Connect with us

News

Adam Scott and caddy Steve Williams part ways

Published

on

Adam Scott and caddy Steve Williams announced on Wednesday that their professional relationship, which began in 2011, has come to an end — it seems to have been a mutual decision.

In a statement on Wednesday, Scott, the No. 2 ranked golfer in the world according to the Official World Golf Rankings, announced that the two are officially ending their partnership.

“Steve has been an integral part of my team in a period where I have fulfilled some of my lifetime golfing goals,” Scott said. “His dedication and professionalism have been without question, and his friendship is highly valued. Our priorities and stages of life are different now, and so we decided that this is the best time to end our partnership.”

The Steve-Scott duo proved to be successful, although it lasted under four years, and helped to get the major championship monkey off Scott’s back. With Williams on the bag, Scott produced wins at the 2011 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, 2013 Masters, 2013 Barclays and 2014 Crowne Plaza Invitational, also including a runner-up finish at the 2012 Open Championship and a world No. 1 ranking in the OWGR, which began on May 19, 2014 and lasted for 11 weeks.

Scott wanted Steve to continue to caddy full-time, but Williams had a different view on his life and goals moving forward.

“I’m definitely not going to caddy full time. I’ve 100 percent made my mind up on that. At some point in time, there are more important things” Williams said.

According to reports, Williams recently pitched Scott a plan for 2015, which would allow the pair to maintain a professional relationship.

“If Adam agrees, and we’ve talked about it, I’ll caddy for him from Doral to the Tour Championship in 2015 and then that’s it.”

Apparently, Scott didn’t go for it.

“After discussing this in detail with Adam it became evident that my plan was not going to fit with Adam’s requirements so we decided to end our partnership,” Williams said.

Williams, who was recently inducted into the Caddy Hall of Fame, has had a long and prosperous professional caddying career. The New Zealander has been a part of more than 150 worldwide victories, carrying the golf bags of Raymond Floyd, Greg Norman, Tiger Woods and of course, Adam Scott. After 13 years on the bag with Woods, which produced 13 major championship victories, Williams was relieved of his bag-carrying services in 2011.

Will the Stevie-Tiger pair reunite now that the Steve-Scott relationship has ended?

“If the right opportunity arose I would consider caddying on a part-time basis in the future,” Williams said in a statement.

Although Williams is looking for part-time work, and Woods is known to play a part-time schedule, the prospect of rehashing the old partnership is more than wishful thinking. Bad blood still remains.

Your Reaction?
  • 1
  • LEGIT0
  • WOW0
  • LOL1
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK0

He played on the Hawaii Pacific University Men's Golf team and earned a Masters degree in Communications. He also played college golf at Rutgers University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism.

33 Comments

33 Comments

  1. cw

    Jan 23, 2015 at 12:56 pm

    If you want the pace of play to improve, just let players/caddies use lasers or GPS. The caddies are gonna get the right yardage number anyways; it just takes longer without the lasers.

    Being on tour without a caddie would get really lonely. You might see some people actually go crazy under the stress without someone to talk to all those hours on the course, in hotels, on planes, etc.

  2. Sir Issac

    Sep 25, 2014 at 10:05 am

    No caddies = super slow play! Plus imagine all the divots and unraked bunkers.

  3. marcelo otero

    Sep 22, 2014 at 8:58 am

    The next caddie Adam has too be Eddie gardino

  4. Boner

    Sep 18, 2014 at 9:38 pm

    If I was a betting man I would bet that Phil will dump Bones and go with Stevie.

  5. Foley

    Sep 18, 2014 at 3:47 pm

    Stevie quit caddying to be tigers new swing coach.

    • James Strachan

      Sep 26, 2014 at 5:16 am

      He is big headed enough and sufficiently foul mouthed to think he could be his swing coach.

  6. Erik

    Sep 18, 2014 at 10:32 am

    Awesome, now he just needs to get rid of the belly putter and I can finally become a fan as I really like his swing.

  7. dot dot

    Sep 18, 2014 at 9:08 am

    Once Adam has to use a legal putter Steve would become a part time caddy. Having to work only on Thursdays and Fridays.

