Tip Anderson, who died on Friday aged 71, was one of the outstanding golf caddies of his time, and well known for his association with Arnold Palmer.
A colourful personality in his own right, Anderson caddied for Palmer in Britain for more than 30 years, and helped him to win two successive Open championships, at Royal Birkdale in 1961, and at Troon in 1962.
Palmer's triumph at Birkdale was achieved in appalling conditions; he reckoned that his second-round 73, in the face of a violent gale, was the best round of his life. It would have been even better if the ball had not moved as he played from the sand at the 16th; typically, Palmer called a stroke against himself.
At Troon the next year Anderson had to help the master through very different problems, as the ball bounced unpredictably on dry fairways. Nevertheless Palmer became the first Open champion to put together three rounds of under 70.
Unable to be at St Andrews for the British Open of 1974, Palmer recommended Tip Anderson to his friend Tony Lema, who had never played the Old Course before, and had only two practice rounds before the championship began.
In the early stages, therefore, Lema hit the ball to Anderson's orders, to such effect that after three rounds he was leading Jack Nicklaus by seven strokes. Five successive threes at the far end of the course in the final round nailed down the championship. "I could never have won without Tip," Lema acknowledged. Subsequently the Americans chose him as Caddie of the Year.
James Anderson (later known as "Tip") was born on July 6 1932 with golf in his blood - his father was also a well-known caddie at St Andrews. Young James became a formidable player, who in 1948 won both the St Andrews Boys' Open Championship, and the Fife Boys' championship title.
After education at the Burgh school, St Andrews, Anderson became a clubmaker with Tom Stewart of the Pipe brand. It was only in the mid-1950s that he decided to become a full-time caddie at St Andrews.
Today, of course, Anderson would have made large sums out of caddying for Open winners; but in the 1960s the rewards for players and caddies alike were meagre. It was noted that Anderson always put the money he was given into his top pocket, without so much as glancing at it.
His approach to tournaments was meticulous, and he set the standard for a new kind of caddie, who not merely carries clubs, but also helps to work out his player's game plan. In his mind, player and caddie were very much partners, rather than master and servant.
Anderson also knew a thing or two about psychology. In 1986, when Belle Robertson was hoping to add one more triumph to her formidable list of victories, she wrote to Anderson asking him to caddy for her at the Scottish Ladies Open. "I always enjoy caddying for a winner," Tip replied - and so it proved.
He is survived by two sons and a daughter.
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