feherty said it best during that clip ... "Hey, you hit it bud."

[RadioCop]

You're right. Even the video is there. Slice off the tee.

[Dave2512]

Bubba is an emotional player and I'm certain Ted is not shocked when something like that happens. He blew another shot on 17 or 18 and he tossed another jibe Ted's way and it was obvious he was being facetious. Bubba and Ted are tight. If Ted's cool with it, and it appears he is, I don't see the problem. His job is also to keep Bubba focused and in the game and part of that could be letting him blow off steam. We don't know what the dynamic is.

[Mozgolf]

It's just Bubba bein' Bubba! No surprises

[ElWagonne]

Someone once said winning is the best deodorant.  Bubba has always been like this, it was just the 'deodorant' of a green jacket (with the addition of him carefully crafting his image) that has kept this relatively hidden for the past couple of yrs.

[zipazoid]

Not the first time Bubba's been mouthy.

But yes - if the caddy gave him a bad yardage, especially at that juncture of the tournament, that's a huge error on the caddy's part...worthy of firing, imo. How much did that cost Bubba monetarily?

If, however, the yardage was correct, then Feherty is correct - hey, you hit it bub.

[Zwick]

The caddie took the responsibility, convinced Watson to hit the wrong club: http://www.pgatour.com/tourreport/2013/010/23/bubba-travelers.html

[BostonBrew]

No big deal really. Probably happens more often than we are aware of. Bubba is just getting the attention because the cameras and microphones caught the conversation.

[Shorty]

Whe Bubba Watson says "There's just no reason for me to show up" he seems to be implying that this is the case if the caddy doesn't do his job. Typical childish reaction from Watson. He's an oaf and a jerk.

But, in a few weeks Oakley will spend a few hundred thousand on some stupid publicity stunt with Watson in it (like the hovercraft) and there'll be a thread here about how "cool" he is.

[bplewis24]

Originally Posted by ElWagonne

Someone once said winning is the best deodorant.  Bubba has always been like this, it was just the 'deodorant' of a green jacket (with the addition of him carefully crafting his image) that has kept this relatively hidden for the past couple of yrs.

It actually goes back further than that.  In fact, if you search for some of Shorty's posts from a couple years back you will see references to it.  There were some golf channel produced segments about Bubba's transformation into a easy-going, calm and cheerful personality on the course several years ago.  According to the piece, his caddie was the inspiration for it, whom is also good family friend.  I f I remember correctly, the caddie gave him some tough love at some point and threatened to quit if he didn't stop some of his emotional on-course outbursts.  His wife endorsed the mini-intervention, and Bubba was changed instantly, or so the story goes.  There are folks out there that find Bubba's image (including the whole "Golf Boys" bit) a bit disingenuous because of the way it has allegedly been manufactured.  Some believe he is nothing like how he is portrayed.  But I digress...

Now, getting back to this story, it definitely appears to me like he's pissed and he's blaming the caddie.  The "you're telling me that's the yardage" seems like a rhetorical question, and if I heard correctly, there was no reply from the caddie, who also took it as such.  Bubba was probably wrong for dealing with it this way, but considering their relationship, this will probably not cause any untenable strain, and IMO doesn't really require a whole lot of coverage.  They will likely deal with it the way they've grown comfortable doing so throughout the course of mixing their professional and personal lives.

I'd also like to point out that this happened in the US Open as well, but with a different player and caddie.  For the life of me I can't remember who it was.  But I distinctly remember watching a segment where a player hit a bad shot, and immediately turned to his caddie to criticize him.  If I remember correctly, it was well-revered player, but it was very brief, subtle and did not stick out on camera.  I waited for them to replay or accentuate it, and it never happened.  My point is that, as many Tiger Woods threads have discussed, the higher the profile of the player, the more things like this are discussed.  We love to deconstruct the personality and character flaws of our sports/entertainment heros after building them up.  If this were Tiger Woods, it would likely have a 10 page thread on it, and be a leading story on ESPN.  If this were D.A. Points, it probably wouldn't have registered.  Bubba is somewhere in between, but a bit closer to Tiger with his Masters win and popularity.

[newtogolf]

I think Bubba had to tone down the on course rants to get past the rigorous adoption process as well.

I get the frustration but ultimately he has to own the choice of clubs and shots.  I see Phil and Bones discuss club selection and many times Phil will take the club Bones wants him to, swing it a few times and then give it back to him and ask for the club he wanted to begin with.  Given the timing (end of tournament) and Bubba's experience, he should have stuck with the 8 iron if that's what he thought the shot required no matter what his caddie suggested.

I'm nowhere near the level these guys are but even I know if I don't feel comfortable with the club I'm about to swing bad things are likely going to happen.

[ElWagonne]

Originally Posted by bplewis24

We love to deconstruct the personality and character flaws of our sports/entertainment heros after building them up.  If this were Tiger Woods, it would likely have a 10 page thread on it, and be a leading story on ESPN.  If this were D.A. Points, it probably wouldn't have registered.  Bubba is somewhere in between, but a bit closer to Tiger with his Masters win and popularity.

I'm inclined to agree with this. I prefer not to prop up athletes then bring them down, but something about Bubba rubs me the wrong way.  It just seems like he went from a big, petulant golf star to a Mickleson-like image with a southern accent almost immediately (some say Phil's image is a bit manufactured too, but not my point here).

[Beachcomber]

I'd be pissed too if I was in the lead, as was Bubba, and was given the wrong club or yardage to hit.  Not sure if this is what actually happened here?

But even if I was given the correct club and yardage by my caddie... And failed to pull off the shot.  I still may question my caddie on the yardage/club.  In my opinion it's human nature to second guess yourself - or someone who is giving you guidance - especially in a pressure filled situation like a golf tournament, when you fail to execute the task at hand.  Often times it's not until after the event, do you realize that the mistake was ultimately your own (as Fehrety elluded).

Bottom line, golf is a cruel sport... And if doubt creeps into your mind... As simple as, 'Do I have the right club?', can be the difference from shooting birdie or par to carding a bogey or worse.  It looks like this is what happened with Bubba in the video linked by the OP?

[Beachcomber]

Originally Posted by newtogolf

I'm nowhere near the level these guys are but even I know if I don't feel comfortable with the club I'm about to swing bad things are likely going to happen.

Bingo.  Well said.

[BostonBrew]

Originally Posted by Beachcomber

I'd be pissed too if I was in the lead, as was Bubba, and was given the wrong club or yardage to hit.  Not sure if this is what actually happened here?

The story on the PGA Tour site says Ted convinced Bubba to hit a 9 iron instead of 8, which was Bubba's initial desire.

[RonTheSavage]

Very well said, and I remember the Bubba "Intervention" stories going around.