How To Be A Good Daddy Caddie

First check whether caddies are allowed

Before you plan the snacks and polish the lucky ball marker, check the tournament rules.

Some junior events allow parent caddies. Some allow caddies only for certain age groups. Some allow spectators but not caddies. Most events are strict about advice, where parents may walk, drive a golf cart and whether parents may be involved at all.

U.S. Kids Golf, for example, encourages players to have a parent, guardian or family member caddie, and SA Kids Golf has a caddie code of conduct for its events.

In the Western Cape, it also depends on the tournament. Boland Open tournaments usually do not allow caddies, while many WP Golf junior tournaments do allow them. Always check the specific tournament conditions before the round, because the rules can differ by event, age group and format.

So the first action to take as a daddy caddie is simple: read the event rules before the round.

On-course behaviour

Set the right example

When you caddie for your child, you are part of the group, and your behaviour affects the other players too.

That means no smoking, drinking, shouting, swearing, arguing, or making the round uncomfortable for the children around you. It sounds obvious, but anyone who has spent time around junior golf has probably seen at least one parent forget this completely.

Do not criticise another child’s score, swing, attitude or pace of play. Do not “kak out” another player, even if you think they made a mistake. If there is a rules issue, scoring problem or behaviour concern, deal with it through the proper channel: calmly, factually and preferably with an official or organiser involved.

It also means staying respectful toward other parents and caddies. Junior golf can get tense, and yes, we have seen daddy caddies argue with each other on the course. It helps nobody and it puts the children in a horrible position.

A good caddie sets the tone: calm voice, good manners, honest scoring, respect for the group and no drama on the fairway. Your child is watching how you behave, not just listening to what you say.

Do you need to be a golfer to daddy caddie?

You do not need to be a good golfer to be a good caddie.

It helps if you understand the basics, but your most important jobs are simple: carry the bag, keep your child calm, help with water and snacks, count shots honestly, keep up with the group and ask for help when you are unsure.

You do not have to read every putt like a tour caddie or know exactly which club your child should hit from 118 metres into the wind. In fact, trying to do too much can make the round harder. A calm parent who knows their limits is often more useful than a frustrated golfer-parent who tries to control every shot.

Learn the basic rules, read the tournament conditions, and ask an official when something is unclear. Your child does not need a perfect caddie. They need a steady one.

Your job before the round

A good caddie starts working before the first tee.

Get there early enough that your child is not rushed. Make sure you know the tee time, starting hole, format, local rules and where scoring will happen after the round.

Pack the practical things:

• water
• snacks
• sunscreen
• tees
• balls
• ball marker
• pencil
• towel
• sandbag
• push cart
• rain top/warmer clothes if needed
• any rule notes the event allows

It is generally recommended to arrive about an hour before tee time, checking in, making sure you have drinks and sunscreen, and getting to the starting tee at least 10 minutes before the tee time.

Carry the bag, not the whole round

The bag is yours. The golf is theirs.

That is the line every parent caddie has to learn.

You can help with distance, junior golf club options, pace of play, rules questions and keeping the mood steady. You can remind your child to drink water, breathe, check the wind or think about the safer side of the green.

But the final decision should still belong to your child.

A young golfer who is told what to do on every shot may shoot a better score today, but they do not learn how to play the game. Tournament golf slowly teaches children how to choose, commit, make mistakes and recover.

A caddie should support that process, not replace it.

Keep your reactions boring

This may be the hardest part.

Try to react almost the same way to a great shot, a bad shot and a strange shot that bounces off a tree and lands somewhere nobody expected.

That does not mean you must act cold or uninterested. It means your child should not feel that your mood depends on the ball flight.

You reaction after shots, holes and rounds can have a major impact on you child’s enjoyment.

A calm caddie gives the child space to stay in the round.

The Caddie Line-Up

Try the smiley lines when the round gets bumpy. And swallow the others.

🙂

Useful lines

• “Good commitment.”
• “Okay, next shot.”
• “Let’s find it first.”
• “What’s the smart play from here?”
• “Take your time.”
• “New hole.”

:-/

Less useful lines

• “Why did you do that?”
• “You always do this.”
• “You should have listened to me.”
• “That was such an easy shot.”
• “Now you’ve thrown it away.”
• “Look what the other player is doing.”

Do not coach the swing during the round

The middle of a junior tournament is not the place for a full swing lesson. In some events, it may not even be allowed, especially if you are there as a spectator and not as an official caddie.

If caddie advice is allowed, a small reminder can help if it is something your child already knows. But once you start rebuilding the backswing on the fourth fairway, the round can unravel quickly.

There is a big difference between:

“Smooth tempo.”

and:

“Your grip is wrong, your shoulder is opening, you’re lifting your head and you’re not finishing properly.”

The first one might help. The second one adds noise.

Keep technical advice short, familiar and limited. Save the bigger coaching conversations for practice.

Help with pace of play

A daddy caddie should make the group easier to play with, not harder.

That means:

• be ready when it is your child’s turn
• help find balls quickly (not just of your own child)
• move the bag to the right side of the green
• raking bunkers
• fixing divots
• know when to pick up if the format allows it
• keep snacks and water simple
• do not turn every shot into a committee meeting
• help your child make decisions without delaying the group

A good caddie is calm, useful and aware of the whole group.

