A Golfer never walks alone. During championships or a regular round, every golfer can be seen walking down the fairways with his caddie. With pet names like Appu, Baingan, Samosa, Bandar, Dancer and Computer based on the caddies' personal traits each course has regular caddie employees, who are as much a part of it, as the players. On festivals like Holi, when they take the odd day off, members can be seen trying to go around the course in a huff.The game is important not only for the professionals and the scores of amateurs, it is also a source of livelihood for the hundreds of caddies who carry a couple of bags a day. Some of them are barely seven to ten years old, while there are others who are pros in their field. The first chore a golfer performs on getting to the golf course is to find himself a caddie for his round. While this chap proceeds towards the first tee, his master then changes into his golf gear.Accordingly, the caddies are divided into different categories A, B and C class. An Aclass caddie is one who knows everything, well almost everything, there is to know about the game and is paid the highest. As a rule, they prefer to carry bags as opposed to pulling a trolley, since that's the way pros play. However, when the need be, they do pull the odd trolley.With their years of experience, they freely advice on swing technique and can pinpoint the reason for a topped shot on any hole. And above all, they feel they can assess and suggest the correct club that needs to used on every shot and know the line on every putt.The B class caddie is somewhere in between. Usually he is younger than his senior compatriots who are a notch higher and caddies for the regulars. As opposed to him, the C class caddies are usually the fresh recruits, who don't know much about the game, or anything else either. Often the bags they insist on carrying or the trolleys they pull are higher than them.They often get told off for loosing sight of the ball in their custody and get bullied by the rest. Theselittle ones learn `on the job' and after a couple of years on the fairways, can rattle off the names of all the pros and their achievements.Their importance to the sport is often overlooked. However, they are the ones who carry the bag, fill divots and guide the player. They root for their player and when on the golf course, a caddie is the only man who can advice a player. As a result, the bond between a professional and his caddie often develops into a relationship of trust. He has to know the player's temperament, know when to advice and when to quietly agree, even if he doesn't think the shot can be pulled off.OVER the years, caddies who showed the potential to play the game have been supported by their home clubs and have achieved success in the competitive arenas of amateur and professional golf. Delhi's Suleman Ali and the young Ashok Kumar who strode ahead of the field at the Hero Honda Masters, alongwith Chandigarh's Ranjit Singh, Nuabat and Boni, are some who have done well forthemselves.Yet some golfers, like Maj B S Malhotra (Retd), feel that their clubs should continue to support them, not monetarily, but by advising them on how to wisely invest their earnings. This will guarantee that they maintain this lifestyle and have something to fall back on when their professional golfing days are over.For golfers who are interested in knowing more about a caddie's life, the book `Four-iron in the soul', written by Lawrence Donegan will make good reading. Lawrence, an ex-musician and `Guardian' journalist writes his first hand experiences after he spent a year on the European tour caddying for golfer Ross Drummond.Check ListLast Week's ResultsAPGA:Sabah Masters; Winner: Robert Huxtable(Indians: Arjun Atwal joint third; Amandeep Johl joint 14th)USPGA: American Express Golf ChampionshipWinner:Tiger WoodsJPGA: Acom InternationalWinner: Hidemichi TanakaIndians: Jeev Milkha Singh joint 20thCOMING UP (November15-21)EPGA: World Cup of GolfPGA: PGA Grandslam of GolfIPGA: Hero Golf, ChandigarhELPGA: Praia D'El Rey European CupGOLFER OF THE WEEK:Sergio Gracia (Spain): Nominated as Rookie of the Year, Gracia is the youngest ever Ryder Cup player may just be Europe's answer to Tiger Woods.-Shona Manco can be reached at ShonaManco@Express2.indexp.co.in
