CaddieMaster Manages Caddie Programs
It’s sort of a dream of mine to play golf on a course that has a well-run caddie program. Or actually, on a course that has any sort of caddies at all. Every course I’ve played eschews caddies in favor of golf carts. And from a financial standpoint, I don’t blame them. When you take on caddies as employees, you assume a massive obligation, including payroll taxes, workman’s compensation, and other liabilities.
Golf carts, on the other hand, are simply a revenue stream.
But I recently ran across a company called CaddieMaster that may help to alleviate some of that burden. CaddieMaster basically allows a course to “outsource” its caddie program. Caddiemaster handles recruitment, training, and management of caddies and caddie masters. It’s sort of like a caddie Administaff (a company which offers off-site human resources management for small busineses, and which Arnold Palmer endorses).
I love the idea, and hope that it brings caddies back to many, many courses. If there was a public course in my area that offered a good caddie program, I’d go out of my way to play.
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I recently worked for this company, and let me tell you that if 60 minutes did an undercover investigation, it would be downright comical. I persoanlly have over 10 years of “high end” country club experience. Over the years I have caddied for likes of Dan Quayle, Peter Ueberoth, and many influential and powerful men accross the United States. At no time in the hiring process were my qualifications, references, or experience addressed. In fact, when I did express my history, I received a bit of an attitude from management. I was told the training process was 20 hours, it actually was before sun up, to sun down 4 days. I believe it was more like 48 hours. During most of the training process I was sometimes tag teamed by two trainers at the same time. No matter what I did, it seemed to be wrong, and I am talking about a bag being asked to be moved literally an inch a few times. It was downright absurd. The jokers who trained me, I had more experience than all of them combined. At certain points during the training as a prospective employee that is being trained, you are asked to play some golf to help with the training. I tell you what! The guys who were real good golfers and had experience cadying, are with out a doubt being predjuiced against, where as the “green” were actually treated in a much different fashion. I compare the training to that of the military, where trainers are told to break down the prospective employees who are good golfers( or better than the trainers) and have vast experience caddying. They were downright rude to me, and were very pleasant with others who had no experience caddying, and were lesser skilled golfers. Now what kind of company that is trying to establish a quality caddy program, would run itself like this? And it is all true what I say.
Recently there was an article in Golf weekly, where an editor blasted the caddy’s at what he referred to a well known P.G.A tour tournament hosting course. He was relentless about the lack of excellence with-in the program, right down to robotic, and rehearsed and scripted behavior by the caddys. The man hit it on the head! Truth is, the company is for lesser experienced, weaker type caddys, who cannot make the cut at the truly elite country clubs in the United States. Ask anyone who is anyone at a top notch facility about this company, and you will quickly see that their repuation is poor at best. This is why most of the courses that use the company,are public facilitys only. Or very busy resort courses, where the golfers are a very high handicap quality, and usually do not know a good caddy if it hit them in the head! Good players, know good caddies! Accomplished players, know good caddies. 24 handicaps who flock to a resort style course, because it host a P.G.A tour event, do not know good and proper caddies.
Augusta National uses this company, and this is the one exception from what I have spoken about, but I assure you that it will not be long til that changes. Remeber, good players, know good caddies!
Posted by Paul Azinger ( anonymous ) on 05/21
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