Caddie
Ingolfordisc golf,acaddie(orcaddy) is the person who assists a golfer on the course. Typical duties for a caddie include carrying a player'sbagandclubsor discs, performing any course maintenance that is the player's responsibility (e.g. repairing divots and raking bunkers) and offering the player advice andmoral support.Other nicknames for the position is a looper or jock.[1]
Etymology
[edit]TheScotswordcaddieorcawdywas derived in the 17th century from the French wordcadetand originally meant a student military officer. It later came to refer to someone who did odd jobs.[1][2]By the 19th century, it had come to mean someone who carried clubs for a golfer, or in its shortened form,cad,a man of disreputable behaviour.[3]
History
[edit]The first recorded use of a caddie was in Edinburgh in 1681 by the futureJames VII of Scotlandwhen taking part in the first international golf contest.[4][better source needed]
Earnings
[edit]Caddies tend to be low paid, and usually get only a small share of prize money. At a professional level, they work as contractors to individual players but without guaranteed hours. In 2020, caddies on thePGA European Tourbecame eligible to earn bonuses through sponsors' logos on their gear.[5]
In popular culture
[edit]Caddies have been depicted in television, films, and books, including:
- The Caddy,a 1953 musical comedy film starringDean MartinandJerry Lewis
- McAuslan in the Rough,a 1974 short story byGeorge MacDonald Fraserin which a disreputable Scottish soldier caddies for his regimental sergeant major
- Caddyshack,a 1980 comedy film featuringBill Murray
- Brown's Requiem,a 1981 crime novel byJames Ellroy,who worked as a caddie while writing his first books
- The Legend of Bagger Vance,a 2000 film based on the 1995 book bySteven Pressfield,The Legend of Bagger Vance: A Novel of Golf and the Game of Life,features Vance as an angelic caddie.
- The Greatest Game Ever Played,a 2005 film about1913 US openwhereFrancis Ouimet(Shia LaBeouf) wins with his caddieEddie Lowery(Josh Flitter).
- Loopers: The Caddie's Long Walk,a 2018 documentary narrated by Bill Murray[6][7]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^"caddie, noun".Merriam-Webster Dictionary.Merriam-Webster, Incorporated.Retrieved25 February2019.
- ^"Caddie".Oxford Dictionaries.Oxford University Press.2019.Archivedfrom the original on 25 February 2019.Retrieved25 February2019.
- ^"The Strange Route from 'Cadet' to 'Cad'".Merriam-Webster, Incorporated.Retrieved25 February2019.
- ^"Golfer's Land".Atlas Obscura.13 March 2015.
- ^"Why a Golf Caddie Group Set Up a Sponsorship Program for Its Members".Associations Now.2020-01-15.Retrieved2020-01-15.
- ^Beall, Joel (23 January 2019)."Bill Murray narrates new film that explores the lives of caddies".Golf Digest.Condé Nast Publications.Retrieved25 February2019.
- ^Howell, Andy (15 February 2019)."Loopers: The Caddie's Long Walk".Film Threat.Retrieved25 February2019.
External links
[edit]
- European Tour Caddies Association
- "Caddies making a comeback",The Seattle Times
- "Notes from the Caddieshack"- a McSweeney's Internet Tendency column about being a caddie in the Chicago suburbs