Scorekeeping

The scorecard is an important part of playing proper golf.

Your child needs to learn how to count properly, check scores after each hole and speak up when something is wrong. As the caddie, you can help them build that habit.

After each hole, confirm the score clearly. Also pay attention to the score your child is marking for another player, if that applies.

Let your child do their own scorekeeping during the round if possible, but maybe keep a back up scoring for yourself to make sure your child scored him/herself correctly as well as the other player they were marking for.

A quick word about cheating

Cheating deserves its own discussion, especially in junior golf, because it often starts in small moments: improving a lie, ignoring a penalty, “finding” a ball too conveniently, or writing down the score everyone wishes had happened.

As a caddie, your job is to protect your child from that shortcut, not help them take it. If you are unsure about a rule, ask an official instead of guessing in your child’s favour.

If you see another parent bending the rules, stay calm and think carefully before stepping in. Sometimes the best choice is to let it go, keep your own child’s round honest and trust that repeated shortcuts tend to catch up with people in the end. If it is serious, repeated or affects the field, raise it calmly with the organiser or rules official.

Golf is built on trust, and your child learns far more from seeing you handle an awkward rules moment honestly than from one better number on a scorecard.

Be careful with “helping too much”

Some parent caddies are coaching too much.

They choose every club.
Read every putt.
Control every routine.
Correct every decision.
Talk after every shot.
Explain every mistake.

Over time, that can make your child rely too much on you instead of learning how to make their own decisions on the course.

A good daddy caddie helps their child take more ownership as they grow.

Younger children may need more guidance with clubs, scoring, pace of play and simple decisions. That is normal. But as your child becomes more experienced, try to step back little by little. Let them choose a club. Let them read a putt. Let them decide whether to play safe or take on the shot.

They will not always make the right choice, and that ok, that is part of the learning. The goal is for them to become a golfer who can think, read the fairway, decide and handle the round for themselves.

Know the small rules that catch caddies out

You do not need to know every rule perfectly before your child plays junior golf. Nobody does. Even experienced daddy caddies sometimes get caught by the smaller details.

Some caddie rules are easy to miss. For example, the Rules of Golf limit where a caddie may stand when helping a player aim. A caddie also may not give physical help or protect the player from the elements while the player makes a stroke.

There are also decisions the player must make for themselves. A caddie may advise, but cannot make certain choices on the player’s behalf, such as deciding to take relief.

That is why it is always better to ask an official when you are unsure. Guessing confidently is not the same as knowing the rule, and in junior golf, a small caddie mistake can sometimes cost the player.

Know how to handle bad holes well

Every junior golfer has disaster holes.

A bunker takes four shots to get out.
A ball disappears.
A short putt misses.
A good round suddenly turns messy.

This is where a daddy caddie can really help.

Do not replay the whole mistake while the child is still standing in it. Help them finish the hole, write down the correct score and move on.

Say things like:

• “Phew, that hole is done.”
• “Let’s get a good tee shot here.”
• “One shot at a time.”
• “You handled that well.”

Bad holes are not wasted holes if the child learns how to recover.

Tears, tantrums and flying clubs

Junior golf can bring out big emotions.

There will be tears. There may be shouting. Sometimes there is club throwing, swearing, storming off, or a child who suddenly looks like they have forgotten every lesson they have ever had. It is not pretty, but it is also not unusual. Golf is hard, and tournament golf can feel even harder when you are young.

As a caddie, this is where your calm matters most.

When emotions run high

Do

• Help them become safe and settled again.
• Move the club away if needed.
• Give them a moment.
• Keep your voice low and remind them that the next job is simply to continue the round properly.

Don’t

• Do not match the emotion.
• Do not argue across the fairway.
• Do not shame your child in front of the group.

That does not mean bad behaviour should be ignored. Throwing clubs, swearing at people, damaging the course or being disrespectful to playing partners is not okay. But the correction needs to be calm and clear, not explosive.

You can say:

“You’re allowed to be disappointed. You’re not allowed to be rude.”

After the round, talk about it properly. Not as a lecture in the car park while everyone is still emotional, but later, when your child can actually hear you.

Junior golfers need to learn that frustration is part of the game, but so is self-control. A bad shot is allowed. Bad behaviour is not.

The car ride home

The round does not end when the scorecard is handed in.

For many children, the car ride home is where the experience is either protected or ruined.

Do not open with a list of mistakes. Give your child time. Some kids want to talk. Some need a snack and silence, or even a nap.

A good first line is:

“I loved watching you play.”

Use simple support like this because children already carry pressure from competition, other players and their own expectations.

Later, you can talk about one or two useful things. Not twenty-seven.

Quick daddy caddie checklist

A simple round-day guide for helping your child stay calm, prepared and honest on the course.

Before the round

• Check if caddies are allowed
• Read the event rules
• Pack water, snacks and sunscreen
• Arrive early
• Know the scoring process
• Check whether there are local rules

During the round

• Stay calm
• Keep advice short
• Help with pace of play
• Count scores properly
• Let your child make decisions
• Respect the other players
• Ask officials when unsure
• Keep the round honest

After the round

• Check the scorecard
• Let your child breathe
• Keep feedback simple
• Praise effort, honesty and composure
• Save big lessons for practice