He’s no Danny Noonan of Caddyshack fame. No sir. He’s the real deal and has got more caddying talent than the entire staff at the fictional Bushwood . Bo knows Chambers Bay. It’s his home.
He was our caddy during a recent round at the course which hosted the U.S. Open last year and without him the score I posted(which will remain a state secret) would have been certainly a whole lot higher. He had us aiming at spots where we thought maybe heat stroke had hit home on this man.
Instead, on the rare occasion where I actually hit it where he suggested I hit it,(blind squirrel finding a nut syndrome) the ball ended up relatively close to a spot where a double digit score was avoided by a good margin.
I did give him a strange look the first time he suggested I hit a shot ten yards to the left of a bunker near the green on one hole. I wasn’t questioning his advice. I was questioning the fact he figured I could hit the ball that accurately. He soon learned not to be so specific.
“OK. Jim, just hit this on so it stays on the golf course and kind of goes in the direction of the flag.”
This is not a course where you can easily scramble to save a good score on any hole.
Bo managed to keep us from hitting the patio early for an adult beverage with his conversation and his expertise. This was all done by the way while carrying my tools of ignorance as well as my playing partner’s. Yep. Both bags. Did I mention he is in his 40’s?
If you have played there you know what a feat that is and if you haven’t I can tell you mountain goats would have been dropping down for a rest after nine. Bo was walking the same after 18 holes as he was on hole one. He did this on a day where the temperature was up in the 30’s without a breeze to even give a hint of cooling off things.
Chambers Bay doesn’t have slight elevation changes. No, this beast has changes that are about as subtle as a hurricane.
Bo told us he does this about five or six days a week and normally hauls around two bags for 36 holes each day. I started to cramp up right after he said that.
He hangs around Chambers Bay for eight months of the year and then goes over to the Monterey area of California to caddy at that cute little track called Pebble Beach. It’s a walk in the park for Bo after the physical test of Chambers Bay.
The golf course allows these guys to contract out their services and what a service it is. They know the course so well you can rest assured if you hit one way off line, they can tell you with great certainty if you are o.k. or you should bunt another one down the fairway.
Bo also filled us in with some history about the place he’s worked at since day one. He walks, talks, carries bags, gives advice, chooses clubs,reads putts and knows his course.
If Chambers Bay is on your list of courses to play,and it should be, then hire Bo. Bo knows Chambers Bay.
