Summary
- Caddyshack is a classic comedy with unforgettable quotes from Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, and Bill Murray.
- The best Caddyshack quotes provide non-stop laughs thank to the movie's wacky characters and iconic one-liners.
- Available to rent or buy on Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video for a good time.
The funniest Caddyshack quotes highlight why the movie has kept fans laughing for decades. Since its release in 1980, Caddyshack has become one of the most popular comedies of all time and is one of the movies that epitomizes the blockbuster comedies of the 80s era. The movie about all the wacky characters at a summer golf course doesn’t sound like a hilarious concept, but with talents like Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, and Bill Murray involved, it became one of the most quotable movies ever.
From Chase’s dry delivery to Dangerfield’s non-stop insults to Murray’s hilarious outrageous performance, Caddyshack has no shortage of amazing one-liners. The movie is never bogged down by plot or exploring big ideas, but simply entertains and provides laughs with every scene. While it’s difficult to narrow down all the laugh-out-loud moments from the iconic sports comedy, there are some notable Caddyshack quotes, from the iconic to the underrated, which stand out above the rest.
So What? So Let's Dance!: 10 Behind-The-Scenes Facts About Caddyshack
Caddyshack is one of the most beloved comedy classics of all time. Here are 10 behind-the-scenes facts about the movie.
21 "So What? So Let's Dance!"
Al Czervik (Rodney Dangerfield)
Despite his legendary show business status, Rodney Dangerfield's movie career was not very extensive. However, his role as the outrageous Al Czervik in Caddyshack was an ideal one for the funnyman, who delivers some of the best Caddyshack quotes simply by having the time of his life. While the role allowed Dangerfield to basically perform material from his stand-up shows, he also embraced the eccentricities of playing the carefree and unkempt rich man.
A perfect example of the kind of lively attitude Al is bringing to the snobbish club.
"So what? So Let's Dance!" is a particularly hilarious Rodney Dangerfield Caddyshack line as it comes out of nowhere. After trying to give one of the young caddies a lesson in work ethic, Al busts out a radio built into his golf bag and turns the fairway into a dance club. It is a perfect example of the kind of lively attitude Al is bringing to the snobbish club. The moment is totally random which also fits into the movie's style of only being concerned with making the audience laugh.
20 "Whoa, Did Somebody Step On A Duck?"
Al Czervik (Rodney Dangerfield)
Throughout comedy movies, fart jokes have proven to be a big hit with audiences of all ages, and Caddyshack is the kind of film that knows this and embraces it wholeheartedly. The only thing funnier than a fart is a fart in an inappropriate setting. Rodney Dangerfield’s Al Czervik might be wealthy, but his behavior sticks out among the more conservative guests of Bushwood Country Club.
While he is not shy about letting his fart ring loud and far, his insistence that it must have been a duck provided people with a hilarious fake excuse for years to come.
In fact, Al's carefree enough to break wind in a fancy restaurant in the loudest way possible. While he is not shy about letting his fart ring loud and far, his insistence that it must have been a duck provided people with a hilarious fake excuse for years to come. It's one of the most often repeated Caddyshack quotes and a shining example of why Rodney Dangerfield is so highly regarded as a comedian.
19 "I Hear This Place Is Restricted, Wang, So Don't Tell Them You're Jewish."
Al Czervik (Rodney Dangerfield)
Al and his party of fun-loving friends come into the country club like a tornado, disrupting the calm and sophisticated way some of the older want things to operate. It is a breath of fresh air that loosens things up.
Al is also not shy about pointing out the faults and making fun of the country club and its strict rules. Such is the case when he and his party arrive and Al makes this comment to his Asian companion.
It is a funny line that he and his friends laugh about, but it is also an endearing moment of Al further separating himself from the less likable aspects of the country club. There is a sense that he is not too keen on the supposed restrictive nature of the club, nor does he respect such rules. However, it also shows that he is a lot more open about who he hangs around with than the other club .
Despite already being a well-known star, Caddyshack was Dangerfield's first major movie role.
18 "Doodie!"
Spalding Smails (John F. Barmon, Jr.)
Caddyshack never pretends to be a highbrow comedy and, like Al's explicit fart, it totally embraces crude humor to great effect. One of the most memorable scenes in the movie is completely detached from the rest of the plot and never comes up again, but it still delivers big laughs. The caddies are given a rare chance to frolic in the country club pool, and it turns into a party.
The biggest laugh comes after when Carl cleans out the pool and finds the candy bar, taking a bite much to the disgust of onlookers.
However, when a girl drops her candy bar into the pool, it causes mass hysteria with everyone mistaking it for a piece of poop. The scene is a hilarious parody of Steven Spielberg's Jaws, complete with the iconic score. This leads to one oblivious swimmer, Spalding, swimming directly up to the chocolate bar and screaming out in horror. However, the biggest laugh comes after when Carl cleans out the pool and finds the candy bar, taking a bite much to the disgust of onlookers.
17 "Cinderella Story. Outta Nowhere. A Former Greenskeeper, Now, About To Become The Masters Champion."
Carl Spackler (Bill Murray)
Bill Murray’s groundskeeper character in Caddyshack, Carl Spackler, might have little to do with the overall plot of the film, but every moment he’s on screen is a treat. One of his most memorable moments is his own play-by-play of his imaginary golf championship.
