Excerpt from the Spring 2021 issue of the GAP Magazine
The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in some give and take for Kevin Finlayson.
The 22-year-old Platt Caddie Scholar was busier than ever in 2020, looping the Saucon Valley Country Club fairways. As golf surged, so did Finlayson’s rounds. The caddie of seven years registered 45 loops despite the season starting more than a month late.
However, the take came in the form of a lost internship with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, the AHL affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers. Finlayson planned on rotating through the many different business offices to learn about management before the season was cancelled due to COVID-19. It was an opportunity that blossomed from a relationship with Rob Brooks, a Saucon Valley member.
Not only has Finlayson made great connections through caddying, but he has also learned many key life skills.
“I was excited when the course opened back up after COVID this past summer because it meant not only could I resume my job, but I still got to enjoy all the other aspects of caddying that I love so much,” said Finlayson, a Quakertown, Pa. resident. “Something that caddying has definitely helped me with was learning to talk [to others], having a charisma about yourself, learning to keep a conversation going and how to really be professional.”
Finlayson is the 2020-21 recipient of the Jonathan Pierpont Warner Endowed Scholarship, which was established by its namesake, a past Trust Chairman. The Jonathan Pierpont Warner Endowed Scholarship is awarded to a caddie who works at either Aronomink Golf Club, Merion Golf Club or Saucon Valley Country Club. The year prior, Finlayson received the Dunne Manning Endowed Scholarship, awarded to a caddie who works at Saucon Valley.
“Kevin has a warm and captivating smile and is a good listener. Naturally positive and confident, he will have a great future ahead transferring what caddying at Saucon Valley has taught him, into the world of business,” said Warner, former Chairman of the Trust (2015-18).
Finlayson is a senior at Gettysburg College, majoring in globalization studies with a concentration in international business in East Asia.
“It’s been incredible to be honest. J. Wood Platt has given me a tremendous amount of money. They have saved me so much debt, which I am so grateful for,” said Finlayson. “[The scholarship] gives me an extra benefit for doing a job I already loved to do.”
With two older sisters, Erinne, 24, who attended Penn State University, and Jessica, 28, who is battling a serious health condition, the J. Wood Platt Caddie Scholarship Trust has not only helped Finlayson directly, but his family as a whole. He looks forward to the day he can give back to other caddies in need.
Finlayson started caddying at Saucon thanks to the influence of his uncle, Steven Gale, a retired club caddie. Like many, when starting out, Finlayson did a lot of sitting around waiting for his first loop.
“Make an effort to learn the game of golf and be as good of a caddie as you can be,” said Finlayson. “I have found the better you are, the more people enjoy it and the more you’ll enjoy it as well. It is definitely, by far, the best job you can have as a student. You get to be outside, meet amazing people, make connections. It is a privilege to work on such a beautiful course like Saucon Valley and to get to know many of the amazing members.”
As soon as he started caddying at Saucon Valley, he immediately heard about the J. Wood Platt Caddie Scholarship program.
“Saucon Valley makes the [scholarship] program very known that this is [something] you can apply for if you are eligible,” said Finlayson, a Quakertown Community High School graduate.. “When I originally applied, I was really hoping to get it. It was very exciting for me when I found out I was a Platt Scholar.”
“He definitely demonstrated the qualities of a caddie that puts forth the effort, shows the interest, and engages with people,” said Andy Rumble, Saucon Valley’s Caddiemaster. “As he’s progressed, he has become more engaged with other members of the club. He’s one of the guys that fits the molds of what I would like to see from younger caddies.”
Read the magazine article here!
GAP
Celebrating Amateur Golf since 1897, GAP, also known as the Golf Association of Philadelphia, is the oldest regional or state golf association in the United States. It serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. The Association’s 288 Member Clubs and 75,000 individual members are spread across the Eastern half of Pennsylvania and parts of New Jersey and Delaware. The GAP’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.
J. Wood Platt Caddie Scholarship Trust
The J. Wood Platt Caddie Scholarship Trust was created in 1958 by the Golf Association of Philadelphia through the efforts of then President Walter A. Schmidt; Leo Fraser, President of the local section of Professional Golfers Association of America; and Albert Keeping, Golf Professional at Gulph Mills Golf Club. It was named in honor of Philadelphia’s premier golfer of the era, J. Wood Platt. Not only was Mr. Platt an accomplished player, but he was also the Trust’s co-founder and first contributor. To date, more than 3,800 young men and women have received $23 million in aid from the Trust.
