Caddy Knows Best

I count his clubs (a maximum of 14, obviously), and make sure he has nine to 12 new balls every day, five or six gloves, Sharpies, two towels, a yardage finder, a yardage book, bug spray, sunscreen, two rain suits, an umbrella and a medical kit.

Don’t Be Afraid To Back Away. Because playing conditions change quickly, I don’t have any fear of stopping Will mid-swing. Heck, I’ll tackle him mid-swing if I think we don’t have the right club. A little breeze might not feel like a lot, but the difference between hitting it five feet and 10 feet is significant.

Stay Positive. There’s a lot to keeping Will pumped. I’m constantly talking to him, pulling stuff from movies. You know that movie Cinderella Man—the part where the trainer is keeping Russell Crowe’s spirits up? I’ll get right in Will’s face and say, “Is there any place you’d rather be, Willie Mac?” He’ll just look at me and say, “No way, Murph dog!” You know it’s easy to be inspired when you’re playing great, but when it’s going poorly, you’ve got to keep believing in yourself.

Know Your Yardages. The yardage book is my Bible. I’m very methodical in practice rounds, measuring how far Will’s 3-wood goes, etc. But one of the things people don’t realize is that yardage isn’t just numbers. It involves a lot of other factors like lie, weather conditions and energy. Out here on Tour, we play on firm, fast greens, so it’s important to take that into consideration, too.

Be Your Own “Johnny on the Spot.” I’m constantly Johnny on the spot. If it rains, I keep him dry; if it’s hot, I keep him cool. It’s my job to anticipate what he needs, when he needs it. That’s something everybody should do. Especially if you’ve got your bag on a cart, there’s no excuse for not being as prepared to battle the elements as you can be.

2. Rotate Your Wedges’ Bounce. Part of playing Tour-caliber golf around the world—on varying grasses and weather conditions—is having the right tools. In most cases, Tour pros stick with the same set of clubs, but it’s not uncommon to hear of players changing wedges to better fit specific course conditions. The firmer the conditions, the more players tend to favor low “bounce” models that resist bouncing off the ground.

3. Tip Your Clubshaft. “Tipping” refers to how the shaft is cut before it’s placed in a clubhead, most often in a driver. The standard procedure when shortening a shaft is to cut the shaft from the club’s grip end to avoid significantly affecting flex. Tour pros know that for extra stiffness and a boost of added control, they need to trim their driver shaft at the tip end (where it’s inserted into the clubhead).

4. Frequency Match Your Shafts. Frequency matching synchronizes shaft flex across a range of clubs, usually a set of irons. It works like this: every shaft is put in a device that counts the number of oscillations a shaft makes per minute. The shafts are then cut and fitted until each one oscillates at the same, or desired, rate. Some players prefer more flex in long irons and less in short irons, while others prefer a steeper slope. Some even want the same flex in every club.

5. Repel Positive Ions. Managing negative ions is all the rage on Tour, so bracelets and pendants featuring technology designed to calm the central nervous system (by neutralizing positive ions emitted from computers, cell phones, etc.) have grown in popularity. They claim to help promote a clearer stream of concentration and focus. Whether they work or not, pros are wearing them to gain a competitive edge.
 
6. Check Your Driver’s Clubface. Tour pros usually carry drivers that are square, or even a few degrees open, to combat hooks and produce lower ball flight. Vijay Singh is rumored to use a driver that’s six degrees open, a strategy that helps him eliminate the left side of many fairways.

7. Change Your Clubshaft. If you want to be like the pros, ditch that stock shaft and opt for a premium high-performance one. The proliferation of aftermarket shafts has boomed and continues to do so, with numerous shaft options for virtually every kind of player. To sort it out, first consider getting fitted by a local clubfitter.

8. Counterbalance Your Clubs. By adding weight away from the clubhead, the club’s balance point moves more toward the middle of the shaft for a more balanced and harmonic feel. Some shafts come counterbalanced, while others can be countered with lead tape.

9. Carry A Hybrid. Yes, even the best players in the world have replaced their long irons with hybrids. Long irons are more difficult to hit today than in previous years, mainly because they tend to be lower (stronger) lofted than they need to be. In other words, your 4-iron today may be more closely identified with a 3- or even 2-iron of 20 years ago.

10. Play The Right Ball. There are many kinds of golf balls to choose from, but today’s best golfers generally play urethane-covered, three-piece models. Three-piece balls consist of three layers: a core, midlayer and cover. The combination of these three components generates low-spin drives and high-spin wedge shots.