It’s safe to say that among the 572 different people who employed a caddie through the Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy in 2013, plenty of motivations were at play.
Some golfers simply enjoy the game more when utilizing a caddie. Some like getting exercise while not having to carry their own clubs — or push a cart. Some feel like they’re playing the game in its purest form when using a caddie. And some simply support the idea behind the Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy at CommonGround Golf Course.
And, of course, for many it’s a combination of the above reasons.
But all that said, it certainly didn’t hurt the cause that a very large “carrot” is being held out to spur caddie use at CommonGround, which is owned and operated by the CGA and CWGA.
George Solich, general chairman of the BMW Championship PGA Tour playoff event that will be held at Cherry Hills Country Club Sept. 1-7, personally purchased and donated three spots in the Sept. 3 pro-am that immediately precedes the first PGA Tour tournament that’s come to Colorado since 2006.
Those pro-am spots, which run $12,000 apiece, were donated to the Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy, which bears the name of George Solich and his brother Geoff. The pro-am berths will be awarded to the winners of a three-prong contest that was announced last spring, with the hope being that they’ll further incentivize the use of caddies, support the Evans Caddie Scholarship, and raise awareness about the 2014 BMW Championship in Colorado.
One of the BMW pro-am spots will go to the golfer who utilizes the most Solich Academy caddies over the 2013 and ’14 seasons at CommonGround.
The second BMW pro-am spot will be awarded to the winner of a limited lottery. All the CommonGround players who use caddies at least five times in 2013 and ’14 combined — besides the previously noted winner — will be eligible for a spot in the lottery, which will determine the second pro-am participant.
And the third and final BMW pro-am position will be raffled off, with the sale of tickets beginning later this fall, at a price to be determined. Proceeds from the raffle will benefit the Evans Caddie Scholarship at the University of Colorado. The Evans Scholars program, which has about 840 students currently on full-tuition and housing scholarships nationwide, is the beneficiary of the BMW Championship.
In excess of 1,000 caddie loops were recorded for the Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy in 2013, more than a 5 percent increase over the previous year, the first for the initiative. Twenty-one golfers employed Solich Academy caddies (pictured) at least five times this year, and seven players made it into double digits: Todd Kirkman (20), Andy Harwood (15.5), Paul Tarr (14), Gary Albrecht (12), Darin Goldey (12), John Nicholas (11) and Mike Kern (10.5).
The three contest winners will be paired with PGA Tour players in the Gardner Heidrick Pro-Am on Sept. 3, when each of 56 Tour professionals will be matched with three amateurs. And considering only the top 70 players on the PGA Tour are eligible for the BMW Championship, it’s pretty heady company.
This year’s BMW field included Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Rory McIlroy, Ernie Els, Adam Scott, Lee Westwood, Sergio Garcia and Bubba Watson.
As George Solich noted earlier this year, “It’s the most expensive pro-am on Tour, and it’s priced that way because it’s the best pro-am on Tour.”
For the CGA, CWGA and CommonGround, the BMW pro-am contest is an ideal way to promote the Solich Academy and all it stands for, the Evans Scholarship and the BMW Championship.
“I don’t think people fully understand the value of this,” said CGA executive director Ed Mate. “Hopefully word of mouth will spread about what a wonderful opportunity this is.”
The Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy provides incentives to take caddies by paying all of their base fees. Some of the best caddies go on to work at other caddie programs in Colorado, and some have been and will be candidates for the Evans Scholarship. In addition, Solich Academy caddies are required to complete some community service.
This past summer, for the purpose of the BMW pro-am contest, caddiemaster Jonathan Swonger kept detailed track of who took caddies and how many times. Eventually, the results were posted throughout the CommonGround clubhouse, even on some of the electronic screens.
“Once we started posting the results, that got people talking about it,” Mate said. “And that’s the whole goal. We got a lot of feedback and interest.”
And Mate hopes that interest will only increase, though CommonGround is currently limited to only nine holes in the aftermath of the September flooding.
“In 2014 we’re going to try to hit it hard,” he said of the BMW pro-am contest. “This is a wonderful way to promote caddies at CommonGround.”
Each pro-am spot also includes four weekly badges for the BMW Championship, a commemorative picture plaque of your pro-am group, and two invitations to the Sept. 2 pro-am draw party and two to the Sept. 3 awards reception.
