Editing Caddie

{{Short description|Person who carries golfers' clubs and provides assistance to golfers}}
{{other uses}}
[[File:Phil & Jim "Bones" MacKay 2014.jpg|thumb| [[Phil Mickelson]] consults with his longtime caddy [[Jim "Bones" Mackay]] at Muirfield Village Golf Club in 2014.]]
[[File:TheCaddie.jpg|thumb|right|A caddie plies his trade. ]]
[[File:Imaginative_Marguerite_Martyn_drawing_of_Forest_Park_Golf_Course,_St._Louis,_in_1914.jpg|thumb|right|Imaginative drawing by journalist [[Marguerite Martyn]] of a couple at the Forest Park Golf Course, Forest Road, Missouri, in 1914, while a caddie leans against a tree.]]
[[File:Golf caddy.JPG|thumb|A golf caddie, 1790, by [[Lemuel Francis Abbott]]]]
In [[golf]], a '''caddie''' (or '''caddy''') is a companion to the player, providing both practical support and strategic guidance on the course. Caddies are responsible for carrying the player’s [[Golf bag|bag]], managing [[Golf club|clubs]], and assisting with basic course maintenance like repairing divots and raking bunkers. Their role extends well beyond these physical tasks, going into emotional and behavioural [[moral support]]. Whether at local clubs, public courses, or prestigious tournaments—caddies offer valuable insight on course strategy, advising on everything from club selection to reading greens and evaluating weather conditions. They often serve as a steadying presence, offering encouragement and helping players maintain focus under pressure.

Caddies are trusted for their course knowledge, adaptability, and close understanding of a player’s game, and their role is integral at every level of play. In professional and amateur golf alike, caddies often build lasting partnerships with players, developing a rapport that contributes to overall performance.
 
Other nicknames for the role are looper or jock.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Undercover Caddie: A longtime resort looper's friendly advice for all golfers |url=https://www.golfdigest.com/story/undercover-caddie-sage-words-longtime-looper |access-date=2024-08-14 |website=Golf Digest |language=en}}</ref>

==Etymology==
The [[Scots language|Scots]] word ''caddie'' or ''{{lang|sco|cawdy}}'' was derived in the 17th century from the French word ''cadet'' and originally meant a student military officer. It later came to refer to someone who did odd jobs.<ref>{{cite dictionary |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/caddie |title=caddie, noun |dictionary=[[Merriam-Webster Dictionary]] |access-date=25 February 2019 |publisher=[[Merriam-Webster, Incorporated]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite dictionary |url=https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/caddie |title=Caddie |year=2019 |dictionary=[[Oxford Dictionaries (website)|Oxford Dictionaries]] |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |access-date=25 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190225103120/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/caddie |archive-date=25 February 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref> By the 19th century, it had come to mean someone who carried clubs for a golfer, or in its shortened form, [[Rake (stock character)|cad]], a man of disreputable behaviour.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/the-strange-route-from-cadet-to-cad |title=The Strange Route from 'Cadet' to 'Cad' |work=[[Merriam-Webster, Incorporated]] |access-date=25 February 2019}}</ref>

==History==

The first recorded use of a caddie was in Edinburgh in 1681 by the future [[James VII of Scotland]] when taking part in the first international golf contest.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/golfer-s-land|title = Golfer's Land|date=13 March 2015 |website=Atlas Obscura}}</ref>{{Better source|reason=User-generated content |date=January 2023}}

==Earnings==
Caddies pay is variable and is usually based on an allocated percentage share of prize money. At a professional level, caddies work in a high level partnership with golfers, some work as contractors to individual players in events. In 2020, caddies on the [[PGA European Tour]] became eligible to earn bonuses through sponsors' logos on their gear.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://associationsnow.com/2020/01/golf-caddie-group-set-sponsorship-program-members/|title=Why a Golf Caddie Group Set Up a Sponsorship Program for Its Members|date=2020-01-15|website=Associations Now|language=en-US|access-date=2020-01-15}}</ref>
In 2024, [[Golf Digest]] reported that Scottie Scheffler’s caddie Ted Scott earned $2.6 million over the season with the world number 1.<ref>{{Cite web|url= https://associationsnow.com/2020/01/golf-caddie-group-set-sponsorship-program-members/ |title=Scottie Scheffler’s caddie made more money this season than almost every PGA Tour pro |date=2024-09-03|website=Golf Digest Now|language=en-US|access-date=2020-01-15}}</ref>
Caddying fees range throughout courses across the world, however is a popular role for low handicap golfers which can provide opportunities to work with a variety of people.

==In popular culture==
Caddies have been depicted in television, films, and books, including:

* ''[[The Caddy]]'', a 1953 musical comedy film starring [[Dean Martin]] and [[Jerry Lewis]]
* ''[[McAuslan in the Rough]]'', a 1974 short story by [[George MacDonald Fraser]] in which a disreputable Scottish soldier caddies for his regimental sergeant major
* ''[[Caddyshack]]'', a 1980 comedy film featuring [[Bill Murray]]
* ''[[Brown's Requiem (novel)|Brown's Requiem]]'', a 1981 crime novel by [[James Ellroy]], who worked as a caddie while writing his first books
* ''[[The Legend of Bagger Vance]]'', a 2000 film based on the 1995 book by [[Steven Pressfield]], ''[[The Legend of Bagger Vance (novel)|The Legend of Bagger Vance: A Novel of Golf and the Game of Life]]'', features Vance as an angelic caddie.
* ''[[The Greatest Game Ever Played]]'', a 2005 film about [[1913 U.S. Open (golf)|1913 US open]] where [[Francis Ouimet]] ([[Shia LaBeouf]]) wins with his caddie [[Eddie Lowery]] ([[Josh Flitter]]).
* ''[[Loopers: The Caddie's Long Walk]]'', a 2018 documentary narrated by Bill Murray<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.golfdigest.com/story/bill-murray-narrates-new-film-that-explores-the-lives-of-caddies |title=Bill Murray narrates new film that explores the lives of caddies |last=Beall |first=Joel |date=23 January 2019 |website=Golf Digest |publisher=Condé Nast Publications |access-date=25 February 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://filmthreat.com/reviews/loopers-the-caddies-long-walk/ |title=Loopers: The Caddie's Long Walk |last=Howell |first=Andy |date=15 February 2019 |website=Film Threat |access-date=25 February 2019}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Caddie Hall of Fame]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category|lcfirst=yes}}
{{wiktionary|caddie|caddy}}
* [http://www.eurocaddies.com European Tour Caddies Association]
* [https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/golf/caddies-making-a-comeback/ "Caddies making a comeback"], ''[[The Seattle Times]]''
* [http://www.mcsweeneys.net/columns/notes-from-the-caddieshack "Notes from the Caddieshack"] – a McSweeney's Internet Tendency column about being a caddie in the Chicago suburbs

{{Golf}}

[[Category:Caddies| ]]
[[Category:Golf people]]

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