Matt Kuchar Denies Caddie Pay Rumours

Jan 14, 2019

Matt Kuchar made it a second win from four events by winning the Sony Open at the weekend but had to deny claims that he underpