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Caddie Corner: 20 questions with PGA Tour caddie Derell Aton (caddie for D.A. Points)

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In this new GolfWRX feature, called the “Caddie Corner,” we’ll be firing off questions to a different caddie every week on the PGA Tour.

Caddies, or “loopers,” as some call them, are the too-often-overlooked people who actually have a huge impact on players every week on the PGA Tour. They’re tasked with many objectives – everything from carrying the bag, raking bunkers and getting yardages, to playing psychologist on the golf course as their player competes for millions.

If you’re curious to learn more about the caddies, as well as their stories, lifestyle and insights, then welcome to the “Caddie Corner.”

In the first two editions, we spoke with Shannon “Shan” Wallis (caddie for Jonas Blixt) and Gerald “G.W.” Cable (caddie for Kevin Chappell). This week, we grilled Derell Aton – caddie for D.A. Points – about a bunch of different topics, including his diehard fandom of the 49ers, tips for amateurs, and the hardest course to walk on tour.

To listen to the interview (and a wrap-up of all the gear changes this week at Pebble Beach), click the SoundCloud link below. To read our interview with Aton, skip over the podcast and enjoy!

So we’ll start off with a very easy one. What’s your name, who do you caddie for, and who have you caddied for in the past?

My name is Derell Aton. I’m caddying this week for D.A. Points. I worked a year for Hunter Mahan, and I worked 3 years for Mackenzie Hughes.

How did you end up being a caddie on the PGA Tour, and what’s been your career progression to get out here?

So basically I started club caddying while I was going to college at Cal State, Monterey Bay. I caddied at a place called The Institute. They held a tournament called the Frys Open. And from there, because we got to see a lot of tour caddies, I networked myself. Once I graduated college, I told myself to give it three years to try and see if I could make it happen, and I’m still here.

How’s your golf game?

My game is, I feel like I have a fairly decent short game and I’m not a very good ball striker. I would say I’m a gambling 5 handicap, so I’ll stick with that.

If you didn’t caddie, what job do you think you’d be doing right now?

I don’t know. Like I said, I told myself I had 3 years but I didn’t really have a backup plan. I still see myself as doing this.

Sometimes it’s best not to have a backup plan right? Just commit…

I just committed. I would have worried about that if that was the case, but I’m still here.

Speaking on tour life, what’s the best restaurant where you go where it’s like, I can’t wait for that event so I can go to that bar or restaurant?

Man, I think the people that live in Jacksonville – The Players event is one that I look forward to, and Jacksonville is a good spot. There’s this place called TacoLu. The locals will probably say it’s a tourist trap, but I’m a tourist, so it traps me there.

What’s your go-to snack on the course, like what do you always have to have in the bag?

For me, I’m not a big eater. I hydrate a lot. But normally there’s these cookies at the turn, and normally I’ll eat that. But I’ll normally crush after the round.

Sucker for some cookies?

Yeah, cookies for sure.

We were already talking about this before, so I know the answer, but what’s your favorite sport aside from golf, and who are your favorite teams and favorite players?

Football for sure. The 49ers. I’m pretty die hard. I definitely follow them like crazy. I’m up 2-3 hours at night watching press conferences and seeing what they’re all talking about – what the buzz is.

You’re no joke about your football. That was a tough loss you guys suffered last week. I’m sorry.

Mhmm. It was a tough loss, but I think seriously, you know who your real friends are: the ones that don’t text your after the loss. The ones that text you it’s like, OK, I might have to rethink our friendship.

What’s on your music playlist right now?

Believe it or not, I’m currently a country fan now. Just because on the road there’s been a lot of country concerts, so just been listening to a lot of country. But I feel like I’m very flexible. Rap and hip hop from the Bay Area, that definitely gets me going if I need to get pumped up.

What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned along the way about caddying or golf in general?

I think for the most part is just to enjoy it. I think everything is stressful at some degree. There’s obviously levels to stress, but I think it’s just to appreciate it. Enjoy every moment of it, even though at moments it feels like it’s impossible.

Awesome. What’s your take on the slow play issue in golf, if you think there is one?

I mean, for me, my take is that I get where they’re coming from. They’re playing for a million dollars a week, so I think it’s not as easy to just speed up play. But I think if you start penalizing people they’ll definitely speed up. But, again, they’re playing for a million dollars. The PGA Tour has a standard so amateur golfers start to follow that, even though they’re not playing for a million dollars. So that’s the tough part of it all.

