Caddies Overused

[westerndevon]

The more I watch golf the more I notice the caddie have in my opinion far too much of an input. Without putting them down their job should just to be on the bag. Any info on the course, yardages, how the green rolls all the course craft us amatures have to contend with should be down to the indivual golfer to workout for themselves and put in the hours learning As far as Im concerned golf is an indivual sport and all this confiring with the caddie almost makes it a team event

[todgot]

It's allowed under the rules of golf and they're professionals playing for millions of dollars so it would be foolish not to use it to it's full advantage. I think some caddies just give yardages and others give more advise... it's up to the player. The player still has to hit the shot.

[saevel25]

The more I watch golf the more I notice the caddie have in my opinion far too much of an input.

Without putting them down their job should just to be on the bag. Any info on the course, yardages, how the green rolls all the course craft us amatures have to contend with should be down to the indivual golfer to workout for themselves and put in the hours learning

As far as Im concerned golf is an indivual sport and all this confiring with the caddie almost makes it a team event

Caddies use to be more of a staple at local golf course in the past. They would be working there summers, or full time caddies. They would have good course knowledge. They would give the player yardage and read greens.

So in essence PGA Tour player are playing the game more inline with how it use to be for a lot of people.

[SavvySwede]

The more I watch golf the more I notice the caddie have in my opinion far too much of an input.

Without putting them down their job should just to be on the bag. Any info on the course, yardages, how the green rolls all the course craft us amatures have to contend with should be down to the indivual golfer to workout for themselves and put in the hours learning

As far as Im concerned golf is an indivual sport and all this confiring with the caddie almost makes it a team event

You really think the caddie is telling them things they don't already know? Pros just want the extra confirmation because their is so much money on the line with each stroke. It is like how a commercial flight has more than one pilot. The extra pilot isn't needed to fly the plane. He's just there to double check things so a dumb mistake like a misread gauge doesn't mess up a flight the .1% of the time where something might happen..

[Pretzel]

I know the few events where I've had a caddie it was nice to just vocalize my plan and receive confirmation or other options I might not have thought of. 97% off the time it was just a "Sounds good" that I got back or something similar, but it gives you confidence you might not otherwise have. The biggest thing I liked about a caddie is that I had a conversational partner whenever I felt like talking or wanted to distract myself.

[joekelly]

In Asia, all golfers MUST have a caddy; it's not your choice.  Very few exceptions.  If you can afford golf, you can afford the caddy. Whether any particular caddy helps you on the green read, that's up to you.  But caddy pulls the trolley, marks the ball, cleans the club, rakes the sand, offers the water to drink, marks the card, gives compliment of good shots, etc.  Saves some time. 18 holes gives a day's wages to most caddies.  Caddies mostly women, some are good looking 20 yr olds who appeal to the retired blokes.  Conversations?  Usually only if you can handle the local language with fluency.

[Patch]

Here is a twist. What if the rules strictly said a caddy could only carry the bag? Nothing else. Just carry the bag. How would lack of caddy knowledge on anything except just carrying the bag during a round effect the golfer? I think there are more than a few pros out there who would suffer a few lost strokes if they did not have caddy input.

A caddy is an employee, and what ever his/her boss wants him/her to do, it's part of their employment.

Me personally I would like to see at least one PGA tournament where there were no caddies allowed, and  pros had to carry their own bags.

[saevel25]

I think it would severely slow the game down as well. You'd have a lot of golfers now who would have to spend time before the tournament building their yardage books. Then they would have to pace everything off themselves. Caddies do a lot of work to make sure the golfer is ready to go.

[Aguirre]

You'd create a whole new level of policing the game if you changed the rules.  Two more million knuckleheads listening closely to the telecast with CBS's number saved and the thumb on the call button trying to hear if the caddy said something that counted as advice.

[Aguirre]

Me personally I would like to see at least one PGA tournament where there were no caddies allowed, and  pros had to carry their own bags.

I guarantee you that would be the worst field of the season.  Bunch of Chalmers out there.

[Fourputt]

The more I watch golf the more I notice the caddie have in my opinion far too much of an input.

