Carson Herron Caddies For Patty Berg
The call came to Carson Herron, caddie master at the Wayzata Country Club. "I need caddies, you gotta help me!" It was Geoff Ferster, a new caddie master who had been convinced to take the job at Brookview Golf Course by Carson. The American Women's Open, an LPGA event, was about to descend on Brookview. "If you help me, you can pick who you want to caddie for," Geoff said.
In August of 1958 at age 19, Carson was given the job of caddie master by Homer Martinson, golf professional. Homer would later argue Carson spent more time hitting balls from the caddie yard than he did being caddie master. It proved beneficial when, in 1964, Carson would qualify for the US Open at Brookline.
Carson's interest in golf came from his father, Lee, who qualified for the US Open in 1936. To complete three generations, Carson's son Tim qualified for the US Open at the Olympic Club in 2011. Not to be outdone, Carson's daughter Allisa won the USGA Women's Mid-Amateur in 1999. Along with the Lehman family, the Herrons are Minnesota's first family in golf.
"I don't have enough caddies to work an event like this," pleaded Geoff. "I need you and your college players to come over and help."
"Ok, ok, I'll see what I can do," responded Carson.
It was the first trip to Minneapolis for the American Women's Open after being dropped by Tam-O-Shanter Golf Club in Chicago. Minneapolis finally had a tour event as St Paul had stolen the professional golf scene with the annual PGA tour stop at Keller Golf Course. Even with only 26 women golf professionals and another 35 amateurs making up the field, banner headlines ran across the top of the Minneapolis Star and Minneapolis Tribune all week long.
"How are you doing getting guys?" Geoff asked on the Thursday before tournament week.
"I'm working on it," Carson said.
"Remember, if you can get me the guys I will let you pick whoever you want to caddie for," urged Geoff.
By Sunday Carson had the guys. "So who do you want to caddie for?"
"I'll take Patty Berg," said Carson.
Patty Berg was one of three dominant players on the tour along with Mickey Wright and Louise Suggs. She famously grew up in south Minneapolis playing football with legendary coach Bud Wilkinson. She had been dominant in women's golf since 1936, losing in the finals of the USGA Women's Amateur at Interlachen to Glenna Collett Vare. Coming home to play this tournament, she would be the center of attention, a favorite of both the fans and the press.
"Ok, here is what I'll do," schemed Geoff. "You can have Patty Berg, but we split your pay for the week. It was a cheap trick to pull after Carson had held up his end of the bargain. Carson had the street smarts of someone considerably older. This would not get by him. He had been outflanked, but Carson knew things would level out, somehow, sometime.
Carson got the best bag in the tournament, but it came at a price.
Carson was in the parking lot to meet 40 year old Patty Berg Monday as she arrived at 9:00 for a gathering of local media. That would be two sports reporters, Duane Netland of the Minneapolis Tribune and George Grim of the Minneapolis Star. With competition between the Minneapolis and St. Paul Papers, the press from the other side of the river was not going to give the event much coverage, let alone three days before the start.
She emerged from her cobalt blue '57 Studebaker, standing 5'4" with the build of an interior lineman, a position she played on her neighborhood football team 25 years earlier. Dressed in a sand brown wool skirt, white polo shirt with a contrasting chocolate brown wool sweater and sporting a white golf cap with the letters WS in red, for Wilson Staff, on the front. With the temps pushing into the mid 80's each day, her look every day remained the same, all wool.
Following introductions, Patty directed Carson, "Unpack my travel bag and put two dozen balls in the golf bag. The rain suit is in the corner of the trunk and also the umbrella. Put them all in the bag. It could rain today." It was a red and white Wilson Staff leather bag with her name emblazoned on the front and, after putting everything in it, was quite heavy. "I'm going up to meet with a reporter. Clean up all the clubs and be sure to scrub the grooves. I'll be back in an hour and meet you at the practice tee. The shag balls are in the trunk."
Back in the caddie shack a half hour later, John Paulson came running in, "Carson, you better get your butt back up to the driving range, Patty's looking for you. Where did you leave her clubs? She's upset."
At the practice tee Patty was fuming. "Did you leave my clubs just laying out here at the practice tee? What the hell are you thinking? What if someone had walked off with them?"
Carson had entrusted them to Billy inside the range house, but Patty was in no mood to listen to what Carson had to say. "Dump those balls right here and hustle out down the left side about 80 yards. I will wave you back when I change clubs."
