Predictions: 2019 Open Championship
July 17, 2019
The game’s oldest major will be contested in Northern Ireland this year at Royal Portrush. What has now become the year’s last major also brings easily the best title: Champion Golfer of the Year.
The pressure’s on for the big names, and the weather should be a factor. Who’s got the minerals?
LG
Winner: Rory McIlroy
Winning Score: -14
Runner Up: Francesco Molinari
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Despite him being a winner last week – Dylan Frittelli
Last Year’s Winner (Molinari) Will … (Win, Top10, Make the Cut, or Miss the Cut): Top 10
The Master’s Winner (TIGER) Will: Make Cut
The US Open/PGA Champion (Koepka) Will: Top 10
Dustin Johnson will: Make Cut
Justin Rose will: Make Cut
Rory McIlroy will: WIN
Jon Rahm will: Make Cut
Jordan Spieth will: Make Cut
Rickie Fowler will: Make Cut
Jason Day will: Miss Cut
Phil the Thrill will: Miss Cut
How many prior major winners will be in the Top 10: 3
Will someone win it, or will everyone else lose it? Rory runs the tables
What will be the biggest story of the tournament? Rory overcomes massive pressure to win!
JK
Winner: Rickie Fowler
Winning Score: -9
Runner Up: Justin Rose
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Chez Reavie
Last Year’s Winner (Molinari) Will … (Win, Top10, Make the Cut, or Miss the Cut): Top 10
The Master’s Winner (TIGER) Will: Top 10
The US Open/PGA Champion (Koepka) Will: Top 10
Dustin Johnson will: MC
Justin Rose will: Top 10
Rory McIlroy will: Make Cut — too much pressure
Jon Rahm will: MC
Jordan Spieth will: MC
Rickie Fowler will: WIN!
Jason Day will: MC
Phil the Thrill will: Top 10
How many prior major winners will be in the Top 10: 4
Will someone win it, or will everyone else lose it? Rickie plays beautifully on the last 4 holes to outlast a struggling field
What will be the biggest story of the tournament? Rory didn’t shoot 61
US Open 2019
June 13, 2019
Return to Pebble is always a great thing. Unfortunately, due to both LG and I traveling, we won’t have double predictions this time. Here’s my best guess…
Winner: Spieth
Runner Up: Brooks
Wining Score: -4
Low Amateur: Viktor Hovland
Molinari will…Top 10
Mickelson will…Top 5
DJ will…Top 10
Tiger will…Top 10
Will anyone miss the cut? Probably no one you care about
Will there be any unknowns on the leaderboard? No
Let’s Go Tiger!
Predictions: 2019 PGA Championship
May 15, 2019
The GOAT’s return to Bethpage Black. Will there be any other story besides Tiger? Likely not. But we’ll do our best to keep things interesting! JK attending this major live! Hopefully that makes his predictions better than most.
LG
Winner: Martin Trainer
Winning Score: -8
Runner Up: Tiger Woods
Low PGA Professional: Marty Jertson
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Trainer…
Last Year’s Winner (Koepka (also U.S. Open Champ)) Will … (Win, Top10, Make the Cut, or Miss the Cut): Top 10
The Master’s Winner (TIGER) Will: Top 10
The Open Champion (Molinari) Will: Make Cut
Dustin Johnson will: Make Cut
Justin Rose will: Make Cut
Rory McIlroy will: Make Cut
Jon Rahm will: Make Cut
Jordan Spieth will: Miss Cut
Rickie Fowler will: Make Cut
Jason Day will: Miss Cut
Phil the Thrill will: Make Cut
Friend of the blog – Martin Trainer will: WIN
How many prior major winners will be in the Top 10: 3
Will someone win it, or will everyone else lose it? Trainer comes from behind on Sunday and takes it down. Makes a double somewhere early in the round
What will be the biggest story of the tournament? I think you’re
JK
Winner: Trainer
Winning Score: -19
Runner Up: Jordan Spieth
Low PGA Professional: Marty Jertson
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Satoshi Kodaira
Last Year’s Winner (Koepka (also U.S. Open Champ)) Will … (Win, Top10, Make the Cut, or Miss the Cut): Top 10
The Master’s Winner (TIGER) Will: Top 10
The Open Champion (Molinari) Will: Top 10
Dustin Johnson will: Make Cut
Justin Rose will: Make Cut
Rory McIlroy will: Top 10
Jon Rahm (will: Make Cut
Jordan Spieth will: Top 10
Rickie Fowler will: Make Cut
Jason Day will: Miss Cut
Friend of the blog – Martin Trainer will: win, no matter where he finishes.
