Caddie's role: Colin Byrne takes a look back at the Masters
Monday
It was hard to find a parking spot in Bush Field private airport. Most of the world's golfing dignitaries had flown in for the 68th Masters in private jets. Not that I am complaining. We are whisked off to our digs for the week, a rented house that I have stayed in for the past couple of years and which is about a 20-minute walk from Augusta National. This saves messing around with traffic and makes the journey time to the course more predictable.
The journey from the airfield is like taking a quick history lesson on the town of Augusta. Cotton was the main industry here until recently. The red-bricked sprawling buildings and the surrounding smaller factories remind me of northern England.
Probably depressed-looking on most days, but in Masters week, with a clear blue sky and bright sunshine, it looked perfectly charming.
Tuesday
Golf enthusiasts or just Masters freaks, whatever they are they are not to be confused with a knowledgeable crowd. "KJ Choi is Japanese," I hear one say - sure isn't Korea close enough? One red-faced bumpkin, who picks up Michael Campbell's errant tee shot on 14, gets as far as the 18th telling everyone along the way that he has Tiger's ball, before he realises it's not Tiger Woods's ball. I suppose Michael's skin colour was enough to convince the guy. Pity someone has to go an spoil his fun.
The entrance to the club is full of abandoned handbags. Security, which has always been strict at Augusta, is even more so post 9/11. Handbags must be less than 10 inches wide, by five deep and five high. There is a box at the entrance to use as a guideline. There are no exceptions.
Wednesday
A mid-morning practice round with three-time past champion Nick Faldo. It is aways an education to observe the past Master doing his homework. He is still diligent, painstaking and extremely deliberate. His final revision before the big test entails detailed chipping from acute angles around each green to expected pin positions. He putts from every conceivable position to imaginary pins. The problem is the course has become too long for Faldo. Off the tee at Augusta, even with the fairways running, you need to be relatively long. Faldo is way behind both my boss and Campbell. He also does not have the required right-to-left shape that so many of Augusta National's holes require for perfect positioning.
Wednesday has become an unofficial break for us tour caddies while players' friends get a chance to savour some Masters atmosphere by caddying in the par-three fun event.
Byron Nelson is sitting on the first tee, like an elderly gentleman enjoying the afternoon in his rocking chair on the balcony, greeting the players and caddies as they step on to the tee. The Duke of York is also wandering about, conspicuous only by his royal rigout of grey flannels and navy blue blazer.
Thursday
As a caddie I really feel deprived of some vital information at the Masters.
It is the only event in the world where we are forbidden to walk the course without our players - and their bags - on our backs. Most of us like to do some homework on the course, in addition to the information provided in the yardage book. We cannot under the National rules. The problem is that, despite a committee of 12 setting the pins each day, they still end up giving us inaccurate readings on our daily pin sheet as to where the pins are actually located. About three pins are incorrect today, a long way from the precision demanded by the modern professional.
For those of us who have been there before we know how it goes and you have to check the pins before you go out or exercise extra vigilance when it comes to looking at each pin.
I would like to ask the green jackets the question: If you were denied some of the most vital information to prepare for one of the biggest weeks in your profession how would you feel?
Friday
There's a dark cloud hanging over the Augusta National caddie shack as the news spreads that Bruce Edwards, Tom Watson's long-standing caddie died after being diagnosed with ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease at the start of 2003.
Bruce had been awarded the Ben Hogan award for achievement in the face of adversity at a reception on Wednesday night. He had been too unwell to travel and his father accepted the honour with a touching speech. Bruce had caddied up till November last year. Six hours after his father received the award on his behalf, he passed away without seeing a shot of the 2004 Masters played.
Watson's replacement for Bruce is Jeff Burell. Jeff developed back problems on Tuesday and Tom had to get a local caddie to work for him during the tournament. Jeff thinks he will go along for the second round to give some moral support to his man. He goes to the gate near the caddie shack to get his caddie badge's bar code scanned. It doesn't work, the authorities have cancelled his badge due to the fact that Watson now has another caddie. A very unsympathetic gesture by a a group besotted by rules. Watson organises another badge for his injured caddie.
As Arnold Palmer walks to the scorers hut after "his final round" again at the Masters, the green jackets are all lined up to greet "the King" on this emotional occasion.
Saturday
I decide to try to solve the pin mystery by getting to the course early to watch the committee set the pins. Normally as caddies we look for a tiny speck of paint in the area that you expect the next day's hole to be cut. But things are done differently at Augusta. Instead of a tiny splash of paint they spray a generous amount but then comes the trick, they cover it with a mix of seed and green dye. So all afternoon I go to the areas were I think Sunday's pins will be set and forage for the camouflaged red, barely visible through the green dye. I crack the system, I hope they don't find out.
The pin placements at Augusta are now verging on the ridiculous. If you are not paying attention you could embarrass yourself by putting your ball off the green.
For those who have been here on numerous occasions we have never seen the pins cut so close to the slopes. If you have ever played "crazy golf" you can imagine how some the pins at Augusta are set this year.
Sunday
A day that was supposed to be decided by bad weather is ignited by holed out long shots on the back nine. The first roar is for Choi's holed five-iron from 217 yards on the 11th. Such is the mystery of Augusta. KJ normally hits his five-iron 185 yards. Club selection comes down to local knowledge and the theoretical part of the game has to be over-ruled on many occasions. If you simply make a club decision based on the yardage alone, you are likely to be wrong. The second and third roars, in quick succession, are for the holes-in-one by Padraig Harrington and Kirk Triplett on the 16th.
For Mickelson and particularly for his caddie of 12 years, Jim "Bones" Makay, it is the crowning moment of their exceptionally long relationship.
Jim has an unusually close working relationship with Phil and seems to have a huge input into on-course decisions and strategy. I think their warm embrace on the 18th after Phil sinks the winning putt sums-up how much the victory means to the now longest-standing player/caddie partnership in the world.
