The Caddy

The Caddy

“Your own ears will hear Him. Right behind you a voice will say, ‘This is the way you should go,’ — whether to the right or to the left.”
Isaiah 30:21 (NLT)

“Tommy Bolt, winner of the 1958 US Open, tells the story of an incident he had with a caddy during one of his tournaments. This was before professional golfers had their own caddies as they do today. Bolt arrived at the venue for the tournament and was approached by a youngster, “Mr. Bolt, do you need a caddy, sir?”

The lad seemed unseasoned, so Bolt replied, “I’ll let you know, kid.” He then went to the caddy master and asked about the youngster. “He’s a real good caddy,” the man said, “knows the course, the greens, and the rules of the game. But he talks a lot.”

So Bolt went back to the youngster and said, “You can caddy for me on one condition: Don’t say a word.”

The kid accepted and carried the bag for the Open champion. The first round went well, as did the second, and third. Bolt was in contention in the fourth round, when an errant tee shot landed in the rough. The ball was sitting down in a bad patch of turf, with a risky shot to the green which was well guarded by water on the right.

Bolt asked the kid, “You think a five iron will do the trick?” The kid shook his head no, but never said a word.

“What, you want me to hit a six iron?”

Again, the kid shook his head no, but did not speak. Bolt grabbed a six iron and lashed the ball out of the rough and landed on the green, rolling to about three feet for a birdie.

As they walked to the green, Bolt said, “Aren’t you going to say something now, after seeing a shot like that?”

The kid then replied, “Mr. Bolt, that wasn’t your ball.”

Many of us go through life with a Caddy we never let speak. He is the Holy Spirit, and if we would only listen to Him, engaged in an ongoing conversation, He would save us many penalty strokes on the Links of Life.”
– James Ryle

See: Thought for Today