Friday, April 22, 2005

Routine Day

I really have to get some waterproof shoes. I think that has to be next on my list. It has been raining on and off for two days now and I come home swimming in my shoes. But today went well. I only caddied for one guy and I have to say, for being old, he wasn't a bad player.

I was with two other caddies, both at the top of their careers. One of them will be taking his new job as Caddie Master at another course soon, and the other is a high-ranking "numbered caddie" and gets work whenever he wants it. They were both carrying two bags, and I decided to try and study some of the things they were doing so as to improve my current skill set.

First of all, it was really hard to determine what things they did differently, because everything they did seemed so easy and common-sensical that I thought I was stupid for studying them. Everything just flowed. So I came to the conclusion that if your caddie is good and knows what he's doing, you're moving at a good pace, you never question a read on a putt, and in all actuality you hardly notice them at all. And don't get me wrong, you know they're there. But they never get in your way. And I'm not saying I get in the way, but if I make a conscious effort to give my player as much room as possible, they seem to be happier.

My player had a really interesting voice. It was a cross between Lennie from "Of Mice and Men," Adam West, and this stuck up rich guy I used to see all the time when I used to bartend. So it was a commanding voice full of bass, but it was slow and drawn out. Kind of like a yawn or something. I think he should've done some voice-over work in cartoons. He would've made millions. Come to think of it, I never did ask what he did. Maybe that's why he's so rich and can afford to pay for a membership at this club.

He asked me on the 7th or 8th hole if I was getting familiar with the greens (I told him a few holes earlier that I was new this year, so he knew I wasn't a green-reading machine yet). After I nodded, he said, "Well, I've certainly been out here more than you. But I'm old and sometimes my brain gets scrambled so make sure you're reading all of these putts too. Just in case I get mixed up and ask for your opinion. So be prepared."

He never did ask me to read a putt. But I started calling the putts on the greens after a little while. That guy will miss left if he doesn't get it over the ridge. Or as soon as a player struck a putt, I knew it was going to be short, long, left, or right. It was pretty cool. I think I was dead on. Hopefully as the summer progresses I won't even need to bend down after a while. I can just eye the correct line from wherever I stand. I've seen some of the other caddies do it, so why can't I?

And I ended up getting a pretty decent tip and a "great job" from my player at the end, so I feel today was pretty successful, despite all the on-again off-again rain and wind.

Because that's pretty much all I have to say about my caddie experience for today, it's time for me to pick another random topic to discuss. I just have the urge to rant right now for some reason.

Dogs and food. They never stop eating. I could seriously feed this dog I'm staring at right now and it would never feel full. Plus, if I'm not careful, the dog would eat until its stomach exploded. Imagine what that would be like. Never feeling full or even knowing how much you've had to eat. I suppose because I'm trying to gain weight right now that would be ideal for me. And something else. Why the hell do dogs like to roll around in shit? Are they trying to leave their scent for another dog? Is that it? That's gross. And then they bitch and moan when they have to take a bath. Stinky stinky. Alright. On that note, I need to eat some dinner. Take care everyone.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Cool blog. Just wondering, how long before you will be a "numbered caddie" and get bags more frequently? Is it based on time, number of bags (ie, experience), or whether or not the boss likes you.

By the way, if you like Mr. Haggis' quote, here's another good way I heard the other day: "You can't polish a tird."

Tom Collins said...

Thanks for the quote. I'll have to use it the next time I update.

As for being a "numbered caddie." That's a great question. If I had to guess, I'd say it was based on time. My boss said at an earlier meeting that if he knows he can count on you, and you'll always be available to caddie, you'll get to be numbered. All of the current "numbered caddies" have been working there for at least 3 years though. Then again, this whole system he uses is brand new. He used to just do it all in his head. So I'm sure he's still figuring it out himself. But great question man. I'll certainly let everyone know if I ever get numbered. I'm going in there everyday, so that should improve my chances quite a bit.