Feature
Brothers in arms
Our resident caddie-columnist Colin Byrne gives us the formline on the right hand men of the US and European teams
Caddyshack USA
Judd Burkett (Chad Campbell): Chad and Judd have known each other since Judd was 12. They are a rare combination of childhood friends who have gone on to enjoy a very successful and compatible relationship under the intensity of tour competition. They played junior golf together. Judd admits that since he began caddying full time five and a half years ago his game has suffered a bit. He has now slipped to a five handicap. He was with Chad in the last Ryder Cup, they have won three times together on tour and both are a great asset to the team with their warm Texan natures.
Adam Hayes (Vaughn Taylor): Adam joined up as looper for Vaughn in Memphis three years ago. He is a relative novice to the tour. They played against each other in college golf, Adam played for the University of Central Florida. After college the two played together on the Hooters Tour. He decided that playing was not for him, but wanted to stay involved with golf so he went to work on the Ladies Tour with Wendy Ward and Charlotte Sorenstam. Adam has enjoyed success in his relatively short caddying career. Two wins with Vaughn and one win on the Ladies Tour. He has caddied in a Solheim Cup in Sweden.
Jim McKay (Phil Mickelson): Bones has worked for Phil for over 13 years which is exceptionally long in the caddying world. It says a lot about the relationship that he has with his boss. Their pre-shot preamble is probably the most intense of all caddie/player partnerships. They have won three majors together and Jim has been with Phil for all his Ryder Cup appearances. Originally from Athens, Georgia, Jim’s passion outside golf is music and if you want to know what gigs are on during the week of a tournament, Bones will give you the full local schedule.
Ryan Rue (Chris DiMarco): Ryan has set a pretty high standard for his caddying career by opening at the British Open this year for Chris with a second place finish. He has family ties to Chris and grew up with him in Orlando. He will only have caddied in less than 10 events before the Ryder Cup so he is a real novice. He is three handicap golfer. Before picking up Chris’ bag he was a sales rep in Florida and until last year he was living in Aspen Colorado teaching handicapped children how to ski. His passion outside golf is his 12 Stone French Mastiff dog called Porterhouse.
Scott Gneiser (David Toms): Scott has been caddying for David for seven years . He was a good golfer in his youth and played on the Central Michigan University team. When he was playing, he played off a handicap of plus one. With no aspirations to play professionally, he went to the other side of the bag all of 17 years ago. He has been with Toms for two previous Ryder Cups. They have enjoyed 11 wins together. He is a family man, married with three boys and lives in Chicago.
Damon Green (Zach Johnson): Damon is 45 years old and was a pretty serious performer on the mini-tour circuit in the States in the late ’80s and early ’90s. He won 64 Mini Tour events and went on to play the Nike Tour in ’95 and ’96. Tiring of trying to make a living out of playing he turned to caddying which he describes as a holiday compared to playing. He has caddied for seven years. He enjoyed a couple of wins on tour with Scott Hoch then moved on to caddie for Zach. Has done one Ryder Cup in 2002 with Hoch in the Belfry. He says it’s the most awesome golfing experience ever.
Mike ‘Fluff’ Cowan (Jim Furyk): Fluff, his alias, given his full moustache, is a veteran caddie of 30 years and now in his late 50s. His is probably the most sought-after signature of the caddyshack, the autograph hunters love him. His first regular bag was with the charismatic Peter Jacobson. He won six times with Jake and, when Tiger head-hunted him as Jacobson’s game was on the wane, it was an obvious choice to move on. He won seven times with Tiger and has had 21 tour wins over his three decades on tour. This will be his eighth Ryder Cup appearance. Once with Tiger, twice with Peter Jacobson, a guest appearance with Freddie Couples and this will be his fourth with his present boss Jim Furyk. Surprisingly, he has only been on one successful team so far.
Frank Williams (Stuart Cink): Frank is 51 years young and has caddied for 19 years. He has been with Stuart for eight years and they have had three wins together. Before Stuart his steady bags were John Cook for three years and three wins and Davis Love for a couple of years and two wins. Before caddying, Frank played minor league baseball for three years professionally. He is a very fit over 50 with a pretty strict fitness regime. He is a self confessed sports fan and can be heard rattling off stats to his equally sports enthused boss. This will be his fourth Cup having done one already with Stuart, one with Curtis Strange and one with Davis Love.
