Brennans Caddy Report-Dynamic Advice

We went on to compete against each other in our college days, while I was at New Mexico State and Mike was at Brigham Young.  Mike and I also both played on the Canadian Tour at the same time, and we use to travel together as we drove across the country playing in events from one coast to the other.  We have always had a very good friendship from the beginning and now that we work together nothing has changed.

Mike's rookie year on the PGA TOUR was in 1998, and that was also my last year on the Canadian Tour.  At the end of the year I was burned out and frustrated with the state of my golf game and was looking at pursuing a different career.  Around the same time, Mike asked me if I was interested in trying out caddying for him.  I thought that it was a good fit, as I love the game of golf and this way I could be as close to the game as possible without actually playing.  The decision didn't take long for me to make, and before I knew it my caddying career began for Mike at the Sony Open in Hawaii in January of 1999 and continues to this day.

I think that the long friendship Mike and I had prior to caddying for him provided a very solid foundation for a successful working relationship together.  We both trusted each other right from the start, which is a very key ingredient to any caddy-player relationship and can often take years to build.  Mike is very good at listening at what I have to say about certain shots, club choices, or course conditions, and he takes that advice and then calculates his own decision.  Any time someone is on the receiving end of advice that person has to decide on what he or she wants to do, whether in the game of golf, business, or life.  But having that key person to rely on, and take advice from, makes it very helpful in coming to the right conclusions and decisions.

When I arrive at a tournament there are certain things that I do to make sure I am prepared for the week.  I like to have the golf course analyzed and detailed as much as possible.  You can never have too much knowledge of a course, as the conditions change all time.  As Mike prepares for each shot we go over the yardage, the elevation, the wind, and the pin position.  This is where it is very important in a short period of time to make the correct decision, and the solid partnership we have makes the decision making process very effective.  We calculate all the information that is available to us, make the final decision, and commit to that decision.   Mike has to trust the decision and execute.

On average, Mike and I probably make 70 decisions a day on the course.  Often there are times when things don't necessarily work out the way we had hoped, but we tend to forget about these times and remember the times when they do work out.  There are never times when I completely override Mike's decision as he is the end user and the final decision is his.  We always discuss the situation at hand and talk our way through it.  If I feel very strongly about a decision, or disagree with what Mike is thinking, I always try and make a positive out of it as oppose to saying that he is wrong.  I will provide him with past information that may persuade him to go in a different direction but the bottom line is all advice has to be in a positive manner.

This week, Mike and I are going to be in Toronto launching a campaign and a partnership with Dynamic Mutual Funds that I'm excited about.  The advertising campaign really parallels the golfer/caddy relationship and the concept of advice.  As I provide information and advice to Mike on the golf course, the people at Dynamic Mutual Funds are offering financial advice to their customers.  We think the campaign is a great connection and I'm really looking forward to working with them on it.

As always, thanks for reading.

Brennan Little