John H. Perry
September Blog
“Are We Not Worthy?”
By some form of osmosis, Black magic, or new world order, the Black caddie has all but vanished from the landscape that they once occupied so visibly. I can understand the fact that before Tiger there were at least a dozen African American card carrying members on the PGA tour. That decline and disappearing act could be related to economics, lack of sponsorship, etc. Fortunately caddying doesn’t need sponsorship, all it needs is a willing employer.
Most of American golfing legends, living and dead, employed caddies of color during their hay days and win streaks. Names like Iron Man, Angelo, Mitch, Rabbit, Golf Ball, just to name a few. Aside from Ben Crenshaw and Hal Sutton, of the Senior, or Champions Tour, I can’t think of one single golfer on tour today, who walks the fairways with a caddie of color. If anyone out there know one, please educate me. Inquiry minds wants to know.
I guess, because I’m a former caddy myself, that I take personal concern in regards to the changing of the guards, within the caddie ranks. I’ve been involved with the game of golf for 52 years.
I started caddying and playing when I was 12-years old, I’m now 64. I remember when Augusta National employed Black caddies only, for their prestigious and famed Master’s Golf Tournament. The caddies whose names I mentioned earlier were employed by Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Lee Trevino, (a former caddie himself), Gary Player, and the man with the greatest stare down in golf, Raymond Floyd, respectfully.
Willie Peterson caddied for Jack Nicklaus in 5 of his 6 Master’s victories. Angelo Argea who wasn’t Black, but a very dark-skinned individual of Greek heritage, with a very large distinguished Afro, caddied for Nicklaus for 18-years from 1963-1981.
Although Argea wasn’t able to caddie for Nicklaus in any of his 6 Masters– because Augusta National didn’t allow players to bring their own caddies until 1983–Angelo won around 40 tournaments with him, including U. S. Opens, British Opens, and PGA Championships.
Nicklaus won his last Major with Angelo on the bag at the 1980 U. S. Open at Baltusrol, in Springfield, N. J. Angelo died in 2005 at the age of 75. Afterwards, Jack Jr. carried his father’s bag in his 1986 and final Masters victory. It was also Nicklaus final major. That collaboration seemed to have contributed to a trend, that to this day appears irreversible.
Willie “Cemetery” Poteat was another Black caddie at Augusta National who always carried President Dwight Eisenhower’s bag whenever the president visited the club.
Freddie Burns was Hal Sutton’s caddie for over 20 years and Augusta National’s Carl Jackson worked for Ben Crenshaw.
In “The Decline Of The Black Caddie” by Steve Sailer, 2003, Freddie Burns points out that in 1981 there were twice as many Black caddies as whites, “Now I’m the only one carrying a top-50 bag,” he stated.
The legendary Charlie Sifford, who was the first African American to receive his PGA playing card, (post Caucasian Only era), was a former caddie. These caddies I’m talking about weren’t just “bag-toters”, they were technicians in their own rights, as well as confidants, sports psychologist, swing guru, land surveyors, you name it. These men were gifted and talented, unbeknown even to them. They knew the terrain of the land like a farmer knew his crop.
From time to time, you may still get a glimpse of a couple of Black caddies at private country clubs carrying bags for members and their guest, but the electric golf cart has just about taking most of those jobs away also. I think the going rate for a caddie on the PGA tour today is 10% of his employer’s earnings. That’s why Stevie Williams, Tiger’s ex- caddie is a millionaire today. Williams is now employed by Adam Scott and still making loads of money.
I can remember caddying back in the early sixties, in my hometown of Henderson, N.C., for a measly $1.30 for an eighteen hole single. Talk about child labor laws being violated, to say the least…. The best thing that came out of caddying for me was the learning of the game of golf itself, and that wasn’t such a bad payoff and exchange. Still, all and all, on a personal note, I would like to see more caddies of color carrying bags on Sundays during Major Championships, to convince me that race isn’t an issue, in 2013 on the PGA tour.
Maybe whoever said that ‘history has a way of repeating itself,’ hit on the absolute truth.
Send me a note and let me know your thoughts on this!
Until next time.
John H. Perry
Email: johnpgolf@icloud.com
John Perry is a freelance writer, poet and active golfer with a passion for calling shots like he sees them and, then, telling it like it is. He resides in Vauxhall, NJ.
