CaddyShack of Fame


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Al Robertson – of course the 1st professional golfer ever would be an enterprising hustler from the caddieyard.




Alan C. Blomquist – Executive Producer of such movies as Walk the LineChocolat, and What’s Eating Gilbert Grape.  At age 15, he got his first view of movie making being a caddie at a golf course where he saw Norman Jewison directing Steve McQueen in a scene for The Thomas Crown Affair.







Alfred “Rabbit” Dyer – longtime looper of Gary Player.







Ali Sher – started looping at the Delhi Golf Club.  First Indian to win the Indian Open in 1991 and again in 1993.  Today he has an honorary membership at the Delhi Golf Club.








Andres Romero – grew up in Yerba Buena in northern Argentina.  Caddied at The Jockey Club near Buenos Aires.






Angel Cabrera – El Pato is from Cordoba, Argentina.  Won the 2007 US Open at Oakmont.  Started at age 10 looping at the Cordoba Golf Club and was unable to finish elementary school.







Angelo Argea – former looper of Jack and the founder of the PCA (Professional Caddies Association).








Arnold Palmer – The King became a caddie at the age of 11 growing up in Latrobe, Pennsylvania.  This charismatic legend won seven major championships and more importantly made golf a mainstream American sport.



Ben Hogan – Caddied at Glen Garden with Byron Nelson.  The Wee Iceman had 64 victories and 9 major championships (many of these coming after a terrible car accident in 1949).  An icy Texas golfer and a notable strong zeekster. 






Bill Casper – looped at the San Diego Country Club.  He won 51 times including the 1959 and ’66 US Open and the ’70 Masters.







Bill Clinton – the 42nd President of the United States caddied at various golf courses in Arkansas and once looped in the Hot Springs Open for another Ex-looping PGA star Tommy Bolt.


Bing Crosby – silver screen exlooping luminary and two handicap.  A legendary singer and actor whose career helped pave the way Sinatra and Dean Martin.  He has three stars on Hollywood Blvd.  “Straight Down the Middle” was a song popularized by Bing.


Bill Murray – this acting legend carried bags at Indian Hill Club in Winnetka, IL.  Played the infamous role as Carl Spackler in Caddyshack.


Bob Hope – this Hollywood Icon and his family immigrated to Cleveland, OH in the middle of the 1907 depression.  He worked odd jobs: as a caddie, a newspaper boy, in a meat market, a shoe store, and in a drugstore.  He played his first round of golf in 1927 at Cleveland’s own Highland Park Golf Course.  He started the Bob Hope Classic in 1960, still played to this day.


Brian Doyle-Murray – Co-writer of Caddyshack.  Brother of Bill Murray. Looped at the Indian Hill Club like his brother in Winnetka, IL.


Bruce Fleisher – got started in golf at age seven working as a caddie with his two brothers.  He has amassed eighteen wins on the Champions Tour.


Bruce Edwards – caught the caddy bug at the Wethersfield Country Club in Connecticut.  Bruce began looping for Tom Watson in 1973, together they had 35 tour wins.  He became a well known public figure in 2003 while publicly fighting Lou Gehrig’s disease in the last 16 months of his life.


Byron Nelson – looped at Glen Garden Golf and Country Club with fellow caddy mate, Ben Hogan.  “Lord Byron” won 52 time on tour and 5 Major Championships. 



Carlos Franco – he and his five brothers (all became golf pros) learned the game caddying in Paraguay.  He has four wins on the PGA Tour.



Charles E. “Chick” Evans – 1st amateur to win the US Open  and US Amateur in one year, 1916.  He won the Western Open    in 1910, and the US Amateur again in 1920.  Started the Chick Evans Scholarship in 1929 and today it is the largest privately funded scholarship program in the USA.  14 Caddie Frat houses and 8500 caddie college graduates to this day.



