“He rolled in a 50-footer or 60-footer or whatever it was on 13 and I even actually got quite carried away myself.”
“Conversations with Champions, presented by Sentry” is a weekly series from Golfweek in collaboration with The Caddie Network, where we take you behind the scenes for a chat with the winning caddie from the most recent PGA Tour event. This week: Billy Foster, caddie for Matt Fitzpatrick at the 2022 U.S. Open at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts.
Billy Foster has been a caddie for 40 years, and has worked for the likes Seve Ballesteros, Thomas Bjorn, Darren Clarke and Lee Westwood. Along the way he collected 45 victories but never bagged the big one.
After many close calls over the years, Sunday’s final round started to look like another oh-so-close major for Foster. That is, until Fitzpatrick drained a long putt on the 13th hole that realigned the stars.
“He missed a four-footer on 10 for bogey and then he three-putted 11 from like 15-18 feet, roughly five-foot putts and he missed it. And I just thought, ‘Here we go again. It’s not going to happen again,'” Foster told John Rathouz from The Caddie Network.
“And then he rolled in a 50-footer or 60-footer or whatever it was on 13 and I even actually got quite carried away myself, which I never do. I never get carried away but I let out a loud roar and that got him right back in the tournament again. Yea, it was a massive putt, just at the right time.”
Fitzpatrick has worked hard to get his game major-championship worthy. He added length off the tee and kept his short game in order. Foster said there’s also mental hurdles that need to be conquered as well.
“You have to learn to lose to win. I think it was a big learning curve for him,” Foster said. “I always thought that coming to the U.S. Open, if he’s going to win a major, that’d be up there with his best chance, with how straight he is and he’s put on 25 yards the last 18 months, I don’t know what’s going on there but he’s turning into a bit of a beast. We played with DJ [Dustin Johnson] the first two days and he bombed a couple past DJ by 30-40 yards and I’m like ‘My God, he’s getting the attention.’
“But yea, his all-around game, his chipping has improved immensely. … Seve [Ballesteros] would be spinning his grave watching. I think he’s in the top 20 of every stat category on the tour so he’s a very consistent player.”
Caddie Travis Perkins talks about Sam Burns’ playoff win at the 2022 Charles Schwab Challenge.
“Conversations with Champions, presented by Sentry” is a weekly series from Golfweek in collaboration with The Caddie Network, where we take you behind the scenes for a chat with the winning caddie from the most recent PGA Tour event. This week: Travis Perkins, caddie for Sam Burns at 2022 Charles Schwab Challenge.
It went to a playoff but it was over before you knew it. Sam Burns knocked out good buddy Scottie Scheffler with a winding 38-footer from off the green on the first extra hole to win the 2022 Charles Schwab Challenge in dramatic fashion.
According to Burns’ caddie Travis Perkins, getting the flat stick out of the bag is always key for this duo.
“If I can get the putter in his hands, anything is possible,” Perkins told John Rathouz from The Caddie Network. The Schwab win was the third of the season for Burns and fourth in his PGA Tour career.
“I’m not saying it becomes easier but you learn how to deal with the emotions and what you’re going through inside and how your body is going to react,” Perkins said. “So I think all these wins that Sam has done, they’ve all been different. This one, coming from behind the way he did … you just never know what’s going to happen. And when you get into a playoff — it’s hard to win out there — you just try to do everything you can to keep yourself in it and try not to make mistakes.”
Back to that putt that Burns buried from way downtown.
“We were only a couple of paces away in regulation from where that ball ended up in the playoff so he kinda had an idea of what it was doing,” Perkins said. “After he made it, he came over to me and he goes ‘I didn’t think that was going to get to the hole’ but the greens had picked up some speed because they dried out so much. He thought he left it short.”
Max Homa and Joe Greiner have now been together for four PGA Tour wins.
“Conversations with Champions, presented by Sentry” is a weekly series from Golfweek in collaboration with The Caddie Network, where we take you behind the scenes in a chat with the winning caddie from the most recent PGA Tour event. This week: Joe Greiner, caddie for Max Homa at the 2022 Wells Fargo Championship.
It was a slog but Max Homa and caddie Joe Greiner proved tougher than the conditions at the 2022 Wells Fargo Championship.
