Who's Your Caddy?: Looping for the Great, Near Great, and Reprobates of Golf (Paperback)

~ (Author) "You ever notice anybody standing next to Boston Red Sox pitcher Pedro Martinez as he's firing cheese at the Yankees?..." (more)
Key Phrases: John Daly, British Open, Jack Nicklaus (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

To really know someone, as the saying goes, you must walk a mile in their shoes. But to really understand a golfer, you've got to work as their caddy. Sports Illustrated columnist Rick Reilly managed to get some very intriguing golfers to let him lug their bag and write what he learned both about the game and the folks who play it. Going hole to hole with them let Reilly know a different side of veterans such as John Daly, David Duval, Tom Lehman, and Jack Nicklaus. But Reilly also went beyond the pros to caddy for Deepak Chopra, Donald Trump, professional gambler Dewey Tomko, and Bob Newhart. In some cases, the portraits that emerge fall directly in line with the popular image but at other times it's just the opposite. Daly is sober but has shifted his addiction to massive amounts of Diet Coke, candy, and marriages; Duval is intensely driven during rounds but surprisingly laid back and friendly off the course; Chopra's inner peace is locked in a mortal battle with the inherent frustrations of golf; and Trump manages to be both an egomaniac and a pretty nice fellow. And although he's on assignment to profile his temporary employers, Reilly emerges as an entertaining figure in his own right as he commits numerous faux pas, breaks taboos, infuriates multiple golfers and caddies, accidentally dumps all of Nicklaus's clubs onto the turf in the middle of a round, and discovers that caddying is tougher than it looks. Reilly walks a nice line with the tone of Who's Your Caddy?: it's reverent to the game without becoming a misty-eyed poetic ode, and it's laugh-out-loud funny without being nasty or low brow. And while golf fans will certainly appreciate it, Who's Your Caddy? is an impressive book for fans of biography in general. --John Moe --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly

Hilarious misadventures, catty gossip and downright embarrassing facts are only part of the appeal of this deftly written journal by Sports Illustrated writer Reilly (Missing Links). Caddying for a golf pro just might be every amateur golfer's dream. Reilly managed to talk 11 players, media personalities and one infamous gambler into letting him follow them inside the ropes, even though he had no experience as a caddy and showed that fact so many times that John Daly nicknamed him "Dumbshit." Consider spilling Jack Nicklaus's clubs out onto the wet ground, just as he asks you for a new ball. Or leaving David Duval's golf clubs in the locker room overnight (the ones he won the British Open with) and not being able to find them the next morning. Self-help guru Deepak Chopra recently took up the game and proved that although he may be able to control the aging process, hitting driver is beyond his mystical powers. Reilly gets serious while carrying Casey Martin's bag, the pro golfer who sued the PGA Tour for the right to ride a golf cart during tournaments (Martin suffers from a rare leg disorder that makes every step excruciatingly painful). Billionaire Donald Trump, comedian Bob Newhart, beautiful LPGA pro Jill McGill, Tom Lehman (there's a "Jimmy Stewart decency about him"), legendary gambler Dewey Tomko and blind golfer Bob Andrews round out the field and provide Reilly ample inspiration for a truly funny, don't-miss read.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 261 pages
• Publisher: Broadway Books (May 4, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0767917405
• ISBN-13: 978-0767917407
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (71 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #94,499 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very Funny Book!, May 28, 2003

By	Robert Brock (Camden, Ohio USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Who's Your Caddy?: Looping for the Great, Near Great, and Reprobates of Golf (Hardcover)

I found this book to be a quick read (took me a weekend to read 250+ pages) and very enjoyable. I give it four stars on account of the people that Reilly interviewed while he walked the loop with them. My personal favorite was just how much of a redneck John Daly was. I cannot begin to explain some of this man's humor in life unless you read this book. After reading this book, you also realize just how nice Tom Lehman and Casey Martin are, and just how full of themselves Jack Nickalus and Donald Trump are. I found most the humor to be very good, but it just lacked the hook to really pull me in. There were some good moments though, including Reilly's constant problems with the golf bag and how easily he pisses golfers off. I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a quick laugh and one who wants to get an insight on walking with some of the pros on the PGA, but I also found that this book wouldn't win the "Most Humorous Book of the Year" award. A good read for most, especially fans of SI and Reilly's work.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Better Than the Back Page of Sports Illustrated, May 25, 2003

By	P. O'Rourke "Patrick T. O'Rourke" (Highlands Ranch, CO United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Who's Your Caddy? (Random House Large Print (Cloth/Paper)) (Hardcover)

First, a disclaimer. I think Rick Reilly is one of the most creative and entertaining sportswriters out there. I thought it before picking up this book, and my impression has been confirmed.

I've read interviews about dozens of "golfers." Reilly's genius is his ability to turn those "golfers" into "people." In these short vignettes, Reilly not only gives you some insight into what makes people like John Daly and David Duval tick, but he does it an entertaining, mapcap manner.

There are sometimes when Reilly gets a bit over the top, such as when he uses expression like "eat hot titanium," but I can overlook these exaggerations when they serve to move the stories along. I know that I'll pick this book up time and again for light, fun reading.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious look at golf that even non-golfers will love, September 8, 2003

By	Blaine Greenfield "eclectic reader" (Belle Meade, NJ) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Who's Your Caddy?: Looping for the Great, Near Great, and Reprobates of Golf (Hardcover)

C. What do Donald Trump, Jack Nicklaus, Deepak Chopra, and Bob
Newhart have in common? They've all utilized the caddying services
of Rick Reilly, a senior writer for SPORTS ILLUSTRATED and author
of the hilarious WHO'S YOUR CADDY?

Reilly set out to find out about what makes golfers tick . . . to do
so, he offered to caddy for them for free . . . although Tiger Woods
turned down his offer (repeatedly), some of the best pros in the world agreed to let him carry their bags--including David Duval,
Tom Lehman and John Daly . . . others did as well, and all their
tales are covered in this book that is a MUST for any golfer
to read.

And even though I haven't played the game since I was a teenager,
I loved this book and would recommend it to non-golfers as
well . . . it is funny, in many spots, but also quite moving when
describing the uphill battle faced by Casey Martin when he had
to get the Supreme Court to rule that he should be allowed to
play with a cart.

I was also touched by the story of Bob Martin, one of the top
blind golfers in the world.

There were several memorable passages; among them:
* The bag was simple and blue, with no sponsor on it, and heavier than
Meatloaf. What's this guy got in there, anvils? I remembered the time
British golf writer Bill Elliot spent a day caddying for Faldo for a story.
Elliott struggled under its weight all day, until he discovered, afterward,
that Faldo had snuck a brick and three dozen extra balls into the bottom
of the bag for a laugh. There is nobody that will crack you up like
that madcap Nick Faldo.

* A local TV crew comes up to us on the second fairway. The reporter
asks, "What's the secret to hitting it so far?"

"Well," says [John] Daly, "you gotta have a lot of ex-wives. I just think of
them and hit it."

* The truth was, I'm sure it's not easy playing with somebody grilling
you between every shot. "Nah," he [Jack Nicklaus] said. "Remember,
I played with Trevino. In fact, one time, we met on the first tee and
I said, 'Lee, I don't want to talk today.' And Lee said, 'You don't have to talk,
Jack. You only have to listen.' "