How many prior major winners will be in the Top 10: 8
Will someone win it, or will everyone else lose it? Win it….it’s the PGA, not the Open
What will be the biggest story of the tournament? For the PF, the biggest story will always be the first major of Martin Trainer’s career
Prediction: 2019 Masters
April 8, 2019
The best week of the year is finally upon us. It’s Masters Week!!!! Tiger is playing well and–maybe not as well as last year, but–there is a lot to be excited about seeing the big cat get back at it. Lots of younger guys punched their tickets playing well. And lots of the veterans trying to figure out the slopes of the greatest golf course on the planet. Will Rory finally complete the career slam? Can Phil win one more before the Champions Tour? Will Kuchar pay his caddy enough? Will Bryson be allowed to putt with the flagstick? LOTS of great stories, as always. Here we go….
JK
Winner: Marc Leishman
Winning Score: -14
Runner Up: Rory McIlroy
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Satoshi Kodaira
Last Year’s Winner (Reed) will: MC. We can only hope…
The US Open Champion and PGA Champion (Koepka, OWGR #4) will: Top 10. Dude can ball.
The Champion Golfer of 2017 (Molinari, OWGR #7) will: Make cut. He doesn’t putt well enough to play ANGC
How many prior Masters winners will be in the Top 10: 3
The Low Amateur will be: Devon Bling
Does the Low Amateur make the cut: No
Justin Rose (OWGR #1) will: Top 10
Dustin Johnson (OWGR #2) will: Make Cut
Rory McIlroy (OWGR #3) will: Top 10 (#2)
Justin Thomas (OWGR #5) will: Miss Cut
Bryson DeChambeau (OWGR #6) will: trip on the flagstick. MC
Jon Rahm (OWGR #8) will: MC.
Rickie Fowler (OWGR #9) will: Top 10
Xander Schauffele (OWGR #10) will: Top 10
Paul Casey (OWGR #11) will: Make Cut
Tiger Woods (OWGR #12) will: Top 10
Corey Conners (last man in) will: MC. Clock strikes 12:00 for Cinderella eventually
Jordan Spieth will: Top 10
Jason Day will: Make cut
Adam Scott will: Make cut
Bubba Watson will: Miss cut
Sergio Garcia will: Make cut
Phil Mickeslon will: Top 10
Bernhard Langer will: Miss cut
Will there be a hole in one: Probably
What will be the major storyline of the tournament: Tiger has another rules controversy
What is your Bold prediction: Leishman wins in playoff
LG
Winner: Rory McIlroy
Winning Score: -14
Runner Up: Tiger Woods
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Si Woo Kim
Last Year’s Winner (Reed) will: MC (hopefully)
The US Open Champion and PGA Champion (Koepka, OWGR #4) will: Make Cut
The Champion Golfer of 2017 (Molinari, OWGR #7) will: Top 10
How many prior Masters winners will be in the Top 10: 3
The Low Amateur will be: who cares?
Does the Low Amateur make the cut: Nope.
Justin Rose (OWGR #1) will: Make Cut
Dustin Johnson (OWGR #2) will: Make Cut
Rory McIlroy (OWGR #3) will: WIN!
Justin Thomas (OWGR #5) will: Make Cut
Bryson DeChambeau (OWGR #6) will: Miss Cut
Jon Rahm (OWGR #8) will: Miss Cut
Rickie Fowler (OWGR #9) will: Top 10
Xander Schauffele (OWGR #10) will: Miss Cut
Paul Casey (OWGR #11) will: Make Cut
Tiger Woods (OWGR #12) will: Top 10
Corey Conners (last man in) will: Top 10!