What caddie is the most fun to be around whether it’s inside the ropes or off the course?

Hm. Caddie? No one officially comes to mind. I’m blanking out right now to be honest with you. For me, I’m just so focused on my guy that I’m not really paying attention to the others.

That’s fair. What’s the hardest course to walk?

For sure Kapalua. I was lucky enough to be there one year. Quick thing, I think number 9 is the hardest walk. After my guy hit the second shot I would hurry up to the ball as quick as possible so I could catch my breath before he got there and not feel like I’m tired.

Caddies are known for having some of the funniest stories. Without incriminating yourself, what’s the funniest story you have about caddie life?

Funny story, hm. For me, nothing stands out. I’m fairly serious when I’m on the golf course, so I think the funny stories are typically ones I hear from the other guys. I normally stay out of the stories. I’m just the listener.

Gotcha. What’s your biggest, “Uh oh, I messed up” moment of your caddying career?

I’ve given a bad number. I feel like all caddies have given a bad number. Luckily, the bad number that I gave my player, he didn’t hit a very good shot and I was saved. I didn’t add enough of the line cover, and he hit it left enough that if he hit it how he was supposed to it would have been in the water. But he saved me and hit it left, and he looked at me was like, ‘Hey what was that number?’

I’m like, ‘Hey, that was on me.’ But he saved me by not hitting it where he was supposed to hit it.

Do you have any advice for amateurs when they’re like trying to get a number, or trying to club themselves? What would you say is the biggest mistake they make?

For amateurs, from my eyes, because I’ve club caddied, as well – especially in college – I think they don’t play enough club. You just have to be honest with yourself, especially with the irons. It’s not how far you hit them, but you have to know how far you’re hitting it. You have so many different clubs – 14 clubs – as long as you know how far each one goes, just be honest with yourself instead of that one time it went X (amount of yards).

In general, what advice would you give amateurs to improve their games?

I just think to let loose and be free. I think everybody is too tight including myself. When you’re more free and not trying as hard in a sense, which is hard to do because we’re perfectionists, but I think you’ll hit better shots.

If your player is a bit nervous going into the first tee shot, or say they have the lead coming down the stretch, what’s something you might say to him to kind of ease the nerves?

For me, what I do is I start talking to them about random things. Normally like, whatever sports scores happened last night, or news, just to let them think about something else. Just basically talking to them and then eventually when we get to the shot, that’s when we think about the shots we’re going to hit.

Last question: What’s your favorite course to caddie at?

My favorite course to caddie at, it has to be this one (AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am). I’ve been going to this event since I was a kid. We did the standard bearers in high school, so this was my first golf tournament. This is basically a home game.

So it’s full circle. Standard bearer growing up, and now you’re inside the ropes caddying and doing the real thing.

For sure. Like I said, this is a dream come true to be inside the ropes.

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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.

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Whats in the Bag

Cameron Young WITB 2024 (March)

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  • Cameron Young WITB accurate as of the Valspar Championship. 

Driver: Titleist TSR3 (9 degrees)
Shaft: Accra Tour Z5 65 M5

2-wood: Titleist TSR 2W Prototype (13 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 80 TX

Irons: Titleist T200 (3), Titleist T100 (4-5), Titleist 631.CY Prototype (6-9)
Shafts: MMT Utility 105 TX (3), True Temper Dynamic Gold X7 (4-9)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F, 52-12F, 58-08M, 60-04T @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7

Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom 5.5 Tour Prototype

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Align

Ball: Titleist Pro V1 Left Dot

 

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Equipment

Best hybrids 2024: Expert fitters recommend the hybrids for your game

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At GolfWRX, we believe the best hybrid for your game is going to be the one that gives you the greatest opportunity to both score and save shots during your round of golf.

In 2024, we have seen a continued expansion of hybrid options from every manufacturer with models designed to fit golfers of all skill levels and clubhead speeds. Some manufacturers offer models all the way down to 8-iron-replacement lofts.

That being said, ultimately the best way to find the best hybrid or hybrids for you is to work with a professional fitter using a launch monitor and gap them accordingly. The difficult part is a lot of people don’t have easy access to fitters, launch monitors, and club builders — so at GolfWRX, we have done a lot of the work for you.

We want to give you the tools and information to go out and find what works best for you, and we’re offering recommendations based on exactly what you need from your hybrids.

We have again broken our 2024 best hybrid list into two categories.

