Hi guys. This is my first post on 2p2 but I have been following for a while. As far as poker goes I am a recreational player and I play mostly 2-5. I thought you might be interested to know about the life of a caddie at one of the best golf courses in America. I saw a few of you talk about the tournament so I thought now would be a good time to post this thread. So ask me anything you want.

Biggest name you ever caddied for?

Biggest tip?

Is that pin on 14 today as dumb as it seems?

Ever get to caddie in the tourney?

Also, what's it like to be the second best caddie on this forum?

Biggest name you ever caddied for?
Never caddied for anyone too famous. Caddied in a group in between Doc Rivers' and Larry David's groups. My buddy caddied for Kenneth Cole in Larry David's foursome

Biggest tip?

On a normal loop 250. It was a guy who was a member at a nice club around here and I helped him beat his son in a match. Sometimes we get corporate groups and get grat out of the golf shop so it's possible to make more. Normal tip is 50 per bag

Is that pin on 14 today as dumb as it seems?
Under tournament conditions, yes it is pretty rediculous. You need to be within about 120 yards to take on the huge bunker otherwise you probably won't be able to stop the ball on the green. My favorite miss is a little long and right of the hole. You don't really want to be behind the pin because it is a very touchy shot. If you mess up, you are most likely back to the bottom right of the green

Ever get to caddie in the tourney?
Not the AT&T. I don't have enough connections yet. I have caddied in the First Tee Open, which is a Pro-Am on the Champions Tour. Also in a few other small tournaments.

Also, what's it like to be the second best caddie on this forum?
Lots of better caddies than me lol but I am working hard on becoming the best I can

A little more background. I'm 23 years old and this is my third year working at Pebble. There are a lot more experienced guys out there but by rough estimate I have done 300 loops at Pebble 100 at Spyglass and 100 at Spanish Bay

What % of the people you caddie for are local and what % traveled just to play golf?

Thanks for doing this, you seem a bit too humble for this forum, though. lol. Can you describe the caddie culture? (Demographics, tendencies, camaraderie, etc..)

Actually, I think caddying seems like it would be a difficult job, but do you think it might be a bit easier at Pebble since most people are unfamiliar with having a caddy, and are a bit euphoric in that they're checking something off of their bucket list? I would think if you were caddying for regular members, they'd be taking it out on you when they have a bad round, etc..

****tiest weather you ever caddied in?
Do you caddied elsewhere (ie do you go to Scottsdale in the off season)?
Best hole on the golf course IYO?
Worst hole on the golf course IYO?

Quote:

Originally Posted by BadBoyBenny

What % of the people you caddie for are local and what % traveled just to play golf?

I'd say it is about 99 percent out of towners.

The caddie culture is very unique. Especially at Pebble Beach with the seniority system in place. All different kinds of people are attracted to the lifestyle because you can set your own schedule. You can even have a day job like being a teacher and caddie on weekends and summers. I wouldn't call caddying hard. It is taxing mentally and emotionally, but mostly it is a "good" tired. You have to be really self aware though because as an independent contractor you don't make money when you're hurt.

There are a lot of characters in the caddie shack. Mostly everyone is nice, but the older guys sure do complain a lot. If your bags are too heavy, most of the senior guys will just throw them on a cart which is very lol against protocol.

You kind of hit the nail on the head about the players. Throw in that a lot are high handicappers. I have had mostly enjoyable people though and I think the bucket list aspect has something to do with it. I have heard that the members at Spyglass are very cheap when it comes to tips, but caddies are also spoiled when it comes to gratuity lol.

Halloween this year was pretty bad sideways rain and 40 MPH wind. I worked for a guy name Mike Meyers that day lol. This December during the Lexus event was pretty bad too.

I haven't gone anywhere for the off season. A lot of people do, but I am local to this area and I can still make some money during the winter. I am thinking about staying with my grandma in Park City, Utah next winter. Either that or I'd like to travel to a foreign country

The best hole IMO is number 8. You need a well placed first shot, and even if you hit it perfect you have 170 down a cliff( plays the full yardage). Add in a tough green and you have a tough but not impossible hole. Women mostly have to go over the left side of the ravine, have their ball kick right and get up and down for par, which makes it a little harder. I am also fond of the first 3 holes and I like 16

Worst hole IMO is 9. If you are a long hitter, you can hit it down the hill, but you are in danger of getting kicked in to the hazard right or thick rough on a downhill lie to your left. If you are a shorter hitter, you are going to have 210-220 into the hole on a par 4. Particularly brutal for women. For some reason I don't really like hole 6. Probably because of the fact that it's kind of a cluster**** giving people their lines to the hole.