Charlie Sifford – in 1935, the thirteen-year old first toted a golf bag in Charlotte, North Carolina.  He is both the 1st black man to play full time on the PGA tour and the 1st to win on tour, ’67 Greater Hartford Open.

Che Guevara – the iconic revolutionary worked as a golf caddie in his native Córdoba, Argentina as a boy and in Buenos Aires while attending medical school.


Chi Chi Rodríguez – Juan Antonio Rodríguez sought out a job caddying in his native Puerto Rico cause the pay (ten cents a loop) was better than being a laborer and cattle handler.  He became famous for his putter turned birdie slaying sword routine.  He won thirty eight times between the PGA and Senior Tours.



Dana Quigley – this Champion’s Tour star spent his youth toiling at the Rhode Island Country Club.  He has 11 victories on the senior circuit.


Dennis Kucinich – this well-known member of the US House of Representatives worked as a caddie to help pay his tuition at Saint John Cantius High School in Cleveland, OH.



Dick Cavett – the former television talk show host, a career that spanned five decades (1960s-2000s).  He worked as a caddie before college at Lincoln Country Club in Lincoln, NB.


Don Shula – this Football Hall of Fame, record-winning NFL coach and 2-time Super Bowl Champ grew up caddying at a municipal golf course in Grand River, Ohio. 



Ed Sullivan – he grew up working at the Apawamis CC with fellow looping pal Gene Sarazen.  Went on to become a legend in Hollywood as the host in the 1950’s and 1960’s of The Ed Sullivan Show.


Eddie Lowery – Francis Ouimet’s 10-year-old looper in their 1913 US Open victory at The Country Club in  Brookline, MS.  He became a multi-millionaire as an auto dealer in San Francisco, CA. 



Eduardo Romero – began looping at age 7 in Villa Allende. He sponsored Angel Cabrera while he was a flowering looper/player at the Córdoba Golf Club.  2008 US Senior Open Champion.



Elizabeth Reaser – actress who has guest appeared on “Grey’s Anatomy”, she has a leading role on “The Ex-list”, also played Esme Cullen in the successful movie Twilight.  Reigning from Bloomfield, MI she grew up working numerous odd jobs of them she is on record saying “the oddest of what was being a caddy at a country club. But the tips were good and, hanging around the caddy shack, I met lots of boys!”  One look at her headshot helps explain why.    


Esteban Toledo – started looping at Mexicali Country Club
in Mexico.  The 10th of ten children as a young boy he found his brother murdered in a river and witnessed his father die of a heart attack.  $4.2 million earned on the PGA Tour, he started The Get a Grip Foundation.


Feroz Ali Mollah – Indian golfer who dropped out of school at age 11 caddying at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club.  He won the Indian Open at the same course in 1998.  Today he is an honorary member of the club (begrudgingly).



Francis Ouimet – age 20, the first amateur winner of the US Open held at The Country Club in Brookline, MA (a club he caddied at only years prior) in 1913.  He and his 10 yr. old caddie, Eddie Lowery, became instant folk heroes.  From humble beginnings, never completing high school, to defeating number 1 and 2 in the world in an 18-hole playoff for the Open title - he is credited with bringing golf into the mainstream of American sport and opening the gates for so many caddie turned famous golf pros to follow.  He also won the US Amateur in 1914 and 1931. 



Gene Sarazen – his real name was Eugenio Saraceni, poibbly has the coolest nickname of all, “The Squire”.  Mr. Sarazen grew up looping at Apawamis CC with fellow Caddy Shack Hall of Famer, Mr. Ed Sullivan.  Gene Sarazen is the first player to win the Career Grand Slam.  He is the man behind “The Shot Heard Round the World” helping him win the 2nd Masters in 1935.  Gene invented the Sand Wedge, had 37 victories, and more importantly 7 Major Championships.



Harvey Penick – began his career in golf looping at the Austin Country Club at the age of 8.  By the age of 19 he was the Head Golf Professional where he remained for fifty years.  He wrote the best selling Harvey Penick’s Little Red Book and mentored and taught such players as Tom Kite, Mickey Wright, and Ben Crenshaw.