Jordan Spieth will: Miss Cut
Jason Day will: Miss Cut
Adam Scott will: Miss Cut
Bubba Watson will: Make Cut
Sergio Garcia will: Make Cut
Phil Mickeslon will: Make Cut
Bernhard Langer will: Miss Cut
Will there be a hole in one: Yes!
What will be the major storyline of the tournament: TIGER, then Rory.
Prediction: 2018 PGA Championship
August 8, 2018
For the first time in our 10(?)-ish year history, LG and I will be collaborating on our predictions for this major in-person. Also, we have a couple of guest predictions to see how a newbie does against the experienced guessers (my money is on much, much better).
JK
Winner: Jordan Spieth
Winning Score: -19
Runner Up: Rory McIlroy
Low PGA Professional: Johan Kok
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Luke List
Last Year’s Winner (Justin Thomas, OWGR #2) Will … (Win, Top10, Make the Cut, or Miss the Cut): Top 10
The Master’s Winner (Reed, #12) Will: Top 10
The US Open Winner (Koepka, #4) Will: Make Cut
The Open Champion (Molinari, #6) Will: Make Cut
Dustin Johnson (OWGR #1) will: Top 10
Justin Rose (#3) will: Make Cut
Rory McIlroy (#5) will: Top 10
Jon Rahm (#7) will: Miss Cut
Jordan Spieth (#8) will: Win
Rickie Fowler (#9) will: Top 10
Jason Day (#10) will: Make Cut
Tiger (#who cares) will: Make Cut
How many prior major winners will be in the Top 10: 6
Will someone win it, or will everyone else lose it? -15? someone wins it
What will be the biggest story of the tournament? Spieth completes the career slam
LG
Winner: Justin Thomas
Winning Score: -14
Runner Up: Rory
Low PGA Professional: Brian Smock
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Shubhankar Sharma
Last Year’s Winner (Justin Thomas, OWGR #2) Will … (Win, Top10, Make the Cut, or Miss the Cut): Win B2B
The Master’s Winner (Reed, #12) Will: Yell at a cameraman for jingling change. MC
The US Open Winner (Koepka, #4) Will: MC
The Open Champion (Molinari, #6) Will: Make Cut
Dustin Johnson (OWGR #1) will: Make Cut
Justin Rose (#3) will: Make Cut
Rory McIlroy (#5) will: Top 10
Jon Rahm (#7) will: Top 10
Jordan Spieth (#8) will: Top 10
Rickie Fowler (#9) will: Make Cut
Jason Day (#10) will: MC
Tiger (#who cares) will: Make Cut
How many prior major winners will be in the Top 10: 4
Will someone win it, or will everyone else lose it? Thomas goes out and wins it
What will be the biggest story of the tournament? Bellerive sucks, just like the TaylorMade High Toe wedge.
KB (guest post)
Winner: Jason Day
Winning Score: -20
Runner Up: Sheffaffle.
Low PGA Professional: Someone I’ve never heard of.
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Thorbjorn ❤
Last Year’s Winner (Justin Thomas, OWGR #2) Will … (Win, Top10, Make the Cut, or Miss the Cut): Self combust from too many consecutive interviews. Make Cut.
The Master’s Winner (Reed, #12) Will: Do better than anyone wants him to. Top10.
The US Open Winner (Koepka, #4) Will: Try to keep up with his playing partners. Top10.
The Open Champion (Molinari, #6) Will: Fizzle out. Make Cut.
Dustin Johnson (OWGR #1) will: Be average all week then come out of nowhere Sunday to finish just short of the W. Top10.
Justin Rose (#3) will: Come back from injury too early. MC.
Rory McIlroy (#5) will: Top10.
Jon Rahm (#7) will: MC.
Jordan Spieth (#8) will: Make Cut.
Rickie Fowler (#9) will: Shoot low round at least two days and high round at least one. And be distracted by his fiancée the whole time. Make Cut.
Jason Day (#10) will: T10.
Tiger (#who cares) will: Keep losing swing speed until I beat him in a long drive contest. Make Cut.
How many prior major winners will be in the Top 10: 4
Will someone win it, or will everyone else lose it? Win
What will be the biggest story of the tournament? Players sweat straight through their long pants.
