- 6 weeks ago
The Morning Shifts spoke with former PGA Tour caddie Mick Middlemo about Rory McIlroy's huge win at The Masters, saying he’s been practicing at Augusta National for the past three or four weeks and that it felt like his home course. They also discuss why Scottie Scheffler is starting off tournaments so slow lately.
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00:00Former PGA Tour caddy and our resident 92.9 The Game caddy, Mick Middlemo.
00:05He's over across a couple of ponds.
00:07Mick, hopefully you had a good dinner and you're settling in for bed, man.
00:10What's going on?
00:11I actually did have a good dinner tonight.
00:13It was actually a wonderful dinner.
00:14My dad and we just hung out and had a couple beers.
00:16It was a very quiet dinner tonight.
00:18Very good.
00:19Nice work, man.
00:20I hope your pops is doing well.
00:22Let's talk about more.
00:23He was up earlier than I was this morning.
00:26He was actually up at 4 o'clock to watch the Masters.
00:29I got up at 4.30.
00:30He was ahead of me this morning.
00:32Awesome, man.
00:33What you did see when you were watching the Masters and your old man was Rory coming up
00:38with his second straight Masters win.
00:39Mick, I wanted to ask you about this because a lot has been made about it.
00:42A lot has been made about him saying he's practiced numerous times over the last couple of weeks
00:47and how fair that is for the rest of the people.
00:50What do you make of that for Rory to say that, hey, I've been up here.
00:53It feels like my home course and I've played this course a ton over the past three or four weeks.
00:58I think when you've won the Masters, you have the right to be able to do that.
01:01I mean, I think it's kind of cool.
01:03And how cool is it that you can drop your daughter off at school and jump on a plane,
01:07fly up to Augusta, play 18 holes, then jump on a plane and then pick up your daughter back from
01:11school.
01:11I mean, that's kind of a cool thing to be able to do, I've got to tell you.
01:15I agree.
01:17I mean, not many people can get to do that, but no, definitely not me.
01:24I couldn't get my car to do that, but no, it's like, no, he's earned the right.
01:28He's a Masters champion.
01:29When you want to get up there and go play, I mean, you've earned the right to do that for
01:32sure.
01:33Well, and it's such a big deal.
01:34It's back-to-back Masters wins.
01:36What separates the guys that can do this?
01:38Who can defend it, Augusta?
01:42Well, I mean, he's only the fourth guy to do that, so I think the news is going to be
01:46next year.
01:47It's like, okay, last year was like, hey, can he get the Grand Slam?
01:51Now he's won two in a row.
01:52Next year, the media's going to be like, okay, can he be the first man to win three in a
01:56row?
01:57So I think the pressure's going to be on next year as well, but the way he's playing,
02:01the way he's going about his business, I mean, there's no reason why he can't do three in a row.
02:07Mick, Justin Rose made a surge in that on day four, and he had the lead.
02:13He just turns the back nine.
02:14I'm sitting there pulling for Justin Rose because he's, from all accounts,
02:19one of the nicest guys on the tour, and he's been there so many times in this tournament.
02:23But he gets over his shot on 11 in the fairway, and he steps off and says he thinks the
02:30club is long.
02:31He and his caddy have a conversation, and then he hits the ball on the green,
02:37but short of where he wanted it.
02:39And then it seemed like that was the beginning of his downhill.
02:45Did he let past years maybe creep in there?
02:49What happened there?
02:51Was that the beginning of the end for him in the tournament?
02:54Yeah, I think it was the beginning of the end.
02:56There's no doubt.
02:58Like, I know Rosie really well.
02:59His caddy's a really great mate of mine, and I'm actually looking forward to having a conversation with him.
03:03I'm not obviously going to call him in the next few days and, hey, you know, mate, like we always
03:07do.
03:08You know, I always call him after the majors and we have a chat.
03:11You know, and what happened on 11?
03:12There was just a lot of – they were very indecisive on 11.
03:16Obviously, I'm not going to blame the caddy for any stretch because I don't like to blame caddies for anything.
03:20But there were a lot of indecision there, and it just – you know, when you're playing a shot
03:25and you're indecisive and you're not really sure, those things can happen.
03:29I wish they sort of had got a little bit more, you know, in sync and then, you know, maybe
03:33executed better.
03:35But that's just one shot.
03:37I mean, the chip shot he hit on 12 was horrific.
03:39It was a horrible little chip shot there, and then a mate can bogey there.
03:42And, you know, he didn't putt well down the stretch.
03:44He three-putted.
03:45And, you know, he hit a beautiful shot on the par 5 to 13, and then he three-putted for
03:50par.
03:50And then he missed a little kick in.
03:52So, he's going to be laying in bed, you know, last night thinking about, you know, what could have been.
03:58Because it really was what could have been for Justin Rose.
04:00Hanging out with our buddy Mick Middlemoe.
04:02He is a former PGA Tour caddy, and he's our resident caddy here on 92.9 The Game.
04:07Mick, look, I think for my money, it was probably Rory's chip in on Saturday, I believe.
