Glass Negative of Bobby Jones and Calvin Coolidge
Bucket List.
Rory McIlory is my favorite active golfer. He plays with passion and energy. When McIlory won the most recent Masters, he fell to his knees. I like a man who shows emotion when he completes a lifelong dream, like winning the Grand Slam of golf. Being from Atlanta, I also admire Bobby Jones.
Fortunately, my bucket list has only a few items left on it. One thing is playing Augusta National with McIlory. Truth be told, I probably would not be able to focus on my golf game if he were playing with me, not that there is much to focus on since my handicap is 21.
You Can Learn a Lot Playing With A Caddie.
It is interesting when people say that golf is one of the few sports in which the entire burden of winning is on the player. In baseball, you make an error; other players can compensate for your mistake. The same is true in sports such as hockey and basketball.
While I have not played Augusta National, I had the pleasure several years ago of playing the Old Course at St. Andrews with my cousin and a golf duo from Norway. My cousin and I were fortunate to have good caddies. I had the son, who had been a caddie for almost 20 years, and his father, who had been a caddie for nearly 40 years, assisted my cousin.
Any time you play a course for the first time, having a caddie is a valuable asset. My caddie could read a green better than anyone I had ever seen. Of course, if you have caddied the same course for 20 years, you should know it very well.
On one occasion, my caddie warned me about two sand bunkers. Your reaction might be, "Couldn't you see the bunkers?" The answer is no. One of the holes at St. Andrews was reversed many years ago. Thus, the sand bunkers that were once obvious when you teed off are now invisible. Had the caddie not told me that there were sand bunkers in the middle of the fairway, which I could not see, I would have hit right into them.
On the second day, when my cousin and I played the Jubilee course, which is right next to the Old Course, we requested the same caddie duo, and we were fortunate to get them. They were even more critical to our success on the second day because the wind was gusting to 55 miles per hour. Yes, you read that right—55 miles per hour. It was blowing so hard that on one hole, my caddie had me aim my putt three feet to the right of the hole, knowing the wind would push it into the cup. He was right.
After two days of playing with my caddie, I had a great appreciation for the expertise that a caddie can provide. There was no doubt that my caddie and I were a team.
McIlroy Has Support.
Now, back to the Masters. The one time I had the pleasure of attending the Masters, I made it a point to get as close to the players as I could without violating golf etiquette. Some of the conversations were very interesting. While players have great insight, caddies can calm them down, advise on wind speed and direction, recommend a club, and certainly add expertise in reading a green.
Everyone thinks McIlory is a great golfer. I certainly do! However, maybe he is a success because of what others have done to assist him. Maybe his success is not just due to his efforts. Perhaps his spouse, his parents, his golf coach, and even his advisors have made him successful. Yes, he stands in the tee box alone, but a host of people got him to the tee box.
A Team Member.
On the eighteenth green on the final day of the Master's this year, he stood on the green, eyeing the slope of the green. He looked stoic. He tilted his head one last time. No, not McIlory. His caddy. You see, professional golf is a team sport.
McIlroy's caddy is Harry Diamond. They have known each other since they were teens. Diamond, a businessman, is an excellent golfer in his own right. He has caddied for McIlroy since 2018, and while some have criticized him, he has been by McIlroy's side constantly, including the recent Masters win.
I watched Rory McIlory at the Masters. Several times, he asked his caddie for advice. While McIlory could probably have won using any caddie, I wonder if his caddie was not the difference between winning and losing, if for no other reason than he has provided stability for McIlroy over the past seven years, and McIlroy trusts his advice. If someone who interviewed McIlory right after the Masters had asked him about the importance of his caddy, I believe he would have praised Diamond.
No matter how great you are or how alone you appear to be, whether in business or your personal life, it is rare that you are successful only because of your efforts. Diamond is probably the Yin to McIlroy's Yang.
Who Else Was On the Team?
McIlory had lunch with Jack Nicklaus in Florida before the Masters to get Nicklaus's advice on how to win the tournament. Supposedly, Nicklaus told him to stick to his plan and "Don't do dumb things." While McIlroy made a few mistakes and was overly aggressive at times, his talent won out. More importantly, he did not do dumb things. Life and golf have a lot in common.
It is interesting to note, for those who are not familiar with golf history, that Bobby Jones only played as an amateur. He retired at age 28 to focus on his law practice and later to build Augusta National Golf Course. He did not let fame as an amateur inflate his ego; he stuck to his plan.
Picture from the Library of Congress
If you have not read the blog that describes the "However View," click here.