Steve Williams (Tiger Woods): The world’s undisputed number one caddie (left) with over 100 wins in his looping career and over 40 with Tiger. The New Zealander was originally hoping to pursue his first passion in sport by playing rugby for his country. He has settled for advising the best golfer in the world instead. He is highly respected by Tiger and their relationship is turning out to be one of the most successful in player/caddie history. When he is not caddying he is racing his V8 Mustangs back in New Zealand.
Patrick Tarrant (Brett Wetterich): The second Kiwi on the US team is just a little less identifiable than the other one. He has worked for Brett for four and a half years. They spent two years together on the Nationwide Tour where they won twice. They are now well into their third year on the main tour and have won one event together. Patrick is new to the team game. The one and only time he has caddied as a team member was for Michael Long in a Dunhill Cup in St Andrews for New Zealand, I caddied on the same team. He has a Business degree from Waikato University on the North Island of New Zealand.
Matt Hauser (JJ Henry): Matt has worked with JJ for seven years, he took a break in 2004. He is a scratch golfer and grew up playing golf with JJ. He is now 33 years old and has known his boss since he was nine. They played golf and baseball growing up together in Connecticut. This will be Matt’s inaugural Ryder Cup experience. A self-confessed sports fan he has not got much team experience. He is a big alpine skier and despite his excitement about being involved in Ireland it would be hard to surpass the joy of getting married the week before the Ryder Cup in Colorado.
Scott Tway (Scott Verplank): Scott is the brother of Bob the ex-PGA champion and tour player. He is 41 years old and has caddied for 16 years. He played college golf in Georgia Southern University. Then he turned pro for four years. He gave up playing for a living and spent the next nine years caddying for his brother, enjoying one win together. Spent the last six years looping for Scott Verplank and has won twice. They have done a Ryder Cup together and he admits it was one of the greatest golfing experiences of his life. He has traded in his Harley Davidson for a fishing boat now that his kids are getting older.
Caddyshack Europe
Alastair McLean (Colin Montgomerie): Alastair has caddied for Europe’s best and most consistent golfer for 12 years. He has been with him for most of his successful career, apart from a short break a couple of years back. He holds a degree in Modern History from Dundee University, but doesn’t think it did much to enhance his bag-toting skills. He has enjoyed 35 wins with Monty and three wins in his five previous Ryder Cup appearances with Colin. Despite being a seasoned campaigner he still maintains that the Ryder Cup is the one spectacle that can get the hair standing up on the back of your neck.
Garreth Lord (Robert Karlsson): Garreth is the only European bagman who comes from an American background. He played golf for the University of Tennessee for three years and reached number 32 on the college ranking system. He then went to Germany to work as a teaching professional for two seasons. Tour player Steve Webster rescued him from the German amateurs. He has worked for Karlsson for two years and they have enjoyed a lot of success. Lordie has been a spectator twice at the Belfry and once at Valderamma. This is his maiden voyage on the pressure side of the Ryder Cup.
Philip Morby (Jose Maria Olazabal): Philip should probably have been Ian Woosnam’s vice-captain given the partnership that they had together on the course over many years. He won the Masters with Woosie, of course, and has racked up 35 wins in his 25 years of caddying. He has also done six Ryder Cups with Woosie and this will be his first with Jose. He is a committed Sheffield Wednesday fan and gets his appropriate nickname of ‘Wobbly’ from his rather unusual gait.
Grant Berry (Henrik Stenson): Grant, from Hale Barnes outside Manchester, has been looping for 20 years. He lists Tommy Horton as one of his first bags and then went to the women’s tour to work for Beth Boozer. Caddied for Jesper Parnevik when he won Europe’s tour school. Has had six wins on tour including three with his present employer Henrik. He is a five-handicapper who had no aspirations to be a pro and with his coffee consumption it’s probably just as well. He boasts an average of eight cups a day and the nick-name of Starbucks is starting to stick. This will be his first Ryder Cup. The red head’s motto is ‘Ginger and Proud’.