TG (guest post)
Winner: Xander Schauffele
Winning Score: -9
Runner Up: Tommy Fleetwood
Low PGA Professional: Michael Block
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Russel Henley
Last Year’s Winner (Justin Thomas, OWGR #2) Will … (Win, Top10, Make the Cut, or Miss the Cut): Top 10
The Master’s Winner (Reed, #12) Will: Miss Cut
The US Open Winner (Koepka, #4) Will: Make Cut
The Open Champion (Molinari, #6) Will: Make Cut
Dustin Johnson (OWGR #1) will: Top 10
Justin Rose (#3) will: Top 10
Rory McIlroy (#5) will: Make Cut
Jon Rahm (#7) will: Miss Cut
Jordan Spieth (#8) will: Make Cut
Rickie Fowler (#9) will: Make Cut
Jason Day (#10) will: Top 10
Tiger (#who cares) will: Top 10
How many prior major winners will be in the Top 10: 4
Will someone win it, or will everyone else lose it? Everyone blows up
What will be the biggest story of the tournament? Tiger with ladies of the evening
Predictions: 2018 Open Champions
July 19, 2018
This year’s contest will take place at the site of arguably the greatest meltdown in golf history, or possibly sports history. Jean Van de Velde held a three stroke lead going into the 18th hole at Carnoustie in 1999. It’s painful to watch, but here you go: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dR1pkCGY80.
Happier memories of this course include it being the final stop on JK and LG’s trip to Scotland now two years ago. We got a first hand look at why this course is called CarNasty. It was one of the only times we were rained upon during the trip, and the course played VERY tough. The course this week appear to favor a strong and creative short game given the baked out and fast conditions. Perhaps the wind will kick up and give Carnoustie the teeth it is known for. Expect dreams to be shattered around Hogan’s alley, and for the 17th and 18th holes to play meaningful roles in determining the winner or loser.
LG:
WIN: Sergio Garcia
PLACE: Rory McIlroy
SHOW: Henrick Stenson
Winning Score: -10
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Kiradech Aphibarnrat
Last Year’s Winner (Spieth) Will …: Make Cut
The Master’s Winner (Reed) Will …: Miss Cut
The US Open Winner (Koepka) Will …: Miss Cut
The current PGA Champion (Thomas) will …: Make Cut
How many prior winners will be in the Top 10: 3
Will someone win it, or will everyone else lose it? Sergio wins and redeems himself!
What will be the biggest story of the tournament? Sergio winning, duh
Who is most likely to “Sergio Garcia at Carnoustie” it? I guess I’m going to have to say Rory given who I’ve got coming in second?
Will you watch on Sunday? Absolutely.
Tiger Woods will: Make cut and make a run
Sergio Garcia will: WIN
Dustin Johnson will: Make cut and make a quad somewhere
Jason Day will: Miss cut
Rory McIlroy will: Top 10 (2nd)
Phil Mickelson will: Make cut? honestly don’t care.
JK:
WIN: Russell Knox
PLACE: Tommy Fleetwood
SHOW: Tiger Woods
Winning Score: +2
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Beau Hossler
Last Year’s Winner (Spieth) Will … Make Cut
The Master’s Winner (Reed) Will …: Top 10
The US Open Winner (Koepka) Will …: Make Cut
The current PGA Champion (Thomas) will …: Make Cut
How many prior winners will be in the Top 10: 1
Will someone win it, or will everyone else lose it? Everyone else loses it
What will be the biggest story of the tournament? A Scot wins in Scotland
Who is most likely to “Sergio Garcia at Carnoustie” it? LG. I mean…this should obviously be called JVDV-ing it!
Will you watch on Sunday? Definitely
Tiger Woods will: Top 10
Sergio Garcia will: MC
Dustin Johnson will: Top 10
Jason Day will: Make Cut
Rory McIlroy will: Miss Cut
Phil Mickelson will: Miss Cut
Prediction: 2018 US Open
June 14, 2018
Shinnecock Hills looks nuts.
