Oldest Caddie in the Nation Loops in Michigan

Had Bernhard Langer’s bag too

By Tom Lang

Humans seem to always be seeking a Fountain of Youth.

Joe Meindl found it with golf – caddying for golf to be more specific.

Joe is commonly believed to currently be the oldest working caddie in the United States. He turned 90 in mid-June.

There have been other caddies working in their 80s, but often times were cart riders later in life.

Joe still walks the course almost every day with a full golf bag slung over his shoulders at The Dunes Club in New Buffalo.

“Caddying is my passion,” Joe told me as I did a 9-hole trek with him and fellow caddies looping for a foursome in early June. “I truly enjoy it and it’s interesting. I meet a lot of good people.”

When asked if his goal is to reach the century mark in life, which at this positive pace he should, Joe said no.

“My goal is to try to be a good person and do the best I can every day… and for the golfer I caddie for, I make sure to show them the best time that day. Do the best I can, have a nice conversation with them, and make them happy. They’re going to remember that day, I guarantee it. There’s a lot of people who acknowledge that and they say ‘Joe, thank you for a good day.’”

Joe is a golfer too, playing the game for the last 65 years since he moved from native Germany to the United States in 1957 to work in the meat packing industry. He started in Madison, Wisc., moved soon to Chicago and, a few short years later, was transferred to LaPorte, Ind. He never moved again.

Joe began playing, and still does, at Beechwood Golf Course, a historic public track in LaPorte. Joe claims to be an average recreational golfer and has shot his age more times than he can remember. 

“The drives are getting shorter, but the short game is still there,” he said. “Age is creeping up on me, but I’m not giving in,” he added with an ironic chuckle.

His one nagging point: zero holes in one.

“I have witnessed 28 holes in one, and I never had one,” Joe said. “I have seen some ugly ones, and I’ve seen some nice ones. The ugliest one didn’t get more than two feet off the ground, took a few bounces, bounced up there and goes in. And I have seen some perfect shots, too. Lots of them.”

Dunes Club member David Nettleton of the Chicago area with a summer home in Michigan told me: “Joe is the best caddy I’ve ever had. He knows this course inside and out. His love for the game and his love for this golf course is unbelievable. He helps my game. He calms you down. He knows your swing and knows how to work with you.”

Joe is also the lead mentor at Dunes Club. A fellow caddy that very enjoyable June afternoon was David Forker, a Three Oaks, River Valley High School grad who is now a senior and Evans Scholar at U-M and in his 8th year at Dunes Club.

“It’s his positivity. He’s so positive all the time,” Forker told me. “He never complains. He’s just an optimistic guy. He’s a mentor to me. When I was out here my first year, Joe was always the guy to look to – the guy that everyone said, ‘you’d have a good time with him if he’s in your group.’”

Todd Molitor has been the Dunes Club GM the past 12 years, after taking over for Dave Hettinga – the person who first recruited Joe to caddie in a pinch at the golf property developed by legend Mike Keiser, who created Bandon Dunes among other amazing golf resorts.

“Joe is an entertainer; good person to be around,” Molitor said. “He’s got endless stories. He knows the game. He might not play great golf anymore, but he knows the golf swing and he knows the game. He loves the game. He’s sure seen a lot.”

“He gets mail here,” Molitor said with a laugh. “He gets requested at least 3-4 days a week. He doesn’t turn any down. He’ll go at least five days a week. He’s a fixture here, believe me.”

Joe is also a fixture at Beechwood Golf Course, where he plays golf less than before, but still stops in once a week to visit.

“He’s infectious. When he comes in, everyone wants to talk with him,” said Beechwood head PGA pro Kyle Cashmer. “His attitude is always positive, always upbeat. He’s always someone that everyone wants to be around, that’s for sure. What’s most special about Joe is that he makes peoples’ day. Everybody loves him.

“He tells me he literally wants to (caddie) every day. He’s got to be the oldest caddie in the nation. I don’t think it could even be close. I would be stunned to see others in their 80s, maybe some in their 70s. It’s just out of this world. He’s in great shape. With some of the heat and humidity we have in July and August, I don’t know if I could caddie seven days a week, and I’m 42 years old. He’s an amazing man.”

I asked Joe the question everyone wants to know: what is the secret to a long and healthy life?

“Keep on moving,” he said. “Keep walking and have a couple of beers a day,” he added with a grin.

Joe also keeps in shape by swimming up to a mile each day – at the YMCA during the winter, and at home in the summer. Home is very important to Joe. He taught all four of his children to golf – Mike (age 64), Chris (63), Angela (60) and Tony (56). He and Kathy have been married for 68 years. 

The Meindl’s are a three-generation golfing family. He taught his granddaughter, Savanna, to play and to caddie, and she earned an Evans Scholarship to attend the University of Colorado. 

Joe did some rough calculations and between 65 years of playing golf and 25 as a caddie, he believes he has walked 300,000 miles in his lifetime.

The best walk he recalls was a day spent with his golfing hero, Masters champion and fellow German Bernhard Langer. It happened eight years ago, via a common friend, at the Sr. PGA Championship in Benton Harbor.

The first opportunity was a senior event at French Lick Resort, but Joe’s son was getting married the same day in California. His friend said there could be other opportunities, and it was reported that Langer said, “well, too bad he can’t make it this year, if he’s still alive maybe next time,” which brought a deep laugh.

In Michigan, Langer’s normal caddie couldn’t be there for a practice round. Joe said that he and Bernhard were born about 35 kilometers apart in Germany… “So, we had a lot in common to talk about. He was always my idol, and he still is. We’re still in touch. He still calls every now and then. He’s just a wonderful person. Great family guy, a good guy. 

“When we walked down our first fairway, and got to the first green, Bernhard said, ‘Joe, do you still play.’ I said yes, and he asked can I read greens? I said overall I think I can see most of it. I miss sometimes. Bernhard said okay, and we get on the green for a 15-footer. He’s down there looking at the putt. He says, ‘Joe, it’s going to go right to left.’ I looked at him and said, ‘not if you want to make it. It’s going to go left to right.’ He said, ‘I’m just testing you.’

“It was one of our highlights. We enjoyed talking, some in German, some English. 

“And when the round was over, he put his arms around me and he says, ‘Joe, I had a great day with you. You and me are going to go in the players lounge, and we’re going to have lunch and beers.’ And I was the only caddie in the place, the players’ lounge. We were just telling stories and had a great day. I enjoyed that so much.”

Sounds like the same reaction that hundreds of golfers have had in the last 25 years at the Dunes Club.