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Writer bagged essence of golf
Posted: Thursday April 10
By Larry Williams
The Augusta Chronicle
The press release for Rick Reilly's newest book calls him the funniest sports writer in America. Few will dispute that claim after reading Who's Your Caddy?
Reilly threw himself for a loop by looping for 12 people - some famous, others infamous - and writing about it. From John Daly to Donald Trump to Jack Nicklaus, Reilly endeavored to get "inside the head of golf itself - awful golfers, blind golfers, gambling golfers, celebrity golfers, crazed golfers and guru golfers."
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Who's Your Caddy? SPECIAL |
Fittingly, Reilly began his quest in golf's most celebrated setting - the Masters Tournament. He made his debut on Wednesday of last year's tournament, working for 1973 Masters champion Tommy Aaron.
Originally, Aaron agreed to let Reilly carry his bag for nine holes and the Par-3 Contest. Reilly, however, ended up working Friday after Aaron got rid of his original caddie.
That isn't to say Aaron was infinitely pleased with Reilly, who made Aaron - and other caddies - cringe with horror at his inability to correctly rake a bunker.
On No. 5, Aaron hit a chip that looked to come up short.
"Get up!" Reilly said.
Aaron didn't embrace the encouragement. He turned to Reilly and snapped, "Get your mouth off my ball."
"I don't use my mouth," a confused Reilly replied. "I'm using this wet towel here."
"No, no," Aaron shot back. "Keep your mouth off my ball. Don't talk to it. I want it to get up as much as you do. It doesn't help me to know that you're over there, telling it to get up or get down or whatever. It just adds to the pressure."
That was one of many lessons learned by Reilly, also the author of Missing Links. Using the self-deprecating humor that has made him a famous back-page columnist for Sports Illustrated, he learned that spending 24 hours with Daly can provide a window into a sometimes crude, always tortured soul. He learned that David Duval has a personality and energy his robotic public persona portrays.
But most important, Reilly learned that viewing golf through the eyes of a blind man can profoundly change one's appreciation for the game.
The 12th and final chapter tells of Reilly looping for Bob Andrews, a 30-handicapper who lost his sight in 1967 as a Marine in Vietnam.
"You just saw how much the guy was in love with the game, and he couldn't even see the colors," Reilly said Thursday. "He didn't get to see that. And yet he just was in love with the game."
A 6-handicapper, Reilly tried to replicate Andrews' experience by playing nine holes with a blindforld. He made 74 his goal, butfinished with 121 - "an impressive and entirely dishonest" 121.
"It made me realize how much I love the game," he said. "It made me realize I'm never taking it for granted again."
BOOK: Who's Your Caddy?
AUTHOR: Rick Reilly
PUBLISHER: Doubleday
COST: $24.95
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