Two caddies arrived at the first hole Thursday morning wearing shorts and were ordered to change or face eviction from the course. Their protest failed, the caddies wore long pants. Luckily, a front came through on Wednesday, bringing cooler and drier air and the controversy quickly died. It's also ironic that in an era of unprecedented prosperity on the tour, caddies are now starting to get pinched. Some players are questioning the custom of giving caddies a percentage of their take.
Some players find that hard to justify and prefer to pay a fixed salary.
Mark O'Meara broke up with his longtime caddie, Jerry Higginbotham , after winning two majors in 1998. O'Meara, who is known for being thrifty, said their split wasn't about money. It's a free market and prices will eventually set themselves just as surely as some players will find out that when it comes to caddies, as with any other commodity, sometimes you get what you pay for. PGA Tour caddies are hardly mistreated but given the state of the tour, they aren't treated well. At least now the caddies can wear shorts on hot days.