Without putting them down their job should just to be on the bag. Any info on the course, yardages, how the green rolls all the course craft us amatures have to contend with should be down to the indivual golfer to workout for themselves and put in the hours learning

As far as Im concerned golf is an indivual sport and all this confiring with the caddie almost makes it a team event

Hate to burst your balloon, but golf without caddies is a relatively new tradition.  Until the 1950's most golfers used caddies.  That means that for 200 years caddies were more the in thing than not.  The caddie and the player have always been a team, so your impression that they do too much is way off base.  The caddie's responsibilities are even part of the rules of golf.

[WUTiger]

Hate to burst your balloon, but golf without caddies is a relatively new tradition. ...

Once upon a time. there were no motorized (electric or gas) golf carts.

Caddies were part of golf clubs with standing members until the 1970s. Some public course golfers used caddies, while others carried their own bag or had a pull cart.

Golf carts came on strong in the late 1960s, and put a crimp on the job of caddies. During the 1970s, people in carts would use cart runners, caddies who accompanied a foursome and would watch the flight of golf balls, and tend the pin on greens and rake the traps.

These days, one of the problems contributing to slow play is the lack of any caddies or runners who go out ahead to watch the landing area. A foursome with "eyes ahead" is less likely to waste time looking for balls in the rough, unless the shot is truly wayward.

Also, a caddie has local knowledge of the course. A visitor or an occasional member can benefit from this. True, course books and web sites with hole-by-hole descriptions are available. Not all specific on-course situations are covered in these sources, so a caddie can be helpful.

In modern USA golf, only a handful of St. Louis area golf clubs maintain a group of caddies. At such clubs, people wanting caddies rather than carts usually have to request a caddie a day ahead of time.

And, as @todgot said, caddies are perfectly legal under the rules of golf.

[newtogolf]

My home club minimally requires all golfers use a fore caddie on Wednesdays, Fridays and weekends if they go out before 2:00 pm to help maintain pace of play.  The caddies knowledge of the course varies based on the number of years they've worked there but overall they are helpful and great at keeping track of where everyones ball lands.

[CR McDivot]

Long, long ago I learned the game first as caddie for my father... and then as I became more proficient as a paid caddie on both local muni's and a private course. Carrying the bag was the least of the duties, knowing the yardages, the hazards, the roll of the green, and learning the skills of the patron is what earned the tips (which far exceeded the customary fee). Competition in the caddie shack for the known players was stiff, but the players soon learned to request their favorite.

A good fellow on the bag was, and still is a great advantage. Sad to see the trade relegated mainly to the pro tour.

[acetoolguy]

I have an old golf magazine somewhere around here where a writer decries courses adding yardage markers on the course as cheating. His point was that estimating the distance should be a skill of the game.

[boogielicious]

Quote:

Originally Posted by westerndevon

The more I watch golf the more I notice the caddie have in my opinion far too much of an input.

Without putting them down their job should just to be on the bag. Any info on the course, yardages, how the green rolls all the course craft us amatures have to contend with should be down to the indivual golfer to workout for themselves and put in the hours learning

As far as Im concerned golf is an indivual sport and all this confiring with the caddie almost makes it a team event

Caddies use to be more of a staple at local golf course in the past. They would be working there summers, or full time caddies. They would have good course knowledge. They would give the player yardage and read greens.

So in essence PGA Tour player are playing the game more inline with how it use to be for a lot of people.

My late father-in-law was a caddie back in the 1930s.  That is how he became a scratch golfer.  I've never played with one, but I think it would be a blast.  I would take a caddie over a cart in a heartbeat.

[newtogolf]

My late father-in-law was a caddie back in the 1930s.  That is how he became a scratch golfer.  I've never played with one, but I think it would be a blast.  I would take a caddie over a cart in a heartbeat.

A good caddie can definitely reduce your score by a few strokes.  Some of these guys really know the course and once they have a good idea of how well you strike the ball will provide you with really good advice.  Downside is they are more expensive that a cart $80 versus $40.

[Fourputt]

Quote:

Originally Posted by boogielicious

My late father-in-law was a caddie back in the 1930s.  That is how he became a scratch golfer.  I've never played with one, but I think it would be a blast.  I would take a caddie over a cart in a heartbeat.

A good caddie can definitely reduce your score by a few strokes.  Some of these guys really know the course and once they have a good idea of how well you strike the ball will provide you with really good advice.  Downside is they are more expensive that a cart $80 versus $40.

You pay $40 to ride in a cart?  The most I've ever paid is $20 and I thought that was pretty high.  Most places it's around $15 when it's separate from the green fee.