Billy Foster, Ricci Roberts and Terry Mundy have caddied in more than 70 Masters between them, principally for Seve Ballesteros, Matt Fitzpatrick, Ernie Els and Ian Poulter respectively.
They’re three of the most experienced caddies in the world of golf and have a huge amount of knowledge to impart.
As such, they’re perfectly placed to discuss the challenge of Augusta National, what goes on inside the ropes and what it takes to land the Green Jacket. Without further ado…
What do you remember about your first time caddying around Augusta?
Billy Foster: My first one was 1991 and I’ve probably missed three since. The first was with the Grand Senor, Seve Ballesteros, getting a telling off every other hole. He played a practice round on the Saturday on his own and it took him seven hours, so I learned Augusta pretty fast from a two-time Masters Champion.
I had two proper bust-ups with him there; one was in 1991 and the other one was in 1995, when I got sacked for calling him every name under the sun, shouting and bawling at him at the side of the clubhouse. There were a lot of heated moments, but it was all good fun and a great education.
Terry Mundy: Mine have all been with Ian Poulter. The first year I did was 2007 and then I did them all up to 2021 before he joined LIV. He’d done two Masters before, so I was sort of learning from him. I would also pick the brains of people like Billy and talk to other caddies and the local ones.
You learn something new every time you go there. You get different weather every time and the equipment is always changing, so there is always something to keep an eye on.
Ricci Roberts: I think 1994 was my first one when Ernie Els made his debut, and during a few of our sabbaticals, I caddied for Nicky Price and Thomas Bjorn.
I’ve had a few chances to win there, but one of my highlights would have been in 1998 when Mark O’Meara won. We were paired with Jack Nicklaus late on and Jack was 58 at the time. He birdied 2 and 3 and was within two of the lead and I thought I was going to be part of history on that particular day. The noise was deafening round there.
A young Billy Foster with Seve Ballesteros
(Image credit: Getty Images)
What do we not talk about enough with regard to the course?
RR: One year I did commentary for SuperSport in South Africa…
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