walk in a certain place to grab it,
and then give it to one of the other
caddies if you think they might be
the one who’ll place it back in the
hole, or something like that. Jake
had another pretty good laugh
at me when his ball was farthest
away on one of the greens and
he couldn’t see the hole. I was to
tend the stupid flag. That wasn’t
happening. I couldn’t reach the
darned thing. I’m 5 feet 3 inches
tall! He waved me out of the way,
and, bless his heart, putted blindly
to save me from humiliation.
I even got to rake the sand once,
but only once. He told me, “You
almost did OK.” I didn’t quite
know what to think of that remark.
The second round began on
the back nine. Once again, he
started out pretty poorly. Then
came number 18, the ninth hole
of the day. The eagle! The eagle
that made the local evening news,
even though his 20-over, two-day
score placed him dead last. The
eagle that was the first hole both of
our mothers and our eight-year-old
son, Shayne, had arrived to seeand Shayne consequently couldn’t
understand why Jake’s score was
so high. The eagle that was the
second of the last 11 holes, which
he played one under par.
When the ball sank on 18, we
heard his mom scream, “Way to
go, Jake!”
And then he tried to kiss me,
and I backed up. “I’m the caddy,
remember.”
We still hang on to those last
11 holes, since the cut was at one
under. We like to think that if he’d
played both days for the love of the
game, as he did on those last 11, he
would’ve made the cut and maybe
even finished well. After all, we did
beat John Daly’s 83 with our 79
on the second day. (You like how
I threw “we” and “our” in there,
huh?)
And we did have a great time,
just as we’d planned. He even said
I did a great job. His mom told me
I was definitely the cutest caddy,
after about half-a-dozen old guys
who were volunteering as “quiet
sign holders” had made similar
comments. I liked it better when his
mom said it.
The night after the tournament,
he took his wifecaddy to dinner.
And, I found myself in the most
engaging conversation-about golf !
This had always been a subject in
which I really had to try to show
interest. We sat outside at a local
restaurant and discussed every
bloody shot. I couldn’t believe my
mouth. I was actually talking golf,
listening and enjoying it, too.
I finally let myself cry. The
people at the other tables probably
thought we were breaking up. The
emotions just finally got to me, and
oh, the guilt! Did I feel guilty for not
stating the obvious sometimes and
letting him make stupid mistakes
because his nerves were making
him second-guess his talents?
He just rolled his eyes and
laughed at me. Then, he said the
sweetest thing: “I want you to
caddy for me again. It’ll be fun.” I
couldn’t believe he asked.
Back to being my husband again.
upcomingevents
June 2-5
State Amateur Championship at
Reunion Golf & Country Club in
Madison, Mississippi. Visit missgolf.org.
organization’s Twitter handle is @ Acres Country Club in Senatobia,
mslefties.
Mississippi. Visit missgolf.org.
June 6-7
Ladd’s/Club
Car
MPGA
Chmpsionship at The Preserve Golf
Club in Vancleave, Mississippi.
June 4-5
Webb Stroke Play, a flighted event
at BREC’s Webb Golf Course in June 9-12
LGA Amateur Championship at
Baton Rouge. Visit golf.brec.org.
Carter Plantation in Springfield,
Louisiana. Visit lgagolf.org.
June 5-6
Southern South Paw at Shell
Landing. The entry fee is $160. Those June 11-12
interested in the tournaments may Palmer Home Ringer Tournament
find additional information on the at Elm Lake Golf Course.
groups’ Facebook pages Mississippi
Lefties as well as Southern June 11-12
Southpaw Championships. The Back Acres Invitational at Back
June 13-14
Gulf States PGA Junior Championship at Gray Plantation in Lake
Charles, Louisiana.
June 14-15
Junior Amateur Championship
at Beaver Creek Golf Course and
Webb Golf Course. Visit golf.brec.
org.
June 17-19
Father-Son/Daughter at Jackson
Metro Courses in Mississippi. Visit
missgolf.org.