JK:
Winner: Rory McIlroy
Winning Score: -2
Runner Up: Jason Day
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Alex Noren
Last Year’s Winner (Koepka) will…: Make the Cut
Masters Champion (Reed) will …: Top 10
British Open Champion (Spieth (OWGR #4)) will …: Miss the cut
PGA Champion (Justin Thomas (OWGR #2)) will…: Make the cut
Last week’s winner, DJ (OWGR #1), will…: Top 3
Justin Rose (OWGR #3) will: Make the cut
Jon Rahm (OWGR #5) will: Top 10
Phil Mickelson (6x runner up) will: Miss cut
Tiger Woods (duh) will: Make cut on the number
Will anyone break par for all 4 rounds?: no way
What will be the highest score that misses the cut?: +19
What will be the highest single hole score?: 11
What will be the major storyline of the tournament: Cory Pavin
Bold Prediction?: There are more Cory Pavin videos than Rolex commercials, and everyone forgets that Retief Goosen won it at Shinnecock more recently than Pavin.
LG might not be able to put in his predictions, so let me just fill in what I already know he’s going to say…
Winner: Tiger
Winning Score: -1,000,000
Runner Up: Tiger! He gets all spots!
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Who cares? Tiger!
Last Year’s Winner (Koepka) will…: Loser!
Masters Champion (Reed) will …: Loser!
British Open Champion (Spieth (OWGR #4)) will …: Loser!
PGA Champion (Justin Thomas (OWGR #2)) will…: Loser!
Last week’s winner, DJ (OWGR #1), will…: Loser!
Justin Rose (OWGR #3) will: Loser!
Jon Rahm (OWGR #5) will: Loser!
Phil Mickelson (6x runner up) will: Double Loser!
Tiger Woods (duh) will: TIGER!!!! WIN THAT SHIT!!
Will anyone break par for all 4 rounds?: TIGER!!!
What will be the highest score that misses the cut?: who cares? GO TIGER!
What will be the highest single hole score?: TIGER!
What will be the major storyline of the tournament: TIGER!
Bold Prediction?: TIIIIIIIIIIGER!
Prediction: 2018 Masters
April 5, 2018
Finally, it’s back. The golf season can start again. But it won’t begin if LG and I don’t pick our guys for this year. Without further ado, here it goes…
JK:
Winner: Justin Rose
Winning Score: -9
Runner Up: Tiger Woods
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Alex Noren
Last Year’s Winner (Sergio) will … (Win, Top10, Make the Cut, or Miss the Cut): MC
The US Open Champion (Brooks Koepka) will …: MC
The Champion Golfer of 2017 (Jordan Spieth) will …: Top 10
PGA Champion (Justin Thomas) will …: Top 10
How many prior Masters winners will be in the Top 10: 3
The Low Amateur will be…: Doc Redman
Does the Low Amateur make the cut?: Yes
Jordan Spieth will … Top 10
Jason Day will … MC
Rory McIlroy will … Top 10
Hideki Matsuyama will … Make Cut
Justin Thomas will … Top 10
Rickie Fowler will … Top 10
Adam Scott will … Make Cut
Bubba Watson will … Miss Cut
Sergio Garcia will … Miss Cut
Phil Mickeslon will … Top 10
Bernhard Langer will … Make Cut
Will there be a hole in one? Yes – 12…someone finally does it.
What will be the major storyline of the tournament? I already got it–this is awesome: https://www.cbssports.com/golf/news/watch-jack-nicklaus-grandson-hits-a-hole-in-one-at-the-masters-par-3-tournament/
What is your Bold prediction? Tiger Woods doesn’t fall out of contention.
LG:
Winner: Tiger Woods
Winning Score: -10
Runner Up: Rory McIlroy
“Unknown” in the Top 10: Xander Schauffele
Last Year’s Winner (Sergio) will … (Win, Top10, Make the Cut, or Miss the Cut): make cut
The US Open Champion (Brooks Koepka) will …: MC hammer
The Champion Golfer of 2017 (Jordan Spieth) will …: top 10
PGA Champion (Justin Thomas) will …: top 10
How many prior Masters winners will be in the Top 10: 4
The Low Amateur will be…: Doc Redman
Does the Low Amateur make the cut?: No
Jordan Spieth will … Top 10
Jason Day will … make cut
Rory McIlroy will … runner up
Hideki Matsuyama will … top 10
Justin Thomas will … top 10
Rickie Fowler will … make cut
Adam Scott will … mc
Bubba Watson will … make cut
Sergio Garcia will … make cut
Phil Mickeslon will … top 10
Bernhard Langer will … be there?