Following an hour of chasing down shots of all types, Carson accompanied Patty to the first tee for a practice round. Playing partner JoAnne Prentiss, with John Paulson on the bag, played as a twosome, with the few people in attendance tagging along.
It was an uncomfortable round for both caddies. JoAnne Prentiss had a horribly foul mouth. "I learned some new words out there today. She didn't learn that language in church!" John told Carson as they walked to the caddie shack after the round. "It didn't sound like Patty was the easiest person either."
"Brutal, just brutal," Carson responded. "I must have pulled the wrong club four or five times. One time she told me that if I misclubbed her one more time she would fire me. I have played here many times, but never from the forward tees. I didn't know where they were. When I didn't know where the 15th tee was she said, 'I thought you said you had played here before. It doesn't look like it to me.' I don't know if things will go better tomorrow, but at least I'll know where to go."
But it didn't. "I can see why her nickname is Dynamite," Carson said to Geoff after the Tuesday round. "I think she is going to blow up because of me. I do not need Patty Berg! Give her bag to someone else, there's just too much aggravation."
"No, no, no, you can't do that to me," pleaded Geoff.
"Just let me trade for some other player, I don't care who."
"Nobody else will take the bag. All the caddies are talking about how tough she is," whined Goeff. "You have to stay on it."
"She is the crustiest woman I have ever seen. I won't last the week," argued Carson.
"Well, there is no option, you have to stay on the bag," said Goeff.
After fuming for a minute Carson said, "Ok, here's the deal. I get to keep the whole caddie fee."
Carson had Geoff in the corner, he had no choice but to accept the offer. Carson would stay on the bag.
Wednesday was pro-celebrity day, with Patty being paired with Ray Christensen, a local radio announcer. "I can see where she got that red hair," said Mike Rand, Ray's caddie, "Her hot temper has colored her hair. How about her language! I have never heard a woman talk like that and darned few men."
Things started to change on Wednesday, however. "Are you Lee Herron's son?" Patty asked.
"I am," Carson reported.
"I used to play golf with your dad in the 30's and 40's at Interlachen. He was a good player," she commented. "He was one of the few men I couldn't beat. We would play for quarters. I would have to be sharp to end up with money in my pocket."
"Funniest thing," Carson said to John Paulson after the round. "As soon as she found out who my dad was, she backed off. I don't know if I would say she was nice, but something changed. I think things will be ok for the tournament."
Thursday dawned bright and sunny and, by Patty's 12:00 feature group starting time, temps were at 82 degrees. Carson, 6 feet tall and a fit college golfer, dressed in a creamy white T shirt, with "American Open" screen printed on the front, forest green pleated and cuffed pants, popular in the day, a snow white golf cap with the American Open logo on the front, and brown golf shoes.
Patty walked off the first tee toward a drive in the left rough in her standard wool skirt, this time in dark blue, white golf shirt and gray wool sweater. Following a shaky start with bogies on two of the first five holes, Patty settled down, shooting 72, tied for the lead with Kathy Cornelius.
"I pulled every club for her," Carson said to John as they drove home to south Minneapolis. "I think I have her game figured out. She drives it straight down the middle. I give her a distance to the front edge and the club that will carry that distance. She either has the ball bounce on the green or ends up just short, where she chips it up next to the hole."
And so it went through the entire tournament. Firing 71 on Friday she jumped to a two shot lead over Louise Suggs. "She is the best chipper I have ever seen," Carson said to George Hallin over a Coke after Friday's round. George was a friend of Carson's and had come out to watch Patty play. "Plus she is a magician with her 'Freddie Haas' fat headed putter. I don't like it but she can sure use it."
Saturday was a tough, windy day as Patty shot 73, low round of the day, with Carson again pulling all the right clubs. A walk in the park 72 on Sunday and Patty was the American Women's Open Champion by eight shots. It was the 61st of the 63 career professional wins.
"You were a great help to me this week, Carson, thank you," she said handing him $135 of the $1,225 she won, and the dozen balls he carried all week from her bag.
"Thanks," said Carson.
Back at the caddie shack Carson only smiled as he bought a Coke for the car and the ride back to his post at the Wayzata Country Club.
"I was nervous coming back to my home town," Patty said to the press after the win. "This is a great golf course and Minneapolis is a wonderful town with my favorite people."
Sharing golf stories with friends has been a wonderful part of A Life in Golf.
Full disclosure. This piece is best described as historical fiction. While the basis of the story is accurate, I have taken literary license with some of the details.
