This caddy/teaching assignment is turning out to be quite interesting. I have never had to get ready for ONE round of golf….not for me or anybody else. If you are a tournament player, at any level, you prepare, you make your schedule and play in a number of tournaments. Two good weeks could make your year. If you have a poor week, you put it behind you and maybe make adjustments. The next week may be a victory.
That is not true of this day, June 21st at Bethpage with Lt. Larry Giebelhausen. I have a recreational golfer (he didn’t even carry a handicap), on a U.S. Open course, with big celebrities on national TV. He has one shot….one round! How do you get someone prepared for that?
It reminds me a little of the Olympics. Most athletes train for 1 event that might take minutes or seconds to complete. They train for 4 or more years and might only go to 1 Olympics competition. This day at Bethpage has that kind of feel. We’ve only had a month and a half to prepare!
If you have never had the pleasure of going to a U.S. Open venue, it’s hard to appreciate how tough it is. Bethpage will be a bear! Once Larry lays eyes on the narrow fairways, high rough and lightning fast greens, it will be my job to keep him calmed down and focused on one shot at a time. I will have to keep myself calmed down!
His full swing still impresses me. He consistently hits the ball well. Even on the golf course, his swing is correct and repeatable. We continue to work on all shorter shots and putting.
The USGA and Golf Digest offered Larry a choice of a TOUR caddy or me. I got the nod. He is comforted in the fact that I know his game and what buttons to push if he gets off track. I have earned that confidence. We will use a veteran Bethpage caddy in the practice round to obtain as much information about the course, especially the greens. Always ask the locals when you go to a new course (refer to my article in this month’s Golf Digest).
I enjoy caddying for some of my students. There is no better way to learn about their game and how they are thinking their way around the course. I currently caddy for my daughter Lindy (a junior at LSU) in Women’s Amateur events. I caddied for Grace Park when she won the US Women’s Amateur and 2 subsequent Top 10’s in the Women’s US Open. Jim Hardy caddies for his wife Marilyn, who has played in a number of USGA events and I know he can’t wait for the opportunity to caddy for his daughter Rachel. I will have to draw from all my experiences to help Larry break 100 at Bethpage.
More to come before the actual competition…