Dave Musgrove – Caddy to Major Champions Seve Ballesteros, Sandy Lyle and Lee Janzen.,
JOHH HOPKINS – Former AGW Chairman
It had been coming. Early this month, down in Dubai, Billy Foster had given a hint. “Mussie’s not too clever” the long-time caddie said. Barely two weeks later, one of the best caddies of this or any era had gone. He was an exemplar for many, and a colleague of many. Farewell Dave Musgrove. Farewell old friend.
He had been with Seve Ballesteros in the 1979 Open at Lytham in 1979. En route to victory, the Spaniard drove into a temporary car park to the right of the 16th in the last round and earned himself the sobriquet “parking lot champion” from Hale Irwin, his playing partner.
Musgrove was with Sandy Lyle at Royal St George’s in 1985 when Lyle won the Open and he was at Lyle’s side at Augusta three years later when Lyle was victorious there. The Players? They won that too, in 1987 when it was called the Tournament Players’ Championship, as well as a slew of other tournaments around the world.
The two had a nine-year partnership that was based on friendship as much as skill. When working for Lyle, Musgrove was prone to ask: “who’s got the best job in the world, then?” before answering his own question: “Sandy Lyle of course.” He continued: “Who’s got the second best job in the world? Dave Musgrove. Sandy is the best bloke in the world to caddy for. My wages must be the best on tour and when I stay at his house in Wentworth, he brings me tea in bed. That can’t be bad can it?”
He was old school even thirty years ago, one of a kind with Pete Coleman, who caddied for Bernhard Langer (the German, Coleman called him) and Andy Prodger (Nick Faldo’s caddie). He knew the rhyming slang that caddies used: “fruit and veg” (a wedge), “Lady Godiva” (a driver) “Garden Gate” (8 iron), “Tom Mix” (6 iron). He often said: A caddy’s job was “to turn up, keep up and shut up.”
Musgrove played an important part In Lyle’s victory at Augusta. Having led for 40 holes, Lyle had bogied the 11th in the last round, hit into the water on the 12th, did not birdie the 13th and was still muttering to himself on the 15th: “What have I done?”. As they waited for the 15th green to clear Musgrove moved closer to Lyle and said: “A weight’s been taken off your shoulders. Put that to your advantage. Let somebody else do the work and we’ll chase them.”
On the 16th tee Lyle needed to play the last three holes in two under par. Helped by a magnificent shot from a fairway bunker on the 18th he did so to become the first Briton to win the Masters. It is as impossible to say Lyle wouldn’t have done so without Musgrove’s sold presence by his side as it is impossible to say he would have.
In appearance Musgrove was burly, a little under 6ft in height with iron grey hair and eyebrows you could hide a couple of Pro V1s in. He had a fearsome glower but his mood would change in the blinking of an eye and a huge smile would light up his slightly saturnine face, his eyes sparkling.
A pencil looked good in his hand, which was appropriate because his first job had been as a draughtsman for the National Coal Board and a later one as a draughtsman for the aerospace engine division of Rolls-Royce before turning to caddying when he was nearly 30.
His handwriting was bold, made up of clear, firm strokes that were easy to read. Where did he keep his pencil when caddying? Behind his right ear, of course.
Dave Musgrove with Seve during the Open Championship
He caddied at 45 consecutive Open championships, working for Roberto de Vicenzo in the 1971 Open. Later, he would caddy for Lee Janzen when the American won the 1998 US Open. Though he had a single figure handicap for more than 20 years, he would snort with realism and self-deprecation at his ability to play golf. “I can hit it forwards and upwards and generally finish a round with the ball I started off with, which is the main thing. I can scrape it round. But that’s about all.”
For year’s he lived in the terraced house in Kirkby-in-Ashfield, near Mansfield, in Nottinghamshire, in which he had been born. From its front room, he could see the school he attended as an infant, the doctor’s surgery he visited when he was ill, and the dentist he had used for years. Long before he died he had visited most of the continents and stayed in hotels for which the word luxurious was hardly adequate.
But asked once where he would live if he could choose anywhere in the world, he replied: “Kirkby-in-Ashfield. This is what life is all about, isn’t it? The heavy gang at Coxmoor [his golfing friends at his golf club] are more in touch with reality than the sort of posers one comes across so often in golf.”
When Musgrove died, Lyle took to Twitter, a form of communication that Musgrove wouldn’t have understood nor liked.