Will there be a hole in one? Yes.
What will be the major storyline of the tournment? Best masters of our lifetime. I’m sorry, JK, no one cares about the par 3 contest. It’s great, but no one will remember this.
What is your Bold prediction? Tiger wins green jacket #5.
Congratulations, Martin Trainer!
March 29, 2018
Somewhat in keeping with our tradition of a “Play of the week,” we’ll call this one a “Play of a lifetime.”
On March 11, 2018, Martin Trainer shoots -14 after SUNDAY QUALIFYING for the El Bosque Mexico Championship by Innova for his first win on the WEB.COM TOUR. He’s the first player on the TOUR to complete this feet since 2016, and went from no status at all to fully exempt on the WEB.COM TOUR through 2019. He’s also put himself in prime position to make it all the way to the PGA TOUR next year. Truly a life-changing weekend.
Congrats, buddy!
How did LG’s professional golf debut begin? As with most things, it all started with a phone call:
LG answers: “Marty! What’s up?”
MT: “LG!! I just got a call – I got an exemption into the Web Event at Stonebrae!! You free to caddie???”
LG: “Let’s gooooo!!!!”
Specifically, the gig was to caddie for one of my good friends and a rising star on the Web.com Tour, Martin Trainer. For anyone who doesn’t follow professional golf reading this article, the Web.com Tour is the feeder tour to the PGA TOUR that is televised every week on major networks, ESPN, and the Golf Channel.
The event was the Ellie Mae Classic held at scenic TPC Stonebrae in Hayward, California. Since I’ve been lucky enough to play this track a few times before the event, the experience was all the more eye-opening for me. By a fortunate turn of events, I was also invited to play in the Wednesday Pro-Am with Martin, so I managed to get involved in nearly every activity associated with the event. (I suppose that’s two interesting/unique golf experiences!) I can’t say enough good things about the event or the course. Both are phenomenal and I highly recommend that everyone in the Bay Area try to make it out to play the course and watch the event next year.
The week began with caddying on Monday in the Junior pro am (which we won!) and the first sponsors pro-am. On Wednesday, events included the pro-am I played in, followed by the competitive rounds Thursday-Sunday. To answer the most pressing question: Martin did well to put himself at -9 and in contention through two rounds, and shooting an incredible back nine six under 29 on Sunday to finish T-16, and get himself into the Web.com Tour event the following week in Missouri. It is further notable that this was his first Web.com made cut!
What Does A Caddie Do, Exactly?
TL;DR version: a lot. If you saw a description Craigslist, it might read: get to the course early, know the course backward and forward, carry the bag, keep up with or in front of your player without disturbing other players, know when to talk and when not to talk, get yardages, pull clubs, rake bunkers for your player and others to keep the group moving, make sure there’s water and food in the bag, tend the pin, clean clubs and balls, and remove as many distractions as possible, shove a snickers in the player’s mouth when they’re irritable, and make sure the player isn’t going to lose any shots due to stupid mistakes like having too many clubs in the bag, teeing the ball in the wrong spot, or taking a bad drop. If rain is involved, there’s a whole other element involving an umbrella that just looks annoying. Amateur golfers are familiar with all of these, except for the particular Tour quirk of managing a book/pin sheet and getting yardages. Most folks that play the game frequently make use of either a rangefinder or GPS device, but these are not allowed on the professional tours. Instead, we’re relegated to the arcane days of black and white topological drawings and drainage heads. Believe it or not, saying “drainage head says it’s about 150 to the middle” doesn’t cut it.
Once the basics are mastered, then the role can evolve based on the needs of the individual player. Some guys need to talk through every single detail of every shot; some guys only want you to carry the bag and not say a word. Without exception when a player asks a question and says “…right?” at the end, they want you to say “yeah, definitely.”