Henry Picard – grew up looping in Plymouth, MA at the Plymouth Country Club.  Won 35 times professionally, including a ’38 Masters and a ’39 PGA Championship.  A teaching pro for the majority of his life, Picard gave lessons to fellow loopers Hogan & Snead while on tour in the 1930’s.



Isao Aoki – from Chiba, Japan.  Age 15 began looping at Abiko Golf Club.  First person from Japan to win on the PGA tour in 1983.



J.H. Taylor – 5 time British Open Winner.  He was born into a working class family, he was orphaned as a boy, and began working as a caddie and laborer at age 11 at the Westward Ho! (now the Royal North Devon Golf Club).  He was a member of the fabled Great Triumvirate at the turn of the 19th century.



Jack Welch – former General Electric CEO, stated at age 10 Salem, MA.







James “Tip” Anderson – legendary St. Andrew’s looper (his father looped there before him).  He helped Arnold win The Open in ’61 and ’62 and helped Tony Lima conquer St. Andrews in 1974 for an Open title.



James Black – in his first major golf tournament ever, the 1964 LA Open, this 21-year-old African American shot a 67 at Rancho Park.  He also was drafted and played for the Pittsburgh Pirate’s Organization.



James Braid – won the British Open five times in the first decade of the 20th Century.  One of the three of the “Great Triumvate” British pros prior to WWI. 



Jerry Jeff Walker – Texas Songwriter who began looping in New Jersey at Oneana CC.  Ronald Clyde Crosby is probably best known for his song “Mr. Bojangles”.


Jim Barnes – born in Lelant, Cornwall, England.  Worked as a caddie and club-maker’s apprentice until he moved to the USA in 1906.  He won four majors: 1916 and 1919 PGA Championship, 1925 British Open, and the 1921 US Open by nine shots.


Jim Dent – grew up looping at both Augusta CC and at Augusta National.  This gentleman from Georgia won 12 times on the Senior PGA. 


Jimmy Demaret – this three time Masters Champ (31 wins on the PGA Tour) was the fourth of nine children in a middle class family.  He began looping age 7 at Camp Logan Gold Course in Houston where he was promoted to Caddiemaster at the ripe old age of 9.  He was famous for his flashy clothes and golf shoes.



Joe Bartholomew – a genius African-American caddie and exceptional golfer.  The man excelled in golf course design.  He constructed numerous golf courses in greater New Orleans, Louisiana during the early 20th century.  On the vast majority of his works, he was never allowed to play, due to segregation, the color of his skin. He was an excellent businessman, both in real estate and construction. 

Joe Jimenez - began as a caddie in Kerrville, Texas, in the 30’s for the opportunity to play the golf course on Mondays.  This 1978 Senior PGA Champion was one of the early Hispanic pioneers in golf. 



Johnny Farrell – this exlooper beat Bobby Jones in a 36-hole playoff by a stroke, for the 1928 US Open held at Olympia Fields.  Born in 1900, he learned the game growing up caddying in the New York Metropolitan area. 


John Madden - looped at Lake Merced Golf & CC in Daly City CA.  This Football Hall of Fame player, coach, announcer, and legend of the game was quoted saying the following, “When I was a kid, I was a caddy and when I was a caddy, I used to look at all those rich guys and I used to wonder how they all got to be so rich.  So, I figured out there’s two things they they’ve done.  They’ve all gone to college and they all own a lot of stuff.”



Johnny Miller – famous sports golf analyst for NBC Sports... the winner of the 1973 US Open, the 1976 PGA Championship, and 30 other golf tournaments. A twelve-year-old Johnny Miller used to give his player the putter on the 14th green at the Olympic Club in San Francisco and then sneak over to the great par-3 15th, where nobody could see him, and try to make a birdie with a driver he'd stowed away in the bushes. His swing got so good that one day, when he was 14, the players in one of his groups bet him he couldn't play the final four holes in two over using left-handed clubs. He couldn't. He played them in one over.