    • Brandon

      Sep 18, 2014 at 10:32 am

      Shows what you know. Adam has always been a lousy putter by tour standards even with a short stick, the length has nothing to do with it. And the putter is not illegal until the rule change.

      • Scooter McGavin

        Sep 18, 2014 at 10:40 am

        I think you missed the joke.

        • dot dot

          Sep 18, 2014 at 4:56 pm

          Thanks Scooter. It’s tough to write em then have to explain em.

        • Brandon

          Sep 20, 2014 at 10:11 pm

          Got the joke, wasn’t funny. Think you missed my point completely.

    • Jorge

      Sep 23, 2014 at 6:24 am

      Oh man, I really laughed out loud with this comment. Awesome comment….maybe cause I totally agree.
      Thanks for the laugh 🙂

  8. Scooter McGavin

    Sep 18, 2014 at 6:01 am

    Am I the only one that doesn’t think there should even be caddies in golf? Sorry old guys, I know it’s tradition, and has been around forever, but something doesn’t seem right about the top, most elite players in a sport needing someone to carry clubs, provide yardages, read your putts, and help strategize your round. I feel like that should all be on the golfer.

    • Knobbywood

      Sep 18, 2014 at 8:36 am

      Spoken like someone with little tournament golf experience

      • Scooter McGavin

        Sep 18, 2014 at 9:20 am

        So is there supposed to be an argument in there? You’re right, I don’t have playing experience in tournaments, but I do have caddy experience in tournaments. Do you have any actual thoughts as to why the golfer shouldn’t shoulder the full work load of playing in competition? They already have to execute the shots themselves, so why not make them handle their own equipment and not have a “second opinion” man? Is there a reason they should have a “helper”?

        • Jeff Kinney

          Sep 18, 2014 at 11:37 am

          It keeps the economy moving forward.

      • dorcasm

        Sep 18, 2014 at 9:42 am

        “Spoken like someone with little tournament golf experience”

        What does that have to do with anything? It comes down to whether you think golf should be an individual or team sport.

    • bradford

      Sep 18, 2014 at 11:08 am

      I think excusing tradition removes the strongest argument for caddies. They are and always have been part of the game and I’d hate to see it ever go away. You make a solid point about carrying, and I walk and carry everywhere I’m allowed, but I’d hate to imagine golf without caddies. Sometimes things don’t have to make sense, but that doesn’t make them bad.

      • Scooter McGavin

        Sep 18, 2014 at 1:16 pm

        I completely agree that the main reason is tradition. What I am wondering is if there are any legitimate reasons/arguments to be made other than tradition.

        • Jeremy

          Sep 18, 2014 at 1:40 pm

          If I had to come up with one, I’d say walking 4 rounds of golf in tournament conditions is hard enough. If you had to carry your own bag as well, it’d really take a toll on the body.

          • MikeOZ

            Sep 19, 2014 at 7:02 am

            They could use push carts like the rest of us.. another sponsorship opportunity!

          • M.

            Sep 26, 2014 at 6:37 pm

            …or they could utilize local juniors/amateurs for caddy duties?! Would that not be traditional?!

    • drfairway

      Sep 18, 2014 at 6:19 pm

      I see your point of views and somewhat agree, but without the caddies, the pace of play will be horrible.

    • Double Mocha Man

      Sep 18, 2014 at 9:06 pm

      One thing is for sure, the bags would get a lot smaller and lighter. No longer would the golfer carry 3 sets of playing clothes, extra shoes, 2 dozen Pro V1’s, 5 bananas, 4 golf gloves, 3 towels, 2 apples and 1 bottle of Jim Beam.

      • nikkyd

        Sep 18, 2014 at 11:29 pm

        How many guys players out there do ya think are taking a nip off the jug while in a tournament? Probably all the cool old guys

  9. Airbender

    Sep 17, 2014 at 11:34 pm

    Best wishes for both Adam and Steve!

  10. Rich

    Sep 17, 2014 at 9:25 pm

    I’m not a fan of Steve Williams but there’s no questioning his credentials as a caddy. Hopefully Adam can find another top caddy because he is an amazing player, a top bloke and I think he could win more majors and big events in the future with the right bag man.