  • Best hybrid for golfers seeking forgiveness
  • Best hybrid for golfers seeking versatility

We reached out to our trusted fitters to discuss how they sort through the hybrid club options available to golfers. Forgiveness and versatility were the highest-ranked choices.

Most versatile hybrids of 2024

Titleist TSR2

“Forgiving speed and performance,” is the branding for the TSR2. TSR2 hybrids remain slightly longer with a classical shape. Center of gravity is lower and deeper in the TSR2 for higher launch and maximum forgiveness.

For more information, check out our launch piece.

Ping G430

In all of the G430 fairway woods and hybrids, Ping developed Carbonfly Wrap in a bid to deliver more distance by positioning the CG closer to the face line in design to maximize ball speed, resulting in higher, longer carries. The lightweight composite crown wraps into the heel and toe sections of the skirt, creating weight savings of 10 grams, which are reallocated to achieve a lower CG and increase ball speed.

For more information, check out our launch piece.

Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke

Leveraging the company’s new Ai Smart Face, Callaway’s Paradym Ai Smoke hybrid has been reshaped and features a larger profile for greater forgiveness and a refined sole camber for better turf interaction. The Tungsten Speed Cartridge is positioned in the front of the club for lower spin and ease of launch.

For more information, check out our launch piece.

TaylorMade Qi10 Rescue

The Qi10 Rescue is designed with an all-new Carbon Crown that helps free up weight for improved weight distribution in the heads. The club has split internal weighting to achieve more distance and a higher launch.

For more information, check out our launch piece.

TaylorMade Qi10 Tour Rescue

The Qi10 Tour Rescue model features a C300 face with a more compact look and a higher-toe design. It’s designed for better players who seek to combine distance and control with iron-like turf interaction, workability, and precision.

For more information, check out our launch piece.

Most forgiving hybrids of 2024

TaylorMade Qi10 Max Rescue

Qi10 Max Rescue clubs are designed with all-new Carbon Crowns that help free up weight for improved weight distribution in the heads. The Qi10 Max has an ultra-low CG (center of gravity) and a shallow face height for even higher launch and greater forgiveness.

For more information, check out our launch piece.

Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke HL

Designed for players with moderate to average swing speeds who are looking to hit the ball higher to maximize carry distance, the Paradym Ai Smoke HL leverages the company’s new Ai Smart Face. It features a larger profile for greater forgiveness and a refined sole camber for better turf interaction. The Tungsten Speed Cartridge is positioned in the front of the club for lower spin and ease of launch.

For more information, check out our launch piece.

Ping G430

In all of the G430 fairway woods and hybrids, Ping developed Carbonfly Wrap in a bid to deliver more distance by positioning the CG closer to the face line in design to maximize ball speed, resulting in higher, longer carries. The lightweight composite crown wraps into the heel and toe sections of the skirt, creating weight savings of 10 grams, which are reallocated to achieve a lower CG and increase ball speed.

For more information, check out our launch piece.

Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max Fast

The Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max Fast is designed for moderate-swing-speed players. In addition to Ai Smart Face, Max Fast features a larger profile for greater forgiveness and a refined sole camber for better turf interaction. The Tungsten Speed Cartridge is positioned in the front of the club for lower spin and ease of launch.

For more information, check out our launch piece.

Titleist TSR1

Titleist’s new TSR1 hybrids are built with a larger, “wood-like” size to help golfers find more speed and forgiveness. They’re also built 0.5 inches longer than standard to provide additional assistance in creating speed.

For more information, check out our launch piece.

Best hybrid of 2024: Meet the fitters

Conclusion

The fitters consulted for this piece have accumulated data from thousands of fittings with golfers just like you. From beginners to tour players, their feedback and information can’t be undervalued.

Join the discussion about the best hybrids of 2024 in the forums.

 

 

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Whats in the Bag

Nelly Korda WITB 2024 (March)

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  • Nelly Korda’s WITB accurate as of her win at the Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship.

Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 Max (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana GT 60 S

3-wood: TaylorMade Stealth 2 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 7 S

5-wood: TaylorMade Stealth 2 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7 S

Hybrid: Ping G425 (26 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue HB 7 S

Irons: TaylorMade P770 (5), TaylorMade P7MC (6-PW)
Shafts: AeroTech SteelFiber i80 cw

Wedges: TaylorMade MG4 (50-09SB, 54-SB), Vokey Design WedgeWorks (58-T)
Shafts: AeroTech SteelFiber i95 cw

Putter: Scotty Cameron Special Select Squareback 2 Prototype

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet

Ball: TaylorMade TP5x

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