Jose Cóceres – at 13 he began looping in his hometown of Resistencia in the Chaco region of Argentina.  After winning $630,000 in the 2001 WorldCom Classic in Hilton Head, SC he said, “I’m going to help the caddies of Chaco by bringing them bags of clubs, so that one day they can represent the golf of my country.” 


Julius Boros – he won the 1952 and ’63 US Opens and ’68 PGA Championship.  The smallest caddie at the Greenfield Hills CC in Fairfield, he didn’t become a professional golfer until age 29.   


Lee Elder – this parentless caddying high school dropout evolved from a golf hustler to the most successful African American ever to play on the PGA tour.  He totaled 12 victories between regular/senior tours.



Lee Trevino – born in Dallas, TX in 1939.  This golf icon began caddying at Glen Lakes CC at age 8.  There, young Lee took up the game playing the 3 short golf holes tucked behind the caddieshack.  “Super Mex” had a self-taught swing style and a humorous approachable personality that made him a legend.  He won 6 Majors: 2 US Opens, 2 British Opens, and 2 PGA Championships.  



Martin Sheen – this famous actor (Apocalypse Now, The West Wing) looped at all an all white club in Dayton, OH from age 9 until he was 18.  



Miguel Angel Jimenez – one of seven brothers born in the Spanish town of Malaga, he spent his early teenage years working as a caddie at Real Club de Campo de Malaga.  He began playing golf at age 15 and turned professional at 18.  “The Mechanic” has won millions playing on the European Tour and is recognized for his red ponytail and cigar.



Miller Barber – grew up in Texarkana, caddied for Lord Byron Nelson when he was a youth. 



Old Tom Morris – although he did not invent golf, he is regarded as the founding father of golf.  As one of the pioneers of professional golf he learned the game as a caddie on the St. Andrews links.  He won the British Open in 1861, 1862, 1864, and 1867.  Many consider him to also be the father of Greens-Keeping, he worked as a course designer (Muirfield, Carnoustie, Prestwick), and clubmaker.



Paul Runyan – 1934 and 1938 PGA Champion among 27 other PGA tour wins.  This native of Hot Springs, Arkansas was young looper turned professional at age 17 in 1925.  He was an exceptional teacher for 75 years, famous for his short game instruction. 



Ricardo Gonzalez – this Argentine started hoofing bags at age nine.  Three European Tour and two victories on the Challenge Tour.


Robert McKee – world famous screenwriting lecturer.  He wrote Story, Substance, Structure, Style, And the Principles of Screenwriting widely known as one of the best books on the subject available.



Roberto De Vicenzo – 230 victories worldwide, age 8 he began his career as a caddie at Deportivo Central Argentino en Miguelete.  He made the infamous mistake of signing an incorrect scorecard costing him the 1968 Masters.  He signed a scorecard stating he had a par instead of a birdie on the 17th.  He was quoted stating, “What a stupid I am” probably translated directly from his mother tongue – “Que estupido que soy”.  He is quoted as saying to play good golf in South America, “one must have hunger”. 



Rock Hudson – a Hollywood iconoclast ex-looper, Roy Harold Scherer, grew up looping in his hometown of Winnetka, IL looping and working paper routes during The Great Depression.  Became a famous romantic leading man in the 1950s and 1960s.  He appeared in over 70 movies.  


S.S.P. Chowrasia – grew up looping at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club in India where his father was the greenskeeper.  Shiv Shankar Prasad Chowrasia is his full name, known by his initials SSP or locally as "Chipputtsia" due to his superior short game.  Has recently bought a house next to the same golf club he toiled on, sneaking practice at night, learning how to play golf.