    • bradford

      Sep 18, 2014 at 11:10 am

      You gonna “moderate” this post too? My actual comment was censored for the word “douche”

    • bradford

      Sep 18, 2014 at 11:11 am

      in reference to Steve’s similarity to Patrick Reed

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

News

Morning 9: 58 on the Korn Ferry Tour | Rory on possible return to policy board

Published

on

By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Friday morning, golf fans, may a bountiful weekend of golf be in store for you!

1. 58 on the Korn Ferry Tour

KFT staff report…”Frankie Capan III went crazy low Thursday on the Korn Ferry Tour. Nearly in record fashion.”

  • “Capan carded 13-under 58 in the opening round of the Veritex Bank Championship, matching the second lowest score in Korn Ferry Tour history. He fell one shy of Cristobal Del Solar’s record 57, set at the Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard earlier this year, but it was a heck of a show nonetheless.”
  • “The Minnesota native played an eight-hole stretch in 9-under Thursday, following an eagle at the par-5 ninth with seven straight birdies to begin the back nine at par-71 Texas Rangers Golf Club. He “cooled off” with a two-putt par at the long par-4 17th hole. He arrived at the par-5 18th hole at 13 under for the round, but he found a fairway bunker off the tee, laid up to 134 yards and missed his third shot left of the green. He chipped to 7 feet and drained the par putt to match the Korn Ferry Tour’s second-lowest score of 58, carded by Stephan Jaeger in the opening round of the 2016 Ellie Mae Classic at TPC Stonebrae.”
Full piece.

2. Team McIlowery starts strong

Paul Hodowanic for PGATour.com…”Late Thursday afternoon in New Orleans, Rory McIlroy rested his head on Shane Lowry’s shoulder.”

  • “It wasn’t the typical post-round moment, but this isn’t the typical event. McIlroy and Lowry teamed up for this week’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans, the PGA TOUR’s lone team event, and the all-Irish duo put on a show. Sporting matching pink-on-navy getups, McIlroy/Lowry opened in a best-ball 11-under 61 in Thursday’s Four-ball format at TPC Louisiana.”
  • “This partnership might have stemmed from a boozy brunch last fall, but their opening-round performance at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans gave the field a sobering reminder: They’ll be tough to top.”
Full piece.

3. LPGA Tour: Grace Kim in front

AP report…”Grace Kim shot a 7-under 64 at Wilshire Country Club to take the first-round lead Thursday in the LPGA Tour’s JM Eagle LA Championship.”

  • “Playing in the morning session, the 23-year-old Australian capped her bogey-free round with a chip-in birdie on the par-3 18th.”
  • “Well, I chunked my tee shot on the last hole 20 meters short and then I chipped it in it,” Kim said. “I think that’s pretty cool, in front of everyone
Full piece.

4. McIlroy on rejoining policy board

Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner…”Rory McIlroy said Wednesday that he is willing to rejoin the PGA Tour policy board if the other player directors want him.”

  • “As first reported by the Guardian, Webb Simpson has submitted a letter stating that he’d like to resign from the board, but only if his vacant seat is filled by McIlroy, who stepped down last fall because of the toll it had taken on him professionally and personally.”
  • “Five months later, what has changed?”
  • “I think I can be helpful,” McIlroy said Wednesday ahead of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, where he is partnering with Shane Lowry. “I don’t think there’s been much progress made in the last eight months, and I was hopeful that there would be. I think I could be helpful to the process. But only if people want me involved, I guess.”
Full piece.

5. Charlie Woods shoots 81 in U.S. Open qualifier

Golfweek’s Cameron Jourdan…”Charlie Woods is going to have to wait to play in the U.S. Open.”

“The 15-year-old son of Tiger Woods played Thursday in local qualifying for the United States Golf Association’s national championship, set for June 13-16 at Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina. Charlie played at The Legacy Golf & Tennis Club in Port St. Lucie, Florida, and he shot 9-over 81.”