To the end, he abhorred e-mail. “Muzzy RIP” Lyle tweeted. “We wrote history together.”
BILL ROBERTSON
It was sad news about the passing of Dave Musgrove. I got to know Dave reasonably well during my time editing Golf Illustrated and remember him not only as a first-class caddy, but also a friendly and helpful person.
DERMOT GILLEECE – AGW Life Member
So, sad to hear of the passing of Dave Musgrove. I invariably found him to be warm, humorous and informative. Here are a few lines which may be of interest:
When I asked Dave last year, which of the major championships had provided him with his most cherished memory, surprisingly it wasn’t one that would have delivered him a handsome pay-day.
“My greatest thrill in golf came in the 1986 US Masters when I caddied for Sandy Lyle,” he said. “We were in the two-ball with Jack Nicklaus on the final day.”
Warming to the memory, Dave went on: “Jack was always great company on a golf course, but that occasion was very special, for obvious reasons. I remember him telling us how nervous his son Jackie (Nicklaus’s caddie) was as we negotiated those famous, final nine holes. And I remember the extraordinary excitement from the crowd as Jack kept making birdies.”
He concluded: “Most of all, however, I remember the way he carefully took each shot as it came. Not once, even as we neared the finish, did I hear him mention anything about winning.”
Dave & Sandy Lyle winning 1995 Open Championship. A young-looking John Whitbred in the background.
NORMAN DABELL
I’m greatly saddened by the news. Dave was a dear friend and helped me enormously with all the books I wrote on caddies. He was a very kind man, hugely generous in passing on his incredible knowledge of anything to do with golf. He knew them all – both sides of the Pond.
His input to my caddie books was immense and I literally could not have written them without him. And if I ever needed to confirm something or pick his brains during a tournament, he was always only a chat on the practice range or a telephone call, away.
When I last spoke to him he was still heartbroken by the death of his wonderful wife Hilary, who was so kind to me. I often visited them at their home in Mansfield and played golf with Dave occasionally at his beloved Coxmoor.
They were a great couple and he was greatly affected by her death. He admitted life was just not the same without her. He seemed to rally a little, though, when we discussed the film ‘Seve’, in which he played an integral role. As was usual for Dave, he wasn’t suffering fools gladly!
MIKE BLAIR
How lucky were Sandy, Seve and the rest to have Dave Musgrove as a caddy! An outstanding man of golf.
He was a member at Coxmoor and I remember me and ‘er winning a competition there and having to leave before the prize giving.
Dave brought our winnings to Birmingham. And the last time we were at Coxmoor he stormed to the bar to buy our four-ball a pint.
We are much saddened by his passing.
BERNIE McGUIRE – Secretary, AGW
Dave was so very well known to so many AGW members and it is very sad to learn of his passing.
He always was a welcome visitor to European Tour media centres and I recall many times travelling with Dave by train across Europe and being entertained for hours by his wonderful tales.
Dave Musgrove caddying in a Johnnie Walker Championship and promoting Lee Tees on his cap.
‘Mussie’ for nine years was on Sandy Lyle’s bag including when Sandy captured The Open and the Masters, and his stint with Lee Janzen yielded two US Open titles,
Dave caddied for so many others including four years with Seve Ballesteros, and given Seve’s notorious relationship with caddies four years was like a lifetime.
It’s reported that when he arrived on the final green at the 1970 Open at Royal Lytham, Seve said he could take four putts and still win, but Dave responded, “no you can’t, I’ve a bet on you to finish under par,”
He once is known to have said of Bernard Langer: “when he practices on his own, he can hold up a four-ball.”
There is also the tale of the father of then 15-year old Carly Booth suggesting that Dave would be the ideal caddy for his daughter in the 2008 Curtis Cup, and no doubt hoping Dave’s input could also help the team end a long losing streak to the Americans.
Enter the Ladies Golf Union who considered it ‘might be an unfair advantage’ to the team if the youngest-ever GB & I qualifier had someone of Dave’s legendary stature caddying in the Curtis Cup.
Dave responded: “Having spent most of my career being called a liability, I can’t tell you how proud I am someone now thinks me an unfair advantage.”
Such was Dave’s well-known dry wit.
Dave was well known for his enormous collection of golfing books and I have fond memories during Open Championship week when he would find his way into the Media Centre and ask me for a program and a copy of Open annual hardback that used to be printed by IMG.