04:13What was your biggest moment of the tournament?
04:15What's the one thing, the one moment you'll take away from this one?
04:18Yeah, the chip in on Friday.
04:19I think it was Friday when he chipped in on 17 when he hit a weight right.
04:22And then he chipped in on 17, you know, he had the six-shot lead.
04:27But, you know, he was two or three behind today, and then he rallied.
04:31I mean, he put it.
04:33This is when he found another gear today, you know, and it.
04:36And the last 10 holes, 12 holes, I think it was, you know, he shot four under on the back
04:40for the rest of the tournament.
04:42He played beautifully in those at the end.
04:45You know, it was just, it was awesome.
04:47You know, to me, the biggest story is, like, Scotty Scheffler.
04:51You know, Scotty Scheffler played 13 and 15, the two gettable par fives.
04:56He played them in one over this week.
04:59And, you know, that to me is, like, mind-boggling that he would play one.
05:03If he had played two or three under, I mean, he wins the tournament.
05:06I mean, he wins the tournament hands down.
05:08But he played the easy five-fives.
05:10He played them badly.
05:11And he's probably going to be kicking himself, you know, on that stretch as well.
05:16What's going on with Scotty?
05:17Because he's had, it feels like the majors lately, he gets off to weird starts on Thursday and Friday
05:25and then surges on Saturday and Sunday.
05:28And somehow it's still there at the end of the tournament.
05:32Is it too much?
05:34Is it him playing too many tournaments?
05:36I mean, what, why is he getting off to these slow starts in these majors?
05:40But not, it's not just the majors.
05:42It's like this year, it's like every tournament he's played in, he's just got off to slow starts.
05:46I mean, he's had some horrible starts, two overs, three overs in tournaments, and then rallies, rallies, rallies.
05:52I mean, he's the first guy since 1942 to play, you know, Saturday, Sunday at the Masters and bogey-free.
05:59You know, since records have been come out, it's like he played bogey-free on Saturday and Sunday, which is
06:04incredible.
06:05I mean, you know, that's, you know, when the courses are the hardest and, you know, the pin placements are
06:09the hardest.
06:09He never made a bogey.
06:11But he just 13 and 15 killed him.
06:13He's just got off to such slow starts lately.
06:16And, yeah, it's hard to fathom, you know, the number one player in the world being as slow as he
06:22is to get, you know, to get out of the box.
06:24We are joined by Mick the caddy on the morning shift.
06:28Mick, you've been out there with these guys, helping them get through the tournament.
06:31How much of a therapist is a caddy at the Masters?
06:34Because they have to be having so many conversations inside their head.
06:39Oh, therapist, yeah, best friend, therapist.
06:43There's so much that goes on there.
06:45It's the conversation that you have, you know, in between shots and all that sort of stuff.
06:49It's, you know, it is an amazing game.
06:52And, you know, I was talking to my dad about it today.
06:55It's like, you know, I don't think there's anything better than watching golf on a Sunday of the Masters, you
07:00know, from start to finish.
07:01It's just, it's five hours.
07:03It's captivating.
07:04It's, it's amazing to watch and the highs and lows of players and, and caddies trying to, you know, encourage
07:11their players and talk to them and stuff like that.
07:13It's, it's, it's, it's a mind-boggling experience to be out there, you know, in majors and, you know, unfortunately
07:19I've never caddied at the Masters.
07:20I've been there five times as a spectator.
07:22You know, I've, you know, I've caddied six other majors and it's the conversations you have with players in between
07:29shots.
07:29And it's just, you know, the major, the majors are a different ballgame compared to other tournaments.
07:34And so, yeah, it, it, it can be hard work as a caddy, that's for sure.
07:38Mick, I can't let you go with, speaking of therapists, without asking about what you thought about Sergio over the
07:43weekend.
07:43The, the, the breaking of the, you know, of the driver slamming things around, kind of acting an overall fool.
07:49Have you ever, have you ever been a part of anything like that?
07:51Any of your golfers ever fallen apart on the tee box and started smashing stuff?
07:56Oh, yeah, I've had, I've had, uh, yeah, I've had quite a few.
08:00I had, I had one guy one time walk into, uh, after, uh, a full putt on the ninth and
08:05then, uh, walked into a, a port-a-potty and then I thought he was like destroying the port-a
08:11-potty, come out with blood on his hand and he'd probably punch that thing a thousand times.
08:15And just, yeah, I just, and I was like, okay, that was in Syracuse in New York.
08:20And like, he'd come out and I was like, okay, do you feel better now?
08:23You know, I've had guys snap clubs and throw clubs, but, um, I can guarantee you one thing.
08:29Sergio had a little, uh, meeting with the people at Augusta National and said, that's never going to happen again.
08:35Did Sergio say that or did they say that?
08:38I mean.
08:39No, I can, I can.
08:40And look, I, look, I'm great.
08:41I, I, I know Sergio really well.
08:43Um, Sergio and I, uh, have had some good time together.