Sam Snead – “Slammin’ Sammy” started looping seven years of age at the Homestead in Hot Springs, VA.  There he remained a fixture throughout his 90 years.  He turned pro in 1934 and went on to win a record 82 tour events, 11 in 1950 alone, and seven majors overall.  He is famous for recapturing his rhythm by playing shoeless (he did so for nine holes in the ’42 Masters).



Seve Ballesteros – Real Club de Pedreña, age 7.  His father looped to make ends meet.  He became famous for one of the greatest short games the world has ever seen.  A five-time major championship winner.   



Shirley Povich – famed sport columnist and long-time reporter for the Washington Post.  As a teen he began looping at the Kebo Valley Golf Club in Bay Harbor, ME.  Graduating high school in 1922, the then owner of the Post, Edward B. McLean, offered that Shirley (his regular caddie for 3 summers running) move and loop for him in Washington D.C. and to work as a copy boy at the Post, also while attending Georgetown University.  On Shirley’s first morning in D.C. he caddied for McLean and his friend the 29th US President Warren G. Harding.  His final column in the Post ran the day after his death, age 92. 


Steve Williams – T-Dubs’ ex-looper from Wellington, New Zealand who began his looping career from the age of 10 at the Paraparaumu Beach Golf Club.  Throughout the 80’s he looped for the likes of Greg Norman, in the 90's it was Ray Floyd, and in 1999 he got the bag of a lifetime, Tiger Woods (AKA – T-Dubs or Dubs).  After a bitter divorce with Tiger, Williams no loops for Adam Scott.


Tom Dreesen – this famous comedian from Harvey, IL became a regular on The Tonight Show and on Late Night with David Letterman.  At eleven years old he started caddying at Ravisloe Country Club in Homewood, IL.  For 13 years he served as the opening act for Frank Sinatra.  He and old comedic partner Tim Reid are credited with breaking comedic racial barriers with their early 70’s act “Tim & Tom”.


Tommy Bolt – worked at Shreveport Country Club as a youth. “Tempestuous Tommy” often lost his cool and threw golf clubs.  A reputed hustler, he didn’t join the PGA Tour until he was 34.  He garnered 15 PGA Tour wins, the 1958 US Open being his biggest.



Vicente Fernandez – El Chino, at age 9 he first started looping in Buenos Aires, Argentina.  Five European and three Senior Tour titles to his name.


Vijay Kumar – first Indian golfer to earn one million rupee.  He began by looping in northern India’s Martinpurwa at the Lucknow Golf Course. 


Vijay Singh – he learned the game looping for his father and other members at the Nadi Airport Golf Club in Fiji.  One of six children, this high school dropout came from humble beginning to  amassing more than $50 million in career winnings through 30+ victories on tour (three of those being major championships).



Walter Hagen – looped at the Country club of Rochester where he later returned to serve as the Head Golf Pro, between that time he won 11 Major Championship and 5 Western Opens (an old school Major not technically counted).  This flamboyant exlooper established profession golfers’ respect and right to make an  abundance of cash.  He was the first pro athlete to make a million dollars. 


Walter Morgan – he didn’t play a round of golf until he was 27 years old, he shot a 79.  A few months prior he learned to hit the golf ball while stationed with the military in HI.  It was there he would caddie for senior tour players like Chi-Chi, Burt Green, and Gibby Gilbert.  He played on the Senior Tour from 1991 to 2004 winning three events.


Willie Park – the first winner of the British Open held in Prestwick in 1860, he won again in 1863, 1866,and 1875. Park was introduced to the sport as a caddie at Musselburgh. For 20 years of his golfing prime, Park laid an open challenge to any other golfer with a £100 bet - a large sum of money then, he and the likes of Old Tom Morris would do battle over several occasions.



Willie Peterson – caddied for Jack in all 5 of his Masters victories.



Zhang Lian-Wie – first golfer from the People’s Republic of China to achieve significant success on a professional level.  Won in 2003 becoming the first Chinese golfer to win on the European Tour.








1 comment:

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