In an era when no-one seems to have much time for each other, Dave was a decent, down-to-earth human being and I will miss his company.
RIP ‘Mussie’.
PS: I once took a photo in front of the media centre at Wentworth of Dave, John Fenton and Renton Laidlaw. You could not find three more gentle individuals. If only I could locate the snap!
ALISTAIR TAIT – Writing for Golf Week
Dave Musgrove caddying for Sandy Lyle to win the Masters 10th April 1988 – the first British golfer to be fitted with an Augusta green jacket. (Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images)
The term “old school” could have been invented for caddie Dave Musgrove, who died Monday at the age of 74. Musgrove lived by a simple, seven-word philosophy: “Show up, keep up and shut up.”
Musgrove was a permanent fixture on the European Tour for nearly 50 years. He was Sandy Lyle’s longtime bagman, helping Lyle win the 1985 British Open, 1987 Players Championship, 1988 Masters, and other tournaments around the world. He helped Lee Janzen win the 1998 U.S. Open. However, Musgrove nearly gave up looping after spending four years with Seve Ballesteros.
The man from Kirkby-in-Ashfield, England, began caddying at Hollingwell, the Nottinghamshire course near his parent’s home. He did so on the advice of his mother, who told him at the age of 12 to “go caddying and make yourself useful.” Musgrove earned six shillings a bag, a lot of money for a 12-year-old in 1955.
Musgrove, or “Muzzy” as he was known on the European Tour, didn’t parlay his Hollinwell experience into caddying full-time.
Musgrove earned his living as a draughtsman at the National Coal Board after finishing school. However, he would take his annual holiday to coincide with the British Open. He first caddied in the Open in 1962 with English professional David Talbot. In 1964, he caddied for Jean Garaialde at St. Andrews. The Frenchman, who finished equal 13th, played the final two rounds with winner Tony Lema.
In 1966, Musgrove joined Rolls Royce, also as a draughtsman. He still maintained his part-time caddying job, looping for Roberto de Vicenzo at Royal Birkdale in 1971. In 1972, Musgrove made a decision that changed his life. He took voluntary redundancy from Rolls Royce and began caddying full-time.
In 1976, he began a tumultuous partnership with Seve Ballesteros that would lead to the Spaniard winning the 1979 British Open. There are two moments from that championship at Royal Lytham that summed up Musgrove.
Ballesteros was dubbed the “Car Park Champion” when he’d birdied the 16th hole in the final round after hitting his drive into a temporary car park and getting relief. The Spaniard found places on Royal Lytham even members didn’t know existed, so wild was he off the tee. On the 18th hole, Seve hit his 3-wood straight left off the tee shot into the gallery.
When Seve asked Musgrove what was over there, Musgrove replied: “I don’t know – it’s about the only place we haven’t been this week!”
Standing over his second shot, Seve had a three-shot lead over Jack Nicklaus and Ben Crenshaw.
“He told me he could take five and still win,” Musgrove said. “I told him he could take a six and win, but I needed him to get a four. I had a £1 bet with Brian Barnes’s caddie that someone would finish under par for the tournament. We were 1 under at that point and I wanted to collect my £1.”
Seve made his four, won the Open for the first time and Musgrove collected his bet. However, the caddie had had enough.
“I nearly quit the game because of him,” Musgrove said. “If you survived for a while with Seve, then you could survive with anyone. He was difficult with everybody. He was tough with everybody.”
Musgrove dumped the Spaniard later that year. Two years later, he was working for Spaniard Manuel Calero at Fulford Golf Club in the Benson and Hedges International Open. Calero missed the cut and that’s when Sandy Lyle offered Musgrove a job. Ten minutes later, Nick Faldo also offered Musgrove a job. Musgrove picked Lyle, and they formed a formidable nine-year alliance.
In 1998, Musgrove helped Lee Janzen win the U.S. Open. He and the late Dave Renwick are the only British caddies to have looped for three major winners.
Musgrove was a keen book collector and golf historian. He lived his whole life in Kirby-on-Ashfield. He didn’t suffer fools gladly, was honest and direct to a fault and held no sway with those who said caddies were as important as players. He lived his life by a simple credo of doing an honest and fair job for an honest and fair wage. More than anything though, he believed caddies had to be punctual, had to be there when the player needed them and had to speak only when they needed to.