Homa won the tournament—for a second time, although at a different location—by two shots in wet and muddy conditions for his fourth PGA Tour win.
John Rathouz from The Caddie Network caught up with Greiner the day after their win at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm outside Washington, D.C. The two discussed dealing with the conditions, and the fact that Homa doesn’t seem to mind dealing with the rain.
“Max is actually, he’s pretty anti-umbrella,” Greiner said. “He doesn’t mind getting wet. So my job was basically keep the clubs as dry as possible. I have to like, force him to take it because sometimes I’m trying to clean the club, put it back in the bag, with the umbrella. I’m like ‘Max, just take the umbrella. I know you don’t like it but I need you to take it.’
“He’s pretty awesome in the tough weather conditions. … he’s a So-Cal kid, doesn’t like umbrellas.”
Max Homa celebrates with his caddie Joe Greiner after winning the 2022 Wells Fargo Championship at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm in Potomac, Maryland. (Photo: Nick Wass/Associated Press)
Homa is not playing this week in the AT&T Byron Nelson at TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas, outside of Dallas, as he prepares for the 2022 PGA Championship at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
“His goal this year is to play better in the majors, get in contention, know what it feels like.” Greiner said. “It’s not like you just go out there and automatically play good in a major. I mean, it’s tough. Sometimes the golf course doesn’t fit you. I think Southern Hills is going to be a good set up for him. He’s very excited. He’s working very hard, he’ll probably take one day off. We’re excited. It’s going to be a good one for us.”
Homa and Greiner can also book plans for the 2023 at the Sentry Tournament of Champions at the Plantation Course at Kapalua.
After his 13th worldwide victory, Jon Rahm is taking two weeks off to prepare for the PGA Championship.
“Conversations with Champions, presented by Sentry” is a new weekly series from Golfweek that is a collaboration with The Caddie Network. Each week, we’ll take you behind the scenes in a chat with the winning caddie from the most recent PGA Tour event. This week: Adam Hayes, caddie for Jon Rahm at the 2022 Mexico Open at Vidanta.
When Jon Rahm won the Mexico Open at Vidanta, he earned his first win since the 2021 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines. He won after holding the lead after all four rounds. It was his seventh PGA Tour win and 13th win worldwide and he said it meant a lot, as did the location of this latest victory.
“I came this week wanting to do it. I’ve spoken at length about the importance of Seve [Ballesteros] and his impact on the game of golf and how I play because of him,” Rahm said, speaking of a fellow Spaniard who remains a critical influence on him. “Nowadays we have a much bigger reach, the PGA Tour has become a bigger tour, and with social media, we’re worldwide stars, bigger than they were in the past. I feel like I can make some impact in Mexico as well, and Mexico deserves a good event. You can even see golf growing in Mexico as well.”
Rahm credits relatively low-key final round with Tiger Woods at the Masters as being a key in finding the winner’s circle once again.
“I knew I was improving,” he said. “I think that Sunday with Tiger at Augusta gave me quite a bit of confidence. I was a little bit technical in my approach, a little too technical. I’m a feel player and that Sunday I told myself just go out there and hit the golf ball, make shots, see the ball flight and execute and I shot a 3 under without having my best stuff on a tough day.”
The win in Vallarta also means Rahm has earned a return trip to Hawaii to kick off 2023 at the Sentry Tournament of Champions.
Rahm is taking the next two weeks off, as he’s skipping the Wells Fargo Championship near Washington, D.C., and the AT&T Byron Nelson at TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas, outside of Dallas, to prepare for the PGA Championship at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Michael Greller has been the caddie for Jordan Spieth during all 13 of his PGA Tour victories.
“Conversations with Champions, presented by Sentry” is a new weekly series from Golfweek that is a collaboration with the Caddie Network. Each week, we’ll take you behind the scenes in a chat with the winning caddie from the most recent PGA Tour event. This week: Jordan Spieth and Michael Greller at the 2022 RBC Heritage.
Jordan Spieth and caddie Michael Greller have teamed up for another PGA Tour victory despite a “brain fart” on a short missed putt.
