Golf club staff become caddies due to COVID
Carter Milton is on the bag for Vijay Singh at the Shaw Charity Classic.
He's not the golf legend's usual caddy.
In fact, he's actually the outdoor services manager at the host course, Canyon Meadows Golf & Country Club.
But that's how — as strange as that may seem — it works at this edition of Calgary's PGA Tour Champions stop.
“It's quite an honour to be a caddy for him,” said the 23-year-old Milton, one of many, many Canyon Meadows staff members helping out this week in the COVID crunch.
“I'm pretty excited — it's definitely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” continued the young Calgarian. “I'm hoping to see him place pretty high — that would be pretty cool to see and experience as his caddy.”
With restrictions at the border having made for a few hurdles for many Americans coming north, plenty of players taking in the Shaw Charity Classic have arrived without caddies.
“As it turns out, I kind of became the caddy master,” said Canyon Meadows head professional Matt Freeman. “And I've got 11 staff members caddying for the tour members this week.”
A few club members and staff have done it in the past, including associate pro Brady Karlson for Carlos Franco for the full event last year.
But nothing like this.
Carmen Kinas, Canyon Meadows' assistant professional, is out there — she's with Jim Carter.
So are three golf-shop assistants in Jill Torsher (Franco), Anna Shields (Dick Mast) and Jacki Tucker (Skip Kendall).
The others are back-shop boys Riley Farris (Kirk Triplett), Iain Smiley (Spike Mcroy), Jackson Styranka (Frank Lickliter), Taylor Frei (Robyn Bird), Matthew Fleet (Guy Boros) and Cam Beaton (Alex Cejka).
“The girls are scared — most of them aren't really major golfers,” Freeman said. “Most are members' kids who have worked for me for years in the pro shop. So we went out Sunday for a little caddy tutorial, and we spend an hour on the first hole and started with the etiquette on what to do and not to do. They asked a million questions.
“They're nervous. But it'll all be good, and the players, who I screened about how heavy their bag is and if they're OK with a girl caddy, are all pretty good. The players are like, `I just need somebody to carry my bag and clean the clubs and clean the ball.'”
The young `caddies' are game for that, with perhaps some even hoping for a little more duty.
“It's carrying his bags, pulling the right clubs and reading the greens for him,” Milton said about his work with Singh. “I'm pretty comfortable with reading the greens, but it's definitely a little scary doing it for a pro. I've been working at Canyon for six or seven years now and I've played many a round out there, so I know the greens pretty well. I can help with just the niche little things around the greens that only people who play them know about.”
Like the pros, their caddies have to stay in a bubble at The Westin, regardless of their vaccination status.
The agreement for each is US$1,800 for the week, but included in that is an C$800 hotel bill. However, because many are bunking four to a room at the hotel, they still come out ahead by a bunch.
The Canyon Meadows crew is hanging out, playing games, recalling the day of work, catching up on course etiquette and chatting about how their respective pros played.
“Definitely a different experience compared to the previous Shaws I've worked,” said 26-yearold Kinas, who's worked in merchandising at Shaw Charity Classics in past years. “I'll be out on the course seeing the action live and in-person and having a little responsibility, as well.”
Kinas, who's got tournament playing experience under her belt, echoed that sentiment.
“It's about making sure he's got everything he needs,” said the Canyon Meadows assistant golf pro of caddying for Carter. “But I'm definitely excited. It's a unique experience to be out there with them.”