He comes up with an elaborate story of the announcers describing this golfer phenom who rose from being a lowly groundskeeper to being a star in the professional golf world. While the line isn’t particularly funny written down, Murray's unhinged delivery is what sells it as a classic moment.
The fact that he’s absentmindedly destroying the country club’s flowers as he daydreams makes it all the better. It is also a look at the mind of the somewhat sad and always hilarious Carl who seems aimless for so much of the movie yet clearly has ambitions beyond his work at the golf course.
Murray improvised the scene after director Harold Ramis simply told him "act like a child."
Why Bill Murray Didn't Return For Caddyshack 2 (But Chevy Chase Did)
Bill Murray & Chevy Chase were vital components of Caddyshack's ensemble cast. But why didn't Murray return for the sequel, especially when Chase did?
16 “A Flute With No Holes, Is Not A Flute. A Donut With No Hole Is A Danish.”
Ty Webb (Chevy Chase)
Community might not have given him a very good reputation these days, but there was a time when he was Hollywood’s comedy superstar. His bone-dry delivery was perfect, and he pulled off the charming jerk very well.
Ty Webb, the course hotshot in Caddyshack, is similar to Dangerfield's Al in that he is a refreshing change of pace from the stuffy club , not taking any of this very seriously. It is an ideal role for Chase. One of Ty's best Caddyshack quotes comes when giving life lessons to Danny Noonan (Michael O'Keefe).
Ty doesn't care if he's actually teaching the youngster anything, he is just trying to amuse himself.
His ridiculous and pointless philosophy lesson to young Danny is so funny because it seems like Chase is just thinking out loud. Ty doesn't care if he's actually teaching the youngster anything, he is just trying to amuse himself. Chase's delivery draws the audience in to really listen to what he is saying only for it to be nonsense.
15 “Oh, It Looks Good On You Though.”
Al Czervik (Rodney Dangerfield)
Rodney Dangerfield made a long and successful stand-up comedy career from insulting himself, so it only makes sense that he would be just as good at insulting other people. Al walks a fine line by making fun of everyone without seeming mean, as if it would be a pleasure to be insulted by this fun-loving man. However, the man who finds himself on the receiving end of a lot of the insults is the man with the worst sense of humor - Judge Smails.
When he’s checking out the golf clothing store, Al hilariously begins insulting one of the hats on display, saying:
"When you buy a hat like this I bet you get a free bowl of soup, huh?"
When he finally notices that Judge Smails is standing right there wearing the same hat, Al insists it looks good on him, followed by an exaggerated and obvious eye roll. Dangerfield's hilarious delivery really sells the moment with him obviously not carrying how obvious it is that his comment to Smails is insincere.
14 “Well, The World Needs Ditch Diggers, Too.”
Judge Smails (Ted Knight)
While the comedy stars like Bill Murray and Chevy Chase are often given most of the attention in the movie, Ted Knight is a key part of the Caddyshack cast. His performance as the villainous and detestable Judge Smails is an unenviable one, as he is the least fun and least likable character in the movie. However, Knight fully commits to the antagonistic role and Caddyshack is all the more memorable for it.
It is a hilariously cold line that Knight delivers wonderfully.
When young caddy Danny attempts to get into Judge Smails' good graces, he is hoping that it will help him with his future plans of going to law school. He explains these plans to Smails as they are out on the golf course, but when Danny attempts to draw sympathy by telling him he doesn't have the money for college, Smails suggests a career in ditch digging is in his future. It is a hilariously cold line that Knight delivers wonderfully.
13 "I Enjoy Skinny Skiing, Going To Bullfights On Acid."
Lacey Underall (Cindy Morgan)
Another one of the underrated characters in the movie is Lacey, the niece of Judge Smails. Like many of the more likable characters in the film, she is just there to find her own form of fun, catching the eye of many of the male characters and toying with them in a playful way.
During one of the club's fancy dinners, Lacy and Ty begin talking with him attempting to woo the presumably "nice girl" type. When she seems unimpressed with the idea that he golfs for fun, he asks her what she likes to do for excitement.
Chase's hilariously flustered reaction to his answer proves that she is a lot more to handle than Ty anticipated, It is a lot of fun seeing the usually smooth and confident Ty suddenly thrown off by this bold and wild young woman.
The massage scene between Ty and Lacey was improvised.
12 "I've Sentenced Boys Younger Than You To The Gas Chamber. Didn't Wanna Do It, But Felt I Owed It To Them."
Judge Smails (Ted Knight)
Caddyshack is not a subtle movie and that is part of what makes it so fun to watch. Judge Smails is a perfect example of this as he fits into the standard cliché of the uptight authoritarian villain in 80s movies who keeps stopping the main characters from having fun. However, unlike a lot of those characters, Smails is a hilarious character in his own right thanks to Ted Knight's performance and the immense unlikability of the character.
When giving a speech to Danny about the "goodness and badness" in the world, Smails continues to show how much of a villain he is, discussing sentencing people to death and suggesting they should thank him for it. The whole scene is a hilarious way of showing just how out of touch Smails is and how he sees himself as a much more impressive figure than he really is.