The duo has been working together for a decade now. Greller has been on the bag for all 13 of Spieth’s PGA Tour wins, including their most recent title at the 2022 RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head, South Carolina.
Spieth shot a final-round 66 and then needed a playoff to fend off Patrick Cantlay. But perhaps Spieth could’ve avoided extra golf if he could have managed to sink a short putt on the 18th hole at the end of his third round.
“Yeah, I mentioned it to Michael and to Annie afterwards. I said I knew, riding into the clubhouse to sign my card, I said I knew that that on 18 was going to cost me and I hoped it did in a way because, if it didn’t, it meant I just played a very average round. So I hoped I worked my way into contention in spite,” he said Sunday after his win.
“I was about as upset after the round yesterday as I’ve ever been in a golf tournament. There’s just no excuse for those kind of brain farts as a professional to myself,” he said. “But also to Michael, who’s working his butt off, to go out there and do that that could potentially affect the outcome of a tournament. And I’ve done that a number of times on this stretch in the last four weeks.”
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“Conversations with Champions, presented by Sentry” catches up with Ted Scott, caddie for Scottie Scheffler, at the Masters.
“Conversations with Champions, presented by Sentry” is a new weekly series from Golfweek that is a collaboration with the Caddie Network. Each week, we’ll take you behind the scenes in a chat with the winning caddie from the most recent PGA Tour event. This week: Scottie Scheffler and Ted Scott from the 86th Masters.
AUGUSTA, Ga. – Ted Scott walked off the 18th green at Augusta National well ahead of his boss, Scottie Scheffler. With his hat pushed up off his forehead and the staff bag slung over his right shoulder, Scott carried the flagstick – his trophy – down toward scoring.
Six months ago, Scott thought he was done caddying after a 15-year stint with Bubba Watson that included two Masters victories, came to an end. Now he’s working for Scheffler, the No. 1 player in the world, and, as a team, they’ve won four of nine starts together. His Masters flag collection has now swelled to three.
“It’s very surreal,” said Scott. “It’s pretty crazy, actually.”
Ted Scott, caddie for Scottie Scheffler, gives high-fives to patrons after Scheffler won the 2022 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club. (Photo: Adam Cairns-Augusta Chronicle/USA TODAY Sports)
The humble Scott won’t take any credit for Scheffler’s three-shot victory over Rory McIlroy. He teared up when talking about Steve Kling, the local caddie he stayed with during Masters week who answered question after question. Scott is quick to point out that he has yet to hit a shot here.
Last fall, Scott planned to retire from caddying and teach golf, something he’s been doing for years anyway. But when Scheffler called, Scott decided to put what happens next in the hands of his family.
“I had my kids and my wife pray about it,” said Scott. “They took a week and came back and said ‘Dad, we think you ought to do it.’ ”
Scott told them to pray about it another week. The answer came back the same.
Watson, Scott and Scheffler are tied together by their Christian faith. All three men are active in the PGA Tour’s Bible study group. After his round on Sunday, Watson was asked if he had any regrets about not having Scott on the bag. Watson said no, calling it a mutual split. In fact, he’s happy that another young player will benefit from Scott’s leadership.
“That’s why I hired Teddy years ago in ’06, and now Teddy being on the bag with Scottie,” said Watson. “All three of us are trying to do the same things. We’re trying to be the best husband we can be, trying to be the best parent we can be. Scottie is not a parent yet, but he will be at some point. We’re trying to do the same goals in life, and then golf just gets in the way. If you get your life somewhat in order, maybe a few more putts will go in.”
Scott wiped away tears as he videoed Scheffler’s green jacket ceremony on the practice green. Scheffler told the crowd there were times on Sunday that he felt like he should’ve been carrying the bag because he was blindly following Scott’s lead.
Scott Scheffler celebrates with his caddie Ted Scott after winning the 2022 Masters Tournament. (Photo: Michael Madrid-USA TODAY Sports)
Phillip Allen of the Twenty First Group did the math on the difference in Scheffler’s bottom line since having Scott on the bag and the numbers are striking. In 62 starts on the PGA Tour pre-Scott, Scheffler had zero wins and made $8.56 million. With Scott, he has four victories in nine starts, for $9.04 million ($1 million per start).