My particular role this week, as I saw it, was to make this tournament feel as much like a home game as possible for Martin. Mostly, I just tried to stay out of his way, but I took it as my personal mission to give him as much crap as possible about his game while also bringing extra Trader Joe’s snacks that he and I both love to eat on the golf course. I also lost several lunches to him per our standing side bet on the course. (Bonchon fried chicken for days). I’m happy you did well, Marty, but we need to renegotiate this bet.
The Experience of Caddying on a Professional Tour
The experience was very different from playing golf. It felt like much more work than actually playing golf. There was no personal enjoyment to be realized because I wasn’t hitting shots, but I took an enormous amount of pleasure in watching my friend realize a career goal he has worked very hard to achieve. When someone in the group was playing badly, the mood seemed to hang over the entire group – certainly more so than in a regular weekend game. Nerves seemed to get frayed more easily and little things like the sound of bugs buzzing nearby or someone talking on the tee behind us that would normally not annoy me on the golf course seemed exaggerated. At other times, the quiet was deafening.
The biggest difference from what you see on TV is that (unless you’re one of a select number of people) there are rarely people following your group, and a lot of professional golf is just a horribly boring wait with people who are not very interesting to talk with. I’ve never spoken so little with people during 6 hour rounds of golf. It isn’t a very glamorous job, or constantly hobnobbing with Tour stars. Even in this slow environment, if a caddie is doing the job right, he or she will almost forget that there are other players in the group…almost.
Finally, the experience of watching a player shoot 29 live was one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen in golf. It honestly felt like the bag got lighter as we sprinted around the back nine on Sunday. The moment was made even more spectacular because several of Martin’s buddies from high school were around to watch this feat and cheer him on for every birdie. 11 putts, one chip in, and three 2s on the scorecard in 9 holes! how do you not get excited about that?
Selected Items I Learned
With respect to the golf itself, I learned that professional golfers are MUCH better than we think they are with the long clubs, and make the same mistakes we do with the short clubs. Looking at stats or watching a golf telecast doesn’t really tell the whole story because these are necessarily summaries of the round, or at best cherry-picked examples of great or awful play. It’s not the “320 yard” 3 wood from the juicy lie in the fairway that was impressive. Instead, watching these guys hit driving irons or fairway metals from, at best, questionable lies in the rough to within yards of their targets 260-290 yards away is what blew my mind. At the same time, watching these guys hit chip shots 15 yards from the green that don’t hit the surface or run 10 feet by were mind blowing for other reasons. These guys also take much less time from tee to green than most amateurs, but SIGNIFICANTLY more time around the green and on the green itself. I’m not sure there’s a lesson in there, but it was notable.
My biggest takeaway was that amateurs make golf too hard. We fixate on perfecting our swings to a professional ideal or making sure our clubs are exactly to the right specifications, but beyond a certain point, none of that really helps getting the ball in the hole. Yes, these guys have any number of training aids out on the putting green/driving range and they’re taking video/trackman data, but all of that goes out the window when they step up to the tee. On the course, I saw driver swings and putting strokes that would make most swing coaches blush. But they worked. They got the ball where it needed to be and they made birdies. These guys got the most out of the swings they brought to the course that day because they’re hustlers. It didn’t always look pretty, but somehow always had a low number next to it at the end of 18 holes.
As a footnote to this section, I must note that caddying is a thankless job. Every bogey is the caddie’s fault, and every birdie is because the player is amazing. It’s just that kind of job. You occasionally see a Bones, Stevie, Fluff, or Michael Greller who get some credit, but even on the PGA Tour, for every one of them, you have at least 30 guys who might as well not bother. It’s not a job that allows for an ego or thin skin. This was certainly not the case with Martin and me, but it was clearly apparent from other player/caddie pairings.
Rapid Fire Questions from No Gimmes
In preparing for this post, I asked friend-of-the-blog and host of the No Gimmes Podcast Chris Derr if he had any questions regarding the experience that he thought folks would like answered. Like the champion that he is, Derrz fired off the following questions that I have presented below in interview format:
CD: What shoes/hat did you wear?
LG: As far as shoes, I wore a pair of Nike sneakers. They were absolutely destroyed after this tournament because Stonebrae is one of those courses that NO ONE should ever walk – much less with a bag on their back. Also, I’d probably consider something slightly more waterproof next time for those early AM tee times. As far as hat, clearly the bucket hat was the play for the magical back nine Sunday. I was coerced into wearing a baseball cap the middle two days and sincerely regret caving to the pressure.