“Show up, keep up and shut up.” Dave Musgrove did that better than most.
MARTIN DEMPSTER – Writing in the Scotsman
Sandy Lyle led the tributes following the death of Dave Musgrove, the caddie who carried the Scot’s bag in both his major wins.
Musgrove, a much-loved figure within the sport, also helped two other players, Seve Ballesteros and Lee Janzen, claim victories in golf’s biggest events.
The Englishman, who caddied for Lyle when he won the Open and the Masters, began his career lumping golf bags around as a 12-year-old for members at Hollinwell in Nottinghamshire.
He became one of the most respected caddies in the game and was still held in high esteem long after he had retired.
He helped Ballesteros win the Open for the first time at Royal Lytham in 1979 before being at Lyle’s side as the Scot claimed the same title at Royal St George’s six years later.
In 1988 Musgrove helped Lyle become Masters champion – the first Briton to achieve that feat – having also triumphed in the game’s so-called fifth major, the Players Championship, at Sawgrass the previous year.
“We wrote history together,” wrote Lyle on Twitter in his tribute to the man known as “Muzzy”. “We’ll miss your humour and stories.”
His description of Musgrove as a “gentleman” was shared in some of the other tributes, including one from Craig Connelly, the Glaswegian who has won two majors caddying for Martin Kaymer. He said: “A true gentleman who had time for everyone. We’ve lost one of the very best!”
Dave Musgrove and Sandy Lyle during the Open Championship.
Musgrove’s fourth major victory was achieved with Janzen as the American claimed the first of his two US Open title triumphs at the Olympic Club in San Francisco in 1998.
Three years after that, he reunited with Lyle at Lytham in what was the caddie’s 40th consecutive Open Championship appearance.
Paul Lawrie described Musgrove as a “legend” in the caddying world while tributes were also paid by two other major winners, Darren Clarke and Ernie Els. “Always had time for everybody,” said Clarke, last year’s Ryder Cup captain while Els said Musgrove had “taught me a lot as a rookie”.
Andrew Coltart said Musgrove had been “so unbelievably down to earth despite all his achievements” and commented on how he’d been “quick witted with a tremendous sense of humour”.
As was evidenced on the final green in that 1979 Open at Royal Lytham. It’s reported that Ballesteros said he could take four putts and still win, but Musgrove responded, “no you can’t, I’ve a bet on you to finish under par”.
NICK ROGER – Writing in the Scottish Herald
They were two of the greatest champions to come out of European golf but there were obvious differences between the sturdy Scot, Sandy Lyle, and that swashbuckling Spaniard, Seve Ballesteros. Dave Musgrove, the English caddie who heaved the bags for both, had his own way of distinguishing them. “The biggest difference between Seve and Sandy came after a bad shot,” he once recalled. “With Sandy, you didn’t have to duck.”
When news filtered through yesterday that Musgrove had passed away, it didn’t take long for the tributes to come in. The alliance between Musgrove and Lyle was hugely profitable.
In 1985, the duo were together when Lyle conquered St George’s to win the Open. In 1988, Musgrove was again calling the shots as Lyle became the first Briton to win the Masters at Augusta. In between, the Scot lifted The Players’ Championship title at Sawgrass. “We wrote history together,” said Lyle on his social media site yesterday. It was a simple, heart-felt reflection which underlined this barn-storming period of prosperity on the global stage.
Musgrove had been slinging sets of clubs over his shoulder since the age of 12 at the Hollinwell club in his native Nottinghamshire. He enjoyed his first taste of an Open Championship at Royal Troon in 1962. When he teamed up with Lyle for a second time after 11 years apart in the 2001 championship, Musgrove had racked up 40 consecutive appearances at golf’s most cherished major.
For continuation of the article click on: http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/golf/15091878.Dave_Musgrove__The_caddie_who__wrote_history_together__with_Sandy_Lyle/?ref=rss
David Musgrove, and in his library of golf books.
BRENDAN MOLONEY – President, Australian Golf Media Association.
I remember Dave Musgrove well and was at Augusta in 1988 when Lyle won. He hit a great shot from the fairway bunker on the 18th on the last day to win. I played the next day with the tees and pins in the same position and tried to hit into that bunker on purpose.
Alas, I missed. Perhaps this is why I have never won the AGWA championship
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