By Fred Altvater
The life of a professional caddie can be very demanding. First you work long hours carrying a 40-pound bag filled with everything a professional golfer needs during a round of golf. There are also countless hours standing either on a practice range or putting green watching your guy hone his game. Plus, you are always outdoors in every type of weather imaginable. From cold, wind and rain to extreme heat and glaring sunshine. Most importantly you are a mother, father, confessor, coach, motivator and psychiatrist on the golf course.
There is very little assurance of payment. Most tour caddies are guaranteed a weekly salary, but that barely covers travel expenses. If your guy hits a hot streak, then the percentage bonus from a win or top-25 finish can help balance the check book.
There is definitely no health plan, major medical, or retirement plan, but there are however a few perks that make traveling the world with a professional golfer worthwhile.
The following is a story related to me by a good friend, who has spent over 30 years as a professional caddie in Europe, South Africa and America.
My friend, I will call him John, for this story, was contacted by a former Open Championship winner to caddie for him at the Open Championship in Scotland.
John was working for a Champions Tour player at the 3M Championship in Minneapolis the week prior to the Open and had no clue how he would get to Scotland without incurring expensive travel costs.
The PGA Tour’s John Deere Classic is traditionally held the week before the Open Championship in Illinois and one of the enticements, to attract top names to their event, is to offer every player and caddie a free ride to the Open Championship on a charter flight, after the conclusion of their event.
The problem being, how could John make it to Silvis, Illinois, the location of the John Deere Classic, 350 miles south of Minneapolis in time to grab a seat on the charter to Scotland?
As his guy was warming up on the driving range next to Tom Watson before the final round on Sunday morning, a brilliant idea occurred to John.
He casually asked the five-time Open Champion if he was going to fly to Scotland on the charter flight? Watson looked directly at John and asked,
“You need a ride to Illinois?”
John answered in the affirmative and Tom Watson gave our intrepid caddie a ride to Illinois in his private plane.
The next week in Scotland John’s guy made the cut in the Open Championship and John next faced the problem of traveling from Scotland to London for his next loop in the Senior Open Championship. While warming up on Sunday next to a former OPEN Champion, he was struck with another brilliant plan.
“Hey, Big Guy are you heading back to London tonight after the round?” John asked.
The Pro answered that he was flying back to London and asked,
“You need a ride?” 
It turned out that the pro struggled down the stretch in that final round and was not in a particularly good mood. The pair drank heavily on the plane ride to London and upon arrival, he took John to the Wentworth Club to spend the night.
One of the sacred rules of the Wentworth Club is that the bar cannot close, as long as, a guest wishes to be served. The pro was well aware of this sacred rule and he and John spent the night drowning his sorrow.
Everything went well at the Senior British Open and once again John found himself on the range with his guy for the final round. He now needed to find a way back to his home in Florida.
Hitting balls next to Greg Norman before the final round on Sunday, John asked,
“Hey, Greg are you heading back to Florida tonight?”
The White Shark turned to John smiled and asked, “Why you need a ride?”
The caddie had maneuvered free air fare on private planes from Minneapolis, to Scotland, to London and back to Florida. That can probably only happen on a professional golf tour.
Being a professional caddie is a difficult job, but it does come with the occasional perk.
