A Day In Golf That I Will Never Forget!

      I was 10 years old in 1956 and I was a young B caddie (it doesn't get any lower) at Tedesco Country Club in Marblehead Ma.   That day was special as Tedesco CC was hosting the Round Robin Championship with LPGA's greatest players of that time and this day was its pro-am celebrity type day.     Caddie's sat next to the golf shop waiting to be chosen and assigned their bag and golfer that they would be caddying for.
     We were all waiting anxiously to find out who we would be caddying for when all of a sudden from the locker room door next to the caddie area Marlene Hagge Bower walked out with a white polo jersey with a little red scarf!   My heart just about stopped as all the boy's and I watched every step as she came down the stairs and walked into the pro shop.   Was this about to be one of the greatest days of my life!?
     Moments later the caddie master stepped through the door to select a caddie.   Well if you could have seen the look of desire on everyone's face as he was considering who he would choose, how can you describe the look of young boys "wanting".    Most of us were also leaning forward on the bench to be seen with our heads stretched, all beaming "pick me...pick me...Low and behold from his mouth he uttered my name "Tremblay" Oh my god, I was about to caddie for the leading money winner that year on the LPGA and of course "the cutest".   With our pre-teen testosterone about to kick in soon, we were all in love with that gorgeous lady who strolled down the steps a few moments earlier.   The wolves beside me all began to snarl and all I could hear was "how was this kid picked, he's just a B caddie"  The boys were furious, jealous and a few other nasty contemptuous feelings.
     As I turned the corner on the golf shop to where the golf bags where lined up on the rack, the caddie master selected a golf bag and put in in front of me.   The bag and set looked like something that you would see at a yard sale!    Did Marlene Hagge Bower lose her clubs?   Was the caddie master just kidding with me?   I didn't know what to think!
     Then from out of the pro shop walked a very old white-haired lady with a poker dot house dress down to her ankles walking right toward me.  To be as polite as I can be, this lady was a sight.   I was devastated, I was not caddying for Ms. Bower, instead, I was caddying for this older woman who appeared to be 85 years of age or better!   How could I round the corner and let my boys see me now with this bag and this golfer?
     Well, there was no way around any of this, my player said to me follow me sonny and we walked past all the boys.  They all had grins ear to ear and I was the laughing stock of the caddies.   I had gotten Zonked!     BTW, the one in the middle is who I caddied for.   It was a long day, my player whistled most of the way up and down the fairways, I think she removed her dentures to play golf.  It was not a pretty picture!   If I remember correctly she shot something in the area of 107 she gave me a tip afterward of .75 cents and my day's pay was a whopping $3.00.  (B caddies only were supposed to be paid $2.25 at the time.)      I, of course, was the topic of many jokes about me weeks later from "the boys"  and the day I thought I was going to caddie for the Marlene Hagge Bower.  Little did I know at that time I was caddying for one of the greatest names in the history of women's golf ever!
     That day in 1956 I had caddied for Ms. Margaret Curtis for whom the Curtis Cup is named after and one of the pioneers in developing and expanding the game of golf for women in the United States.  In 1958 Margaret Curtis was awarded the United States Golf Association's highest award "The Bob Jones Award" for her contributions to the game of golf.
     So at my ripe old age of 68, I have the pleasure of remembering that day, its humor at the time but the one to have the last laugh knowing that I caddied for a piece of American Golf History! 

With warm regards, Richard Tremblay / This April marks my 52th year as a member of the PGA of America

By the way, I now live at the "Home Of American Golf" a wonderful place called Pinehurst, N.C.  Life is simply better here, the pace is slower, the air is clean and he just can't imagine the great real estate values here.  Just for fun (be careful, this will motivate you to join us) take a tour of homes in a price range that is affordable to you on our homepage (click here)    BTW....Pinehurst becoming a 2nd National headquarters for the USGA.    Pinehurst will be hosting the Mens USOpen in 2024 and it was just announced that it will be hosting the Men's and Women's USOpen's back to back once again in 2029.