08:45We've had a few beers together, had some dinner together.
08:48He's a good man.
08:49So I like Sergio.
08:50He's a good man.
08:51Um, but what he did today at the Masters.
08:53Uh, I can guarantee you he's already been reprimanded and it won't happen again.
08:57Because the, the hierarchy of the Masters, they don't deal with that stuff very well.
09:02All right, Mick.
09:03Um, let's, let's go back to Rory real quick.
09:06Um, you walk up 18, you got a two stroke lead and Rory tells you, I'm going to use my
09:12driver.
09:13Um, when the man can strike a six iron, like what, two 70.
09:17Um, do you say, uh, are you sure we shouldn't just hit one down the fairway and par this thing
09:24out and go home safe?
09:26I would have been happy with three wood, but the driver hit on 17 was really good.
09:31He hit that little stinger that he's been working on.
09:33Um, so I would have let him hit that stinger.
09:36Um, or I would have gone, yeah, it's okay.
09:41Because he had to, I mean, the worst was bogey.
09:43Um, and I can tell you that, that second shot he hit was, it was impressive.
09:47I mean, as much as it was a bad lie in the bunker, he hit a really nice hook around
09:51those trees to get it into that bunker.
09:53Um, I think he was comfortable with that.
09:55I mean, obviously, you know, he hasn't driven the ball well all week, which is another amazing part about the
10:01whole week is that he was like third to last in driving accuracy.
10:06And yet he won the tournament.
10:07Um, which just goes to show you how good his putting was, how good his iron play was, how good
10:13his short game was and stuff like that.
10:15Because every time he stood on the tee, I was like, I don't know where this is going.
10:19I don't know where this is going.
10:22And I can tell you one thing as a caddy, that's, that's kind of scary.
10:25But you, but you've got to, you've got to hype up your player and you're like, Hey bud, you know,
10:29you've, you just, you just hit a beautiful drive on 17.
10:32You're going to hit a beautiful drive here on 18.
10:34Let's, let's go for it.
10:35You know, you, you, you, you've got to give you, you, you've got to, you know, give your man some
10:38hype and make sure you, you know, you think, you know, you're, you're on his side.
10:43So, but he did hit a pretty terrible tee shot on 18, but he had, he had the, you know,
10:49had the advantage of a tee shot leap.
10:51Yeah.
10:52Uh, thankfully, speaking of scary, you're talking about hitting those shots around that tree.
10:55The confidence that those patrons had that he was going to actually, actually wrap that ball around the tree.
11:00They've lost their minds.
11:01It's roaring.
11:02I guarantee that.
11:03I guarantee they're not standing in front of both.
11:06Hey, Hey, I've only hit like two to three people, uh, and, uh, with a golf ball.
11:12Yeah.
11:12Yeah.
11:13That a boy.
11:13Um, Mick, we appreciate your time, brother.
11:16Uh, hopefully you're doing well over there and hopefully we'll catch up with you again.
11:19I'm doing great, mate.
11:20Everything, everything is fantastic.
11:21I do.
11:21It's great.
11:22I have a Foster's on me.
11:24What's that, mate?
11:25I have a Foster's on me, Mick.
11:27Yeah.
11:27There's one thing we don't drink in Australia and that's Foster's.
11:30Uh, I believe you.
11:34I believe you.
11:35I thought it was Australian for bear.
11:37Hey, uh, Mick, we appreciate it, brother.
11:39Hope you will.
11:39It's, it's, it's a wonderful commercial that we do over there, but we probably sell Foster's
11:43over to the Americans and we give the good stuff for ourselves.
11:46I can promise you.
11:46Next, you're going to tell me y'all don't throw boomerangs either.
11:48I'm going to be, I'm going to be lost, man.
11:50No, no, no.
11:52Appreciate your time, Mick.
11:53There's plenty of them, Ryan.
11:55I appreciate you guys.
11:56Thanks so much to Mick the Caddy for joining us today.
12:00He probably saw that commercial for the first time.
12:01Like, Foster's Australian for beer.
12:02He's like, what?
12:03Yeah, that's what I've always heard.
12:05No truth that he's live from Walkabout Creek as well.
12:08It's like drinking a Corona in Mexico.
12:09Like, I don't think that's going on.
12:10Mick said he's had guys break clubs.
12:13That's so much money.
12:15It is insane.
12:15And I understand it's not an object for some people.
12:18However, what's the most expensive thing?
12:21It might be a mailbag question that you're willing to buy out of frustration.
12:24That's true.
12:25But I don't think they paid for those golf clubs.
12:26Well, they have deals.
12:28Kind of like, you know, Ronald Cooner Jr. doesn't pay for his baseball bat.
12:32I get it.
12:32But if you, let me tell you something.
12:35They might be expensive, but I might have taken an iron to a tree one time.
12:39All right?
12:40Mine's still sitting in a pine somewhere in Colorado.
12:44I've lost a few, too.
12:45So, don't judge is all I'm saying.
12:48I'm just baffled.
12:49That's.
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