'Excuse me sir, would you like a caddie"? -- was the nervous spluttering that I managed to get out when an elderly player walked past me. He stopped and said "sorry son, my nephew is helping me this week".
I really didn't know that he had won 72 worldwide tournaments and just how good this old golfer was but I remember appreciating him stopping and giving me the time of day with a smile. Perhaps this came from himself getting his own start in the game as a caddie as a young man.
I was in Florida and went to watch a Seniors Tour event and thought that caddying for one of the old timers would be interesting. The Seniors Tour was just getting started and the feeling was that many of the old participants were just dusting off their clubs for a fun few days, whilst meeting up with some buddies of yesteryear. My quest for a job was fruitless and I put it down to my strange accent, that made those whom l asked reluctant to hire such an unusual looking young lad and trust me with their clubs.
The gentleman I asked -- who explained that his nephew was carrying his bag -- was Billy Casper. I knew his name but had no clue of his resume until later l looked it up. He must have been around 60 at the time and didn't look like during his career that he had won the Masters, two US Opens, three times second of the PGA Championship and a fourth in the British Open. After he had seriously hung up his clubs, he had secured numerous Tour victories, including wins on the European Tour and nine Senior Tour events. He played in eight Ryder Cup Teams, amassing record points, and was captain in 1979. Billy Casper was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.
Out of Bounds: This great player lived in the shadow of the 'Big Three' Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Gary Player. He still holds the record of the most points won during a player's participation in the Ryder Cup matches and won at least one PGA tournament each year for 16 years straight. He died at 83 -- leaving 11 children -- 6 of whom were adopted.