“Charlie’s round featured a bogey on his opening hole, the par-4 first. He then doubled the par-5 second. A pair of pars followed before his lone birdie on the front, but another double the next hole, the par-4 sixth, had him turn in 4-over 40.”

Full piece.

6. Photos from the Zurich Classic

GolfWRX is live on site this week at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans for the PGA Tour’s one-and-only two-man team event.

Check out all our photos at the link below!

Full piece.
Your Reaction?
  • 0
  • LEGIT0
  • WOW0
  • LOL0
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK1

Continue Reading

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans

Published

on

GolfWRX is live on site this week at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans for the PGA Tour’s one-and-only two-man team event.

As usual, general galleries, WITBs, and pullout albums — including some pretty spicy custom putters and headcovers — await your viewing.

Be sure to check back for more photos from the Big Easy, as we’ll continue to update this page with additional galleries throughout the week.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

See what GolfWRXers are saying about our photos from the Zurich Classic of New Orleans in the forums.

 

Your Reaction?
  • 6
  • LEGIT3
  • WOW1
  • LOL0
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK1

Continue Reading

News

Morning 9: Tiger’s TGL teammates | Woosnam’s criticism of Cantlay | Rory’s return to tour policy board

Published

on

By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Tuesday morning, golf fans, as the PGA Tour heads to New Orleans for the Zurich Classic.

1. 15-year-old finishes top 20 on KFT

Jay Coffin for Golf Digest…”During a week when most eyes were on Scottie Scheffler and Nelly Korda, the 15-year-old lefty finished off an incredible week with a five-under 66 in the final round of the Korn Ferry Tour’s LECOM Suncoast Classic at Lakewood Ranch in Florida.”

  • “After opening with 68-66-70, Russell finished at 14-under-par total to tie for 20th place. The finish in which he jumped 28 positions on the leaderboard on the final day, gives him an exemption into next week’s Veritex Bank Championship at Rangers Park in Arlington, Texas. He’s the youngest player to finish inside the top 20 on the PGA of Korn Ferry tours, according to records that go back to 1983.”
Full piece.

2. Understandably, Nelly WDs

Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner…”Nelly Korda’s bid for a record-setting sixth consecutive win will have to wait a few weeks.”

  • “A day after capturing the Chevron Championship during a marathon final round in Houston, Korda announced on social media that she was withdrawing from this week’s JM Eagle LA Championship.”
  • “It was not an easy decision,” she wrote. “After the unbelievable week at the Chevron and grinding through the mental and physical challenges of four events in the past five weeks, I am definitely feeling exhausted. With so much still to come throughout 2024, I feel I need to listen to my body and get some rest, so I can be ready for the remainder of the season.”
Full piece.

3. Scheffler’s impressive No. 1 feat

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…”After Scheffler’s victory Monday morning at the RBC Heritage, Scheffler upped his points average to 15.016 and increased his advantage in the Official World Golf Ranking over No. 2 Rory McIlroy to more than double McIlroy’s 7.365 average, meaning Scheffler is ranked further ahead of No. 2 than No. 2 is ahead of the last-ranked player.”

  • “The last time a No. 1 player had a greater points average was Woods, who was at 15.4564 on Dec. 6, 2009. But Woods was less than seven average points ahead of No. 2 Phil Mickelson at the time. Earlier that year, Woods was 7.735 ahead of Mickelson, which is the last time the gap between Nos. 1 and 2 was greater than Scheffler’s current 7.651 advantage.”
Full piece.

4. Zurich field notes

PGATour.com’s Adam Stanley…”Rory McIlroy will make his tournament debut alongside good pal, Ryder Cup teammate, and Irishman Shane Lowry – a duo that was firmed up during a celebratory lunch after the Ryder Cup last fall… Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele will try to reprise their 2022 win here. Cantlay and Schauffele have both the Foursomes and Four-ball scoring records at this event… Davis Riley and Nick Hardy will defend their 2023 title. No team has gone back-to-back… Three sets of brothers (and two sets of twins!) will play together with twins Rasmus and Nicolai Højgaard and Parker and Pierceson Coody in the field along with Alex and Matt Fitzpatrick. Alex Fitzpatrick and Rasmus Højgaard are sponsor invites…”