Scheffler’s admiration for Scott, however, extends well beyond his ability to caddie.
“I can’t say enough about him,” said Scheffler. “You know, the qualities you look for in a person, Ted embodies pretty much all of them. He’s humble. He’s hard-working. He’s honest. He’s a good time to be around. I even, he’s just — he’s an amazing guy. To be able to have him on the bag is so special.”
Winning caddies at the Masters can write a letter to request their iconic white jumpsuits. Like many, Scott has grand plans for his memorabilia. He plans to eventually display everything in the building where he instructs.
But like everything with these two, it’s what’s inside that matters most. Before the round began on Sunday, Scott unzipped his jumpsuit to show Scheffler what was written on his green T-shirt: “God is in control.”
He might want to save that one for the display wall, too.
Golfweek’s Adam Schupak contributed to this article.
The equipment
A complete list of the golf equipment Scottie Scheffler used to win the 2022 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club:
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“Conversations with Champions, presented by Sentry” is a new weekly series Golfweek that is a collaboration with the Caddie Network. Each week, we’ll take you behind the scenes in a chat with the winning caddie from the most recent PGA Tour event. This week: J.J. Spaun and caddie Mark Carens at the 2022 Valero Texas Open.
J.J. Spaun is a first-time winner on the PGA Tour, and he couldn’t have picked a better time to find the winner’s circle.
With his win at the Valero Texas Open, Spaun earned the final spot into the 2022 Masters Tournament. He also can circle the first weekend in January 2023 on his calendar and he’s also headed to the Sentry Tournament of Champions.
“Two of the best events. And two of the hardest walks that you don’t even feel so it’s pretty crazy,” Spaun’s caddie Mark Carens told John Rathouz of the Caddie Network the day after the victory.
Carens called in from his courtesy car at Augusta National Golf Club, donning a Masters hat and a Masters T-shirt.
“We’re both super excited to be there. I can’t wait to just enjoy it with him. We’re going to have smiles on our faces the whole time. We’re looking forward to it.”
Spaun and Carens played the first eight holes before darkness Monday after spending time on the range and practice green.
J.J. Spaun and caddie Mark Carens celebrate after winning the 2022 Valero Texas Open at TPC San Antonio. (Photo: Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
Spaun, 31, turned pro in 2012 and reached the PGA Tour in 2017. He and his wife Melody and their young daughter Emerson making the trip to Augusta Monday morning in style, thanks to a jet provided by Valero.
“I think I’m still going through so much excitement and emotion that like even when I was registering, I was like, is this really happening? Is this a dream?” Spaun said. “I know it’s so cliche for people to say that, but it really was. It was like, am I here? It’s great. It’s a very special experience for anyone, and for me, for my first time, and I’m very excited to be here.”
Spaun’s victory in Texas was spurred on by his chipping. He holed out for eagle in the opening round on No. 8 from 87 yards, which gave him a boost of momentum.
“He told me, he’s like ‘Going from 1 over to 1 under is like the greatest thing ever,'” Carens said. “And then Saturday he chipped in on the par 3, dicey shot.”
Sunday, Spaun hit a microphone, but that didn’t deter him.
“He could see it and he’s like ‘It kicked to the left!’ and I was like ‘Hey this is perfect, let’s go to hoop town’,” Carens said. “And he made it.”
That blind shot on the 9th hole from 50 feet set the table for Spaun to close it out down the stretch at TPC San Antonio.
“It still hasn’t sunk in yet. I think I’m going to need an off week to let it all sink in,” he said. “It’s a dream come true, and I’m so happy to be here.”
Dennis Knight from the Augusta Chronicle contributed to this article.
The equipment
A complete list of the golf equipment Spaun used to win the PGA Tour’s 2022 Valero Texas Open:
DRIVER:Ping G425 LST (9 degrees), with Fujikura Ventus Black 6X shaft
FAIRWAY WOODS:TaylorMade SIM (15 degrees), with Mitsubishi Tensei CK Orange 70 TX shaft, Callaway Mavrik (18 degrees), with Mitsubishi Diamana BF 80TX shaft
IRONS:Srixon ZX7 (4-PW), with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts
WEDGES:Cleveland RTX ZipCore (50, 54, 60 degrees), with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 shafts
PUTTER: Scotty Cameron for Titleist Newport 2 GSS prototype
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Scottie Scheffler entered 2022 still seeking his first PGA Tour win.
