Angelo Argea (November 7, 1929 – October 10, 2005) was best known as the

caddie In golf, a caddie (or caddy) is the person who carries a player's bag and clubs, and gives the player advice and moral support. Description A good caddie is aware of the challenges and obstacles of the golf course being played, along with the ...

for Jack Nicklaus. Argea was born in Canton, OH. He and Nicklaus first met at the

Palm Springs Golf Classic The Desert Classic (currently known as The American Express for sponsorship reasons; previously known as the CareerBuilder Challenge, Palm Springs Golf Classic, the Bob Hope Desert Classic, the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, and the Humana Challen ...

in 1963, when Argea signed up to caddie for him. Argea continued to caddie for Nicklaus for over 20 years. During this time, he was on the bag for 44 of Nicklaus' 70

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also ...

wins (that tally would later be revised to 73 when

Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

wins were added to PGA Tour win records). Argea was easily recognizable by his gray

afro The afro is a hair type created by natural growth of kinky hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" ''Ebony'', February 1973. ...

. Of Argea, Nicklaus has remarked, "Essentially, he has been retired since he was twenty-one."
The Gigantic Book of Golf Quotations
', ed. Jim Apfelbaum. 2007. At the majors, players could not use their own caddies until the mid-1970s; the Masters held out until 1983. Argea's first major win with Nicklaus was the

PGA Championship The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. It is one of the four men's major championships ...

in 1975. A golfer once noticed that Argea didn't read greens, step off the yardage or select clubs, so he asked Argea, "What exactly do you do for Jack?" Argea replied, "He asked me to do two things. When he's not playing well, one, remind him that he's the best golfer out there. And two, that there's plenty of holes left." "Angelo was known for his ... gray afro, but he should also be known for being an excellent caddie," Nicklaus said. He was inducted into the PCA Worldwide

Caddie Hall of Fame The Caddie Hall of Fame recognizes professional golf caddies, others who caddied in their youth and those who support the profession. It was originally created by the Professional Caddies Association in 1999 but has been administered by the Weste ...

in 1999. Argea died of liver cancer

References

External links

Associated Press obituary

Caddie Hall of Fame
– Angelo Argea

* American caddies Greek emigrants to the United States Deaths from liver cancer 1929 births 2005 deaths Jack Nicklaus {{greece-sport-bio-stub

See also

References

External links