  • “Billy Horschel, who won last week at the Corales Puntacana Championship, will be without his previous partner Sam Burns, as Burns and his wife are expecting their first child any day. Horschel will instead be paired with fellow University of Florida alum Tyson Alexander. Horschel has won the Zurich Classic when it was both an individual and team event… Other notable pairings include Collin Morikawa and Kurt Kitayama, Sahith Theegala and Will Zalatoris, and Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin. The Canadian duo finished runner-up a year ago and would like nothing more than to show Presidents Cup International Team captain Mike Weir how well they play together… Steve Stricker will play his second TOUR event this season (after earning his way into THE PLAYERS Championship), teaming up with Matt Kuchar.”
Full piece.

5. Tiger’s teammates

Field Level Media report…”Tiger Woods announced Monday that Max Homa, Tom Kim and Kevin Kisner have joined his Jupiter Links GC TGL team.”

  • “The virtual golf league headed by Woods and Rory McIlroy will begin its inaugural season next January. Woods also unveiled the team’s logo.”
  • “I have already shared my excitement and optimism for TGL as a league and product,” said Woods. “Now that we have finalized our roster with a team of world-class golfers, I am even more confident that this group will proudly represent the Jupiter (Fla.) area and connect with our fans for years to come.”
Full piece.

6. Woosnam questions Cantlay’s decision

Our Matt Vincenzi…”After the horn sounded to suspend play due to darkness, Cantlay, who’s ball was in the fairway on the 18th hole, had a decision to make. With over 200 yards into the green and extreme winds working against the shot, conventional wisdom would be to wait until Monday morning to hit the shot.”

  • “On the other hand, if he could finish the hole, he may just want to get the event over with so he could get out of Hilton Head.”
  • “Curiously, Cantlay chose neither of those options. After hitting 3-wood into the green, and still coming up short, the former FedEx Cup champion chose to mark his ball and chip and putt on Monday morning.”
  • “Ian Woosnam, who was watching from home, took to X to give his thoughts on Cantlay’s decision making.”
  • “Cantlay would end up getting up and down for par when play resumed at 8:00 am Monday morning.”
Full piece.

7. JT on Scheffler’s “weird” equipment choice

Our Matt Vincenzi…”After Justin Thomas’ third round of the RBC Heritage, the two-time major champion went in the broadcast booth alongside the CBS crew.”

  • “While Thomas was watching Scottie Scheffler play on the back nine of his third round, he wondered aloud why Scottie uses high-numbered golf balls.”
  • “Does anybody else think it’s weird that Scottie uses high numbers? I don’t know if I’ve ever seen an elite player use high-numbered golf balls.”
  • “Amanda Balionis who was on the grounds chimed in, reporting that analyst Dottie Pepper had wondered the same thing earlier that day.”
  • “I’ve been going about this wrong my whole life,” Thomas jokingly said.
Full piece.

8. Rory to rejoin PGA Tour policy board

Mark Schlabach for ESPN…”Four-time major championship winner Rory McIlroy is poised to return to the PGA Tour’s policy board, pending a vote by the board, which could come as early as this week, sources confirmed to ESPN on Tuesday.”

  • “One of the PGA Tour’s most vocal supporters during its three-year battle with LIV Golf, McIlroy abruptly resigned as a player director on the tour’s influential policy board in November.”
  • “He is expected to replace policy board player director Webb Simpson, who intends to step away before his two-year term expires in 2025.”
Full piece.

9. Weir names Presidents Cup assistants

PGA Tour report…”International Team Captain Mike Weir announced Ernie Els, Trevor Immelman, Geoff Ogilvy and Camilo Villegas as captain’s assistants for the 2024 Presidents Cup, which will be played at The Royal Montreal Golf Club in Montreal, Canada, Sept. 24-29.

Full piece.
Your Reaction?
  • 4
  • LEGIT0
  • WOW1
  • LOL1
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP1
  • OB1
  • SHANK3

Continue Reading

WITB

Facebook

Trending