Inside Stories from Golf’s Greatest Stage
Ward Clayton
The story of the all-Black Augusta National Caddie Corps, the most famous caddie group in the game’s history.
They used nicknames like Stovepipe, Burnt Biscuits, Skillet, Skinny, and Marble Eye. They worked for presidents of the United States, captains of industry, and the greatest golfers in the world. Some of their real names were Carl Jackson, Willie Perteet, and Matthew Palmer—and they witnessed every great moment, both private and public, at Augusta National beginning in the1930s—from Gene Sarazen’s “shot heard ’round the world” to Jack Nicklaus winning a record five of his six Masters.
Read why Nicklaus said he wouldn’t trade caddie Willie “Pete” Peterson “for a million dollars” and what Willie “Cemetery” Perteet really thought of President Eisenhower’s golf game. The Black caddies of Augusta National also endured, in their own ways, the racist social order of the sport and time period, and at the same time participated, albeit vicariously, in its many thrills. Ward Clayton documents their stories—history as compelling as the game of golf itself.
The second edition of the book, originally titled Men on the Bag: The Caddies of Augusta, was released in late spring 2024 and is a proper introduction to Augusta National in advance of the Masters Tournament, scheduled for April 7-13, 2025. The book includes extensive updates on all of the caddies and Augusta National, adds chapters on the Sand Hills neighborhood and today’s caddie corps, a listing of all the caddie champions through the years, along with 20 black-and-white historical and contemporary photographs.
The book has received numerous accolades, including No. 1 selling book, Blair Publisher; 4.7 rating (out of 5) on Amazon; and Amazon’s top-selling golf book, early April 2024.
Ward Clayton will be on site during the 2025 PGA Merchandise Show July 21-23, for interviews or to discuss author event opportunities. Contact: (904) 910-7728 (mobile) or jaxclayton123@gmail.com.
BLAIR | SPORTS, BIOGRAPHY | APRIL 2, 2024 | PB ISBN 9781958888179 | $19.95
REVIEW COPIES AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST CONTACT: PUBLICITY@BLAIRPUB.COM
About the author:
Ward Clayton has been in and around the game of golf since growing up blocks from Hillandale Golf Course, a public facility in Durham, North Carolina. He continued to pursue the game as a competitive amateur and newspaper writer. He was the sports editor of the Augusta Chronicle from 1991 to 2000. Ward has been the Director of Editorial Services for the PGA Tour, and his work has appeared in Sports Illustrated, The First Call, and elsewhere. He was a producer for the 2019 documentary The Caddie’s Long Walk and lives in Jacksonville, Florida.
