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Articles by Ed Wieszczynski
Oakmont Caddie Confessions, The Conclusion
I went to the course Sunday to watch the final round of the 1973 U,S, Open and Arnold Palmer and John Schlee. Remember him? Ed Wieszczynski in 1973 (Photo: Ed Wieszczynski) He was the man I caddied for the year before at the PGA Team Championship at Laurel Valley, where he told me all his astrological signs were pointing positively to June 1973 and he was going to win the U.S. Open. I would have bet all that I had that he wouldn’t, but here he was in the final group on Sunday.
Oakmont Caddie Confessions, Part 9: Friday at the 1973 U.S. Open
This is the ninth in a 10-part series of recollections by Ed Wieszczynski, who caddied at Oakmont Country Club near Puttsburgh from 1967 to 1975, including at the 1973 U.S. Open.
Oakmont Caddie Confessions, Part 8: Drawing for the 1973 U.S. Open
An important milestone in the runup to the 1973 U.S. Open at Oakmont was the drama of the caddie drawing. From what I had heard, the caddie drawing was supposed to be fixed in that a pecking order of caddies would choose who they wanted to caddie for and the USGA would look the other way. I let it be known that I wanted to caddie for Chi Chi Rodriguez and nobody ahead of me in the pecking order seemed to have a problem with that.
Oakmont Caddie Confessions, Part 7: Caddying for Byron Nelson
When we got into May of 1973, it became much harder to caddie. The rough was so high that you had to use extreme concentration to see where the balls were going. There was a lot of play and there was constant activity around the USGA setting things up along with gallery seating construction. And we caddies were still allowed to golf on Mondays. It was great as we caddies had constant grudge matches on one of the greatest golf courses in the world.
Oakmont Caddie Confessions, Part 6: Mickey Mantle and Whitey Ford play Oakmont
After the 1972 PGA Team Championship at Laural Valley, it was back to caddying daily at Oakmont Country Club. And there were many golfers playing daily. Besides the members, there were tons of guests coming in who wanted to play the upcoming U.S. Open course. And the key to caddying and getting good jobs was your relationship with the caddymaster.
Oakmont Caddie Confessions Part 1: Joining the ranks of the Oakmont caddie bullpen
I started as a caddie at Oakmont Country Club as a 13 year old in the spring of 1967. I had no idea what to expect but what happened was a wonderful experience. I assumed I would just carry a bag alongside the golfer, get a few dollars, and go home. But the first time out, the caddymaster, Joe Stoner, put me in a group with an older caddie named Ray DiPalma.
Oakmont Caddie Confessions, Part 5: The 1972 PGA Team Championship
The final round Sunday of the 1972 PGA Team Championship came and my player, John Schlee, and his partner, Bob E. Smith, had a great front nine. As I was walking to the tenth tee, I heard someone calling me. I saw it was my friend Mike Hafera, who I mentioned was caddying for Gibby Gilbert and partnered with Lanny Wadkins. He was in the last group since they were leading the tournament. He was so excited.
Oakmont Caddie Confessions, Part 4: Bert Yancey and the fly in the bunker
The next day, Thursday, was the first round of the PGA Team Championship and I was very excited to get started. We were paired with the team of Tom Weiskopf and Bert Yancey. Weiskopf was a young, powerful player and Yancey was somewhat of a character. It is hard to remember the sound of a ball being hit by a wooden driver. But I do remember thinking how I had not heard anything like Tom Weiskopf striping one down the fairway.
Oakmont caddie confessions, Part 3: The caddie who loses golf balls
On Tuesday I met John Schlee, my assigned golfer. I was told he was also a journeyman Tour player with no wins yet. He asked me if I had any yardages for the golf course. One of the other Oakmont caddies, Sonny Stoner, claimed to have Lee Trevino’s yardages from the previous year. This is the third in a 10-part series of recollections by Ed Wieszczynski, who caddied at Oakmont Country Club near Puttsburgh from 1967 to 1975, including at the 1973 U.S. Open.
Oakmont caddie confessions, Part 2: PGA Team Championship
As we all waited for the 1973 U.S. Open to come to Oakmont Country Club, a nice surprise came to me in 1972. Nearby Laurel Valley was to host the PGA National Team Championship, a PGA Tour event. It was a two-man team best-ball competition. A few weeks before the tournament, Laurel Valley contacted Oakmont because they needed 10 more caddies. They posted a signup sheet and I was one of the caddies chosen.
Oakmont Caddiue Confessions Part 1: Joining the ranks of the Oakmont caddie bullpen
I started as a caddie at Oakmont Country Club as a 13 year old in the spring of 1967. I had no idea what to expect but what happened was a wonderful experience. I assumed I would just carry a bag alongside the golfer, get a few dollars, and go home. But the first time out, the caddymaster, Joe Stoner, put me in a group with an older caddie named Ray DiPalma.
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