Comments on The Reluctant Jam Boy: Adventures in Management

I was a caddie for years when I was younger. Back...

2008-07-03T19:58:00.000-05:00

I was a caddie for years when I was younger. Back then the old boys paid us in peanuts and beer. Ahhh the good ol' days!

I couldn't tell you the amount of 2nd hand smoke I must have inhaled from those old guys blowing cigar smoke in my face!

Half of them carried brand new drivers that they might have actually used once a year and when they played, they were awful. They beat up their clubs, threw them around and generally abused the privilege of having a good caddie like myself. The other half played at least twice a week and were very respectful to us caddies. I bet they bought their clubs real cheap from places like Buy Cheap Drivers or something. They took great care of their clubs and they took great care of us caddies. They paid us well and we appreciated their consideration.

I suppose it would be hard to become a caddie mast...

2008-05-07T17:44:00.000-05:00

I suppose it would be hard to become a caddie master , here in the algarve it is to hot for that.faro airport transfers and algarve golf bookings

Hey, Jam-Boy...are you there man? Guess not!...he...

2008-03-24T17:49:00.000-05:00

Hey, Jam-Boy...are you there man? Guess not!...he must of gotten a Huge promotion. OH well, another good golf blogger may have bit the dust.

Jam-Boy, where are you?

2008-02-15T19:14:00.000-05:00

Jam-Boy, where are you?

Great blog...I look forward in reading more.

2007-09-24T11:45:00.000-05:00

Great blog...I look forward in reading more.

No posts of late? Is golf done for the year where...

2007-09-16T11:29:00.000-05:00

No posts of late? Is golf done for the year where you're at or...? Hope things are cool with you - great blog.

EveningSo, in coming and checking for more pasts o...

2007-08-01T07:21:00.000-05:00

Evening

So, in coming and checking for more pasts or updates to the situation, I re-read my comment above and concluded that it could, if read in the wrong frame of mind, have sounded nothing more than mindlessly abusive in certain parts. That was certainly not what I intended ... mindless, of course, but not abusive. No more than I would be to all my friends, anyway. But it's different, sometimes, when you're talking to someone face-to-face and they can discern easily when you're taking the piss.

SO, if you took offence, old pal, I apologise. When I called you a dork, you know ... it was meant in the best possible way. And poof and twat are merely terms of endearment for me.

How's tricks? Still busy? Did you see the Open? I am as good as Harrington on the scorecard, but I was nowhere near as entertaining in putting two balls into the Burn. I really wanted Sergio to win. But if someone had told me at the beginning of the week that Padraig would take the title, I would have been delighted. He's always been better than that choking, under-achieving wiener(weiner? I don't know how to spell it - we don't use it over here) -boy Luke Donald. I don't care much for him or other people's sycophantic praise of him. He am gay. So good for Paddy. And now, officially, Sergio is my new favourite golfer, now that Seve has retired and John Daly is officially mental.

All the best, old pal. Kepp yourself nice.

David

Very honest and thorough self-evaluation! However,...

2007-07-18T21:47:00.000-05:00

Very honest and thorough self-evaluation! However, in my experience, anyone who is sensitive enough to evaluate themselves that honestly, consider the daily issues and personalities in the depth you describe, and not be a pleaser or kiss ass would make an excellent manager. I'd hire you! Hang in there.

EveningHey, Tom, don't be too impatient to be a Ca...

2007-07-17T08:00:00.000-05:00

Evening

Hey, Tom, don't be too impatient to be a Caddie Master. You're still pretty young, aren't you? Mid to late twenties? There's still plenty of time to graduate into a management position and it does sound as if they have one picked out for you. Territory manager sounds like it might be more sales based, which might suit your talents better than day-to-day micro-management, and you might be going round and managing the Caddie Masters themselves, so don't be too quick to settle for less. Besides, it sounds like your doing Caddie Mastering half the time anyway (and I know stepping in for others is not the same as managing your own course account) and you're already evolving way above and beyond pure looping. So don't be too down. It sounds like your company has grand plans for evolution, growth and expansion and they value your future highly in that. And I don't believe that if your company doesn't grow, you will lose your job - you'll always have a post with them, as long as you want it and keep working hard. In other words, cheer up you miserable fucker!

I must say, I've never thought of you as the bitter, tough, been around the block type. I've always thought of you as a bit of a dork ... a bit like Ross in Friends. But I think I would probably suffer from the same problems as you do if I was to manage people (which I don't, thank God) in trying to please everyone all the time. It can't be done, and some people will never be pleased. A swift kick in the nuts normally straightens them out, though, I've found. And bollocks to your crack dealer ... he's a cnut. Talking of which, I see you have the Beckhams over there now (albeit on the other side of the country, I believe, from you) You're fucking welcome to them, particularly her. They got old and one-dimensional a long time ago over here. She's a fame-hungry whore and he is well past his best on the field. Did I mention she's a fame-hungry whore? I did? Well, she is. A fucking annoying one at that.

So, to summarise. Cheer up you twat. You're a dork. Beckhams are gay. I think I've covered all bases there.

Thank you again for writing. Good as ever, although perhaps a little insular and sorry for one's-self, compared to certain stories in the past. But it will come good again in the future and I believe your star will shine rather brightly in days to come.

Take care of yourself and KYN. All the best, old pal

David

P.S. In answer to your question in the last post's comments, I took 6 on the 18th at Carnoustie. It was only playing about 420 yards when we played it, although the course managers and, I believe, some R&A officials were inspecting the new tee they have built right next to the 17th green which adds about 100 yards on to the hole. We went up to have a look on the way past and asked them whether that was from where the big boys would be playing. The fairway looks virtually non-existant from back there. Out of bounds all the way down the left and a carry of about 250-260 to carry the first bend of the Barry Burn. Anyway, I smashed my drive down the right into the "rough" (which was very light 3 months ago) and only had a 9 iron into the green. I cut that right and left it on the edge of right-hand most bunker, on a downslope. I scuffed that one right across the green, off a bare lie, admittedly, hit a shoddy chip back and missed the putt. So I bettered Jean Van de Velde by one, but it was considerably easier when I played it and I didn't have any bloody great grandstands sitting on the edge of the green for my approach shot to bounce back off. So he's still more of a man than I am.