Roberts honored for lifelong caddie impact
BALTIMORE, Md. — Broadcaster Jimmy Roberts was inducted into the Caddie Hall of Fame on Friday, Aug. 15, in recognition of his time spent caddying as a young man and his use of caddying as a steppingstone to professional success.
Roberts was honored during a special event in celebration of caddies at Baltimore Country Club in Baltimore. Nearly 100 guests were in attendance, including PGA TOUR caddies Jim ‘Bones’ Mackay and John Wood, who made the presentation.
“It’s our great honor to welcome Jimmy Roberts as the newest member of the Caddie Hall of Fame,” said Steve Colnitis, chairman of the Western Golf Association, which administers the Caddie Hall of Fame. “We are privileged to recognize Jimmy’s outstanding achievements and his dedication to sharing the impact and importance of youth caddying.”
Roberts grew up in White Plains, New York, and caddied as a teenager at Fenway Golf Club, Ridgeway Country Club and Westchester Hills Country Club. A University of Maryland Alum, he went on to become a 16-time Emmy award-winning broadcaster and writer, and since 2000, has been a fixture at NBC Sports. He’s the author of two books, “Breaking the Slump” and “No One Wins Alone” with Mark Messier.
“I’m really touched,” said Roberts, who, on Monday, helped the WGA and its charity, the Evans Scholars Foundation, dedicate the new Caves Valley Evans Scholarship House at the University of Maryland. “I’m really proud to have been a caddie. It’s a big part of who I am. I learned so much of what to do and what not to do.”
As a broadcaster, Roberts has been a strong and integral advocate of youth caddies and the Evans Scholars Program. Over the last two decades, he has spent time with Scholars and their families and told dozens of stories of the impact of the scholarship that have aired during BMW Championship week.
“When I was a kid, I used to get in trouble for telling stories, and as an adult, I seemed to have found a way to make a living,” he said. “But over the years, I can honestly say that no stories have touched me like the stories of the Evans Scholars. They are the best of us. (They) are the real Hall of Famers.”
Administered by the WGA since 2011, the Caddie Hall of Fame highlights the tradition and importance of caddying by celebrating individuals who have devoted their lives to the game of golf through caddying or by supporting the role of caddies, and those who have used their experience as a youth caddie for future professional success.
The Caddie Hall of Fame was created by the Professional Caddies Association in 1999. Since its inception, more than 130 men and women have been inducted into the CHOF. Past inductees include Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Charles “Chick” Evans, Jim “Bones” Mackay, Steve Williams, Joe LaCava, Jimmy Johnson, Charles Schwab and Peter Ueberroth.