14 is honorable mention for worst, though I guess it depends on what type of player you are. Very long hole, with a touchy approach. You are screwed short, left, and long. Pin high right is the place to miss

hey, thx for doing this.... what about that weather about a week and a half ago? was like a combination of a monsoon and being in a car wash.

do you agree with the common assessment that pebble is very ordinary if the hole isn't on the water?

surprised you think 9 is the worst hole. i absolutely love 8 thru 10 (i realize you had 8th as best hole)..... would have thought 13, 11 and 1 would have been candidates for worst hole..

anyone ever put it over the bunker and stopped it on 14 in 2 shots without playing some way forward tee? for a really top player, is putting it in that bunker in 2 shots a good option?

does pebble have members? or do rich local guys just pay the $300 or so each time?

what do you think of 15? surprised you like #1....... i think #2 and #3 are underrated holes.

it's funny. i have a hard time differentiating #9 and #10 in my mind. love watching tee shots landing on those holes.

someone mentioned off-season as winter... i would have thought summer might have been off-season to a certain degree.......

does the course play a lot differently given how much drier it's been the last 5 years?

i think actually seeing #7 is probably the biggest disappointment of my entire golf life.

#6 is neat hole. maybe a little overrated though. and if you are playing for 1st time and without a caddy you will be lost. kinda like #18 at half moon bay ocean course. i have no idea what's going on at that hole (half moon bay 18) with huge number of pedestrians near your shot line and having no idea how far to the other side you can hit it.j

Neat AMA. Thanks.

How often do you and your fellow caddies get a chance to play the course?

Best round someone has shot that you were on the bag for? How about worst?

What could I, as a golfer, do to make your job easier / the round more pleasant?

Describe the worst patron you've ever looped for. What made him/her so bad?

How often do you and your fellow caddies get a chance to play the course? once a year for free, but I get to play Spanish Bay because technically I am a Spanish Bay Caddie.

Best round someone has shot that you were on the bag for? How about worst? During a tournament for college players a kid I caddied for shot 2 under over 3 days and left a lot out there. I see a lot more bad scores. One Time I worked for a guy from Dallas who drove up after a business trip to LA. It was the slowest day of the year, a few days before the Councours De Elegans(Snooty Car Show). They had run a shotgun earlier so it was a strange day in that the course wasn't jam packed afterwards. The guy asked the starter if we could go off the back, just me and him. He had me keep score for him. He scored 102 with about 55 "don't count that" shots, mostly in the bunker. Super nice guy though. Tipped me 140 and we were done in around 3 hours. Since we started on number 9, hole 7 was our penultimate hole, and since no one was around, we played the hole together. Even though he was a horrible player, we both made par. It was his only natural par of the day lol

What could I, as a golfer, do to make your job easier / the round more pleasant?
Lighten your load. Most caddies will have change out bags. If you really need a bunch of stuff or you are drinking or have a gallery then get a cart. You don't need to ride in it at all. It is 98 percent as efficient but some people just want the stigma of walking next to their caddie at Pebble. If you are personable try to build a good relationship with your caddie. If not, just make sure they know it's nothing personal. For us it is a work environment. We work better when working together with a person to play to their strengths. We work worse in a hostile setting. The most important part is getting a good clear understanding of the patron's expectations, so that you can work together. Most of this just falls into place which is nice.
Describe the worst patron you've ever looped for. What made him/her so bad? Just some snobby rich people from Denver. A dad with his son and son's friend. Tee off at 4 o clock and leave after playing 14 holes because they were cold. They were playing the next day too. I really hated their attitude. Even though I got to stop early and I made 100 dollar tip on a single bag, which is great,I really could not stand them. I am lucky though because this is one of the few bad loops I can remember. Most days are good to exceptional[/QUOTE].

How much do you get paid other than the tip?

around $65 per bag for carrying and 35 a bag for forecaddie. You start off a little lower

Do you get any repeat customers or referrals? I would imagine if a golfer is comfortable with you, it's a big deal as it eliminates the uncertainty of getting a ****ty caddy. Although, I realize most players are one and done.

How good are you at reading the greens? How much time do you spend learning the greens?

I mean you seem like a nice kid but you don't have any good stories? You get asked about your worst loop and its a rich duo that quits with four holes left?

How did you get this job? Is it not an extremely competitive position? Seems like there would always be more caddies than golfers

.

I guess there are just not too many bad days. At least not ones worth remembering. The two other bad loops I can remember were just bad tips from mid westerners and Japanese people

It wasn't too hard of a job to get. I applied, did a few interviews, 5 days of training and 4 shadow loops then I was off and running. There are around 220 caddies, but we also service Spyglass and Spanish Bay

What's the avg. pace of play? Longer because people want everything to be perfect (i.e. they take longer with wanting to play every shot perfectly because you only get one chance at PB)?

PB's procedure on double bagging? How many loops have you done? How much harder is it?

I played in a private event at Cypress Point...sick sick course have you ever been over and looped or played?

Played Pebble and enjoyed it but after CP was kind of meh lol.

The day @ PB I tipped my caddie $100 and my buddy tipped his $50 older guy named Carl (sp) and he wasn't impressed lol

Cool thread. I caddie at a club in Dallas. (95% forecaddie)

What's the pace of play like?

What kind of condition is the course in throughout the year? They ever close the course?

You have to ever carry two bags at once?