The calendar hasn’t even flipped to April yet and Scheffler is now a three-time winner on the PGA Tour.
Veteran caddie Ted Scott, who used to work for Bubba Watson, has been on the bag for all three of those wins, including Sunday at Austin Country Club.
Scott clearly takes great pride in helping his guy reach the finish line.
“I think I have a servant’s heart. I just like helping people. That’s why I coach golf,” Scott told John Rathouz of the Caddie Network the day after the victory. “When you get to help someone else achieve what they want to do, it’s so rewarding.”
Scheffler made the final of the Match Play a year ago, falling to Billy Horschel. Scheffler eliminated Horschel in the Round of 16 this time around. Scheffler then knocked out Seamus Power, Dustin Johnson and Kevin Kisner to win it all.
“Seeing how hard Scottie Scheffler works and seeing how dedicated he is to getting better and improving and winning. … it’s a joy. There’s no other way to describe it. To serve someone and try to help them achieve what they want to do, and then when they do it, it’s pretty freakin’ awesome.”
Scheffler ascended to No. 1 in the world ranking Monday, joining Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas and Tiger Woods as the only golfers to reach the pinnacle at age 25 or younger.
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Because he won the 2021 Valspar in May, his three wins have come in the last 10 months. He joins Patrick Cantlay, Hideki Matsuyama and Cameron Smith in collecting three wins within the last 12 months.
Burns now finds himself ranked 10th in the world, his highest ranking to date. In the process, he knocked Dustin Johnson out of the top 10 for the first time in seven years. Burns is 25 and so now the top 10 golfers in the OWGR are all 32 or younger.
After his round, Burns was asked if winning back-to-back titles makes you special.
“I don’t feel special, but it feels special to do it,” he said, making sure to mention his caddie Travis Perkins. “I think it’s really cool for Travis and I to get to experience our first win together here last year and then to do it again this year is so cool. I still think it’s just, it hasn’t really hit me yet.”
Having confidence in the final round is a critical component.
Sam Burns hits his shot on the 18th hole during the final round of the 2022 Valspar Championship on the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club in Palm Harbor, Florida. (Photo: Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
“When you’re coming down the stretch and you’re near the lead and you want to have this belief that you can do it, but sometimes it’s tough when you haven’t done it yet. So I think for me today it was just only thing I can control is what I’m doing, how I’m reacting to the shots, everything else is out of my control,” he said. “It was more important to just kind of stay in my little circle, Travis and I just do our thing and at the end of the day we’ll add ’em up and hopefully it’s good enough.”
In this week’s video, the Caddie Network’s John Rathouz and Perkins discuss Burns’ hot putter. “Bermuda Burns”, as he’s known, was eighth in strokes gained: putting during the week at the Valspar.
“He putts slopey greens very well,” Perkins says. “That’s just one of Sam’s strengths. We do a lot of work throughout the week trying to make a certain amount of footage during practice rounds.”
Perkins was also on the bag in October 2020 when Burns won the Sanderson Farms Championship in Jackson, Mississippi.
Burns jumps from ninth to fourth on the PGA Tour’s 2020-21 money list with $3,953,031. Smith leads with $5,797,375.
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“It did add a little bit of spice to the telecast,” said caddie Matt Minister, “but we’re all pros out here and it’s not a big deal.”
If it seemed like Patrick Cantlay and Bryson DeChambeau were a bit cold to each other during Sunday’s final round of the BMW Championship at Caves Valley Golf club in Owings Mills, Maryland, you can probably point to a moment on the 14th hole where it all began.
Bryson stood over his approach shot for several seconds before backing off, turning to his left, and saying “Patrick, can you stop walking?”
Cantlay did, but just a few minutes later would walk in a 21-footer for birdie to join DeChambeau at the top of the leaderboard.
You can imagine the traction the video received on social media, and even the reaction the broadcast team had to the moment. In a video posted to the Caddie Network’s Instagram page on Monday, Cantlay’s caddie, Matt Minister explained that the exchange wasn’t a big deal.
