THE BEAR AND I: The Story of the World's Most Famous Caddie

In this book by Jack Nicklaus' caddie you might expect to learn something about golf, golfers, or, at least, caddies. You don't. Nicklaus does not ask his caddie's opinion about shot selection, strategy, or the contour of putting greens; nor does he seem to have discussed them afterward. Argea offers no retrospective on Nicklaus' great games, let alone bad games (except for the time Argea was hung over and failed to get to the course). According to Nicklaus, his job is ""to know when to talk and when not to."" Argea's other tasks included protecting and caring for Nicklaus' clubs, walking off yardage, and reporting on pin placement. That's all. Much of this very slender volume concerns what it was like for a poor Greek and, later, a Las Vegas loser to become a minor celebrity through his association with Nicklaus and exposure on television. People even want his autograph. Argea describes his beginnings briefly, and then dwells on the plush life he has now. But a caddie who makes $15,000 is near the top of his field, and Argea, who's number one, makes less than $50,000. His story, ghostwritten or not, is awkwardly told. It's hard to believe that a caddie's vocabulary wouldn't extend beyond ""shucks,"" ""Hades,"" and ""darn."" While Argea coyly admits that the caddie's unsavory reputation may not be undeserved, he tells no juicy tales. And Nicklaus' terse comments are not much more revealing. For caddie fans only.