Caddie Spotlight: Patrick Carr of Philadelphia Cricket Club

By John T. Iswalt

The J. Wood Platt Caddie Scholarship Trust is a family. With 149 Scholars currently enrolled in nearly 60 colleges and universities, the family is ever-growing. Among the new members is freshman Platt Scholar Patrick Carr.

“The Scholarship is definitely the best thing that’s happened to me financially and through education,” Carr, 19, of Blue Bell, Pa., said. “For people looking for networking opportunities, it’s beyond the best experience you can have.”

Caddying and the Platt Scholarship run in the Carr family. Patrick’s older brother Jimmy, 22, began caddying at Whitemarsh Valley Country Club at age 13. Shortly after, Jimmy moved to Cricket. Seeing his brother’s affinity for caddying, and hearing about his encounters while looping, was the impetus for Patrick following his brother into the caddie yard in 2021. A year prior, Jimmy, a student at Temple University graduating in 2024, became a J. Wood Platt Caddie Scholar.

Sue Greco, the Carr brothers’ aunt, saw some informational materials for the Scholarship and encouraged Jimmy, the only brother caddying at the time, to apply. 

“My brother got it and I was like, ‘There’s no way they’re going to give him that much money to do something like this. This is awesome,’” Patrick, a 2023 graduate of Wissahickon High School, said. “I applied, I got it and was like, ‘This is actually a lifesaver.’ It was totally amazing.”

Now a member of the Platt network, Patrick has the opportunity to reap the Trusts’ fruits just like his brother. 

“It’s definitely encouraged me more because of the financial takeaways of it. Money was definitely an issue with school as a 2024 student, but it’s definitely a boost to want to do more,” Patrick, a freshman at West Chester University, said. “There’s a lot of people behind me I’d say that are like, ‘You got this. You’re a scholar for a reason.’”

For Patrick, Platt promotes well-roundedness in the golf and education communities, respectively. In the future, Patrick and Jimmy are interested in taking advantage of the Trust’s EMPOWER program. These professional development opportunities are a valuable benefit for Scholars. Sessions include résumé workshops, leadership training, mentorship and more.         

“[Patrick has] been an asset. He started out pretty raw, but ended up picking it up pretty quick. He’s reliable, and he’s a solid caddie,” Uccelletti, 59, of Abington, Pa., said. “I think it’s great for the caddies to be involved in J. Wood Platt. The opportunities are so beneficial for everybody involved.” 

“I feel like there’s more opportunities here [at Cricket] with there being multiple courses,” Patrick said. “The guys out there, Ucc (Mike Uccelletti, Cricket’s Director of Outside Services) and Jeff (Marino, Cricket’s Associate Director of Outside Services), they’re the best guys ever. They will give you a loop when you need one. They see your dedication.” 

Cricket has impressed Patrick since the beginning. 

“My first loop was with Julius Erving. It was my ghost loop,” Patrick said. “I walked out to the tee. I looked at the bags and it said Dr. J. He had a Sixers hat on, he had a nice jacket and I was like, ‘There’s no way I’m doing this right now.’ It was awesome. It was a Top 10 experience for me.” 

While Patrick admits to being new to golf at the time, he said conversation with the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer flowed naturally.

Remaining dedicated to serving his players and connecting with the club’s members have been Patrick’s greatest responsibilities while caddying. 

“I feel like [the members] know how to socialize,” Patrick said. “The social interactions they have remain professional throughout the round. There’s never an outburst; they keep it professional. I feel like I can definitely use that within my field soon.”

Patrick is a biology major with a concentration in medical laboratory science. He was recently selected to join the University’s nursing program. Several of Patrick’s family members, including his mother, Megan, work in the medical industry. During the spring semester, he also became a brother of West Chester’s chapter of Tau Kappa Epsilon.

The Carr family caddie legacy continues. In addition to older brother Jimmy, Patrick has two younger brothers. Shane, 17, also caddies at Cricket and Kevin, 13, could begin caddying within the next few years. It’s apparent the Carr-Platt Scholar legacy could continue as well. 

“There is a long-standing tradition of siblings caddying at GAP Member Clubs and then going on to become Platt Scholars,” J. Wood Platt’s Director of Education Andrew Downs said. “I think the benefits of caddying, along with the Platt Scholarship, make it easy for caddies to follow in the footsteps of the older siblings.”

J. Wood Platt is responsible for furthering the education and professionalism of its Scholars. United by family-like support, and the generosity of donors and mentors, the Trust’s positive impact on its Scholars continues.

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.

The J. Wood Platt Caddie Scholarship Trust was created in 1958 and is the charitable arm of GAP (Golf Association of Philadelphia). The J. Wood Platt Caddie Scholarship Trust’s mission is to financially aid and empower qualified caddies and those working in golf operations in the pursuit of higher education. Along with aiding caddies financially, J. Wood Platt’s EMPOWER program strengthens scholarship investment dollars by providing caddies with exceptional benefits and leadership training through access to the wide network of J. Wood Platt donors and alumni. To date, more than 3,700 young men and women have received $25 million in aid from the Trust.