CD: How talkative where you to other players in your group?
LG: One guy, Bobby Gates, was an absolute pleasure to talk to. We talked about everything from coffee and BBQ to generally living in SF and the South. He also has one of the most badass wedges I’ve ever seen. Check it out here. Most of the other guys were not terribly talkative, or interesting to talk to.
CD: Did you ever feel like an idiot?
LG: Pretty much only the first hole of the tournament. I put the bag down in the visual line of one of the players in the group and he asked me to move it. I think I got the hang of it pretty quick.
CD: Best shot you saw?
LG: This one is easy – Thursday, Marty hit a 3W 289 yards into the par five 9th hole after an ENORMOUS drive to about 8″. Kick-in eagle. Didn’t even need to take the head cover off the putter.
CD: Worst shot you saw?
LG: The worst shot due to poor execution was probably a chip on the par four 5th hole. The worst shot due to poor course management and being angry was a 3W on the par five 9th that ended up way short in the crap that resulted in a bogey that should have been no worse than par.
CD: Most uncomfortable you were out there?
LG: Walking the 5th hole. Stonebrae is one of the worst walks from the perspective of caddying or playing on the professional tours, but hey, I took it in stride. The course is great, but man those hills can be nasty on a hot day.
CD: What was the most underwhelming part of the experience?
LG: How little some players think of their caddies. This was truly disappointing. At one point, I offered one of the guys in our group some advice about where to eat in San Francisco (since I was the only person in the group that actually lives in San Francisco), and the player immediately turns to Martin to ask him whether that’s good advice. Dick.
CD: What part of the experience surprised you the most?
LG: How the players dealt with the rules. In any instance where there was even the smallest question related to a drop or possible rules issue, the players almost reflexively called for a rules official. I get that this is reasonable in questionable situations, but at one point, a player called an official to pretty clearly just get a better lie on the apron after missing the green on a short par 3. Come on, guy.
CD: How did you combat caddie syndrome (wanting to play golf instead of watching it)?
LG: I’m not sure one week of caddying was enough to induce the syndrome! I felt like I learned a lot about how the professional game is played, which was fascinating. I could see how this would develop, especially if the course was one that I’d like to play, so I think I’d probably either try to gamble on the tournament, or play a game in my head to see if could guess the shot shape/landing point of my player’s shots.
CD: How much different was caddying in the Ellie Mae for Martin than caddying for me in the U.S. Open Qualifier at Yocha De He this year?
LG: Both were actually pretty intense! I definitely read fewer putts and had fewer conversations with Martin than with you, but had a great time doing both! Despite Stonebrae being the tougher track to walk, I think I was the most exhausted after our round because it was my first experience doing it. In any event, getting to play meaningful rounds of golf with good players is always a good time.
Be sure to also check out LG’s interview on No Gimmes!
End Notes
First, I would be remiss in failing to mention that the Ellie Mae Classic was also the professional golf debut of Golden State Warriors Guard Stephen Curry. Curry’s presence at the tournament turned the event into a spectacle that drew thousands of fans who had likely never set foot on a golf course. The feeling was electric around every tee box, and as only Steph Curry can do, he delivered. Back-to-back rounds of +4 74 on a 7,100 yard layout to beat 3 touring professionals is no joke. I followed Curry for his Friday round and was shocked by his composure and how well his game held up in TOUR conditions. Not only was he keeping up with his playing partners Stephan Jaeger and Sam Ryder, he was actually hitting it PAST them. Ironically, it was his iron play and putting that seemed to keep him from making more birdies. Based on my interviews of our playing partners, folks on the range, and the tournament staff, the overwhelming consensus is that Curry’s involvement in the event was positive. For myself, I sincerely hope he continues to play in the event and draw crowds to this spectacular event.
For more Curry-related golf content, check out the coverage on the Web.com Tour Official Site.
Second, no piece about caddying is complete without citing to THE original story about caddying:
Note the bucket hat. Essential caddie garb.
Any questions I didn’t answer? Please comment below and I’ll answer them all!
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