Michael Doran (David Howell): Mick is a Ryder Cup veteran caddie, this will be his sixth appearance. He has been caddying for 18 years and has enjoyed a lot of success. He worked for Costantino Rocca in his heyday and did two Ryder Cups with him. Timing is everything in caddying and as soon as he split with Rocca he picked up Lee Westwood’s bag when he was at his peak. He has done two Ryder Cups with Lee and has been on 26 winning bags. For him the Ryder Cup event is a major adrenalin rush. It’s all about being under pressure. There is a great team spirit and he feels it is just great to be part of such a big event.
Glen Murray (Sergio Garcia): The only South African contributor to the European effort, Glen is of Scottish descent. Has caddied for Sergio for six years and been with him for most of his successes. Before Sergio he caddied for my boss Retief Goosen. He is one of the first caddies to chance the bag-sharing option which he started with his good friend from Durban Greg Hearmon (also an ex-caddie of Retief’s). They work the bag so that there is a run-up to major events with the same caddie. Glen came back in Switzerland and is primed for Ireland. If you follow Sergio and his bagman at the K-Club you will probably figure out why he is known as ‘Hopper’.
Ronan Flood (Padraig Harrington): Ronan is a two-handicap golfer from Hermitage and has been with Padraig for two and a half years. He came to caddying after a formative career in banking. Padraig and Ronan have enjoyed three tour wins together and, he is quick to add, one Irish PGA title. He caddied in Detroit last time and found the experience stimulating. The fact that his boss played so well made easier to enjoy. He is enthused by the very strong team spirit and he enjoyed the camaraderie more than the event. Will resist the luxury of staying at home next week by joining his colleagues in the team hotel.
Darren Reynolds (Paul McGinley): The second Irish caddie on the Euopean team Darren has caddied for nine years and seems to all of us wise beyond his 28 years. He is in his fourth year as Paul’s bagman. The caddie from Bray has won twice with Paul and once with Padraig Harrington in Taiwan on a one-off appearance with him. His previous players include Roger Chapman and Domingo Hospital. He is a very jovial character and will provide humour and good spirit to the European team room. His first Ryder Cup appearance with Paul in America was amazing experience for him but he believes that the atmosphere in Straffan will be even more memorable.
Christian Donald (Luke Donald): The family partnership of Chris and Luke has been a very successful one, which says a lot about the relationship of the Donald brothers. Chris was a club pro in Marlow when Luke got his US Tour card. Chris decided to take a gamble and join his brother on tour. He moved to Chicago and their partnership has flourished ever since. They have won three times in the States, twice in Europe and one World Cup. The last Ryder Cup was his first and he relishes the challenge of this one. It is an amazing experience of bonding between players and caddies and especially rewarding to be there with his brother. He is still a good golfer, but now only plays for fun.
John Graham (Lee Westwood): ‘Scotchie’, as he has been know on tour, is one of the few remaining caddies who has seen the tour from the lean days of the 1970s when breaking even as a looper was a result. This is his 27th year on tour. John had three previous ‘Cup’ appearances with Mark James and this is his second with Lee. John worked with Lee in the mid 1990s and they have been together for their second partnership for the past couple of years. He has had a break for the past few weeks due to the birth of his first child with his ex-professional golfer Danish wife. He is a respected reader of greens, so watch him get the lowdown on the Straffan surfaces.
Billy Foster (Darren Clarke): Due to the absence of Europe’s unofficial leader of the caddies, the veteran Peter Coleman, Billy will probably be regarded as the man to lead the European loopers as caddie-daddie. This will be the Yorkshireman’s ninth Ryder Cup appearance. He has caddied twice with Gordon Brand Junior, twice with Seve and this will be his fifth with Darren. He split up with Darren four years ago and worked for Thomas Bjorn in the interim, before rejoining Darren. He has been a rock for Darren over the past few years. Tiger Woods requested Billy to caddie for him in the President’s Cup last year which is an indication of the respect he enjoys as a caddie.
Craig Connelly (Paul Casey): Craig or ‘Wee Man’ which is the name he answers to on tour, is 29 and has been caddying for 10 years. He is a relative novice on the men’s tour as he spent eight years caddying on the women’s. He has worked in two Solheim Cups with Trish Johnson and Iben Tinning. He, like everyone else, is inspired by the team event. He started working for Paul just one week before the last Ryder Cup in the States. So he felt like a bit of an outsider to the team. Craig has had three wins with Paul and six wins overall and is excited about really feeling part of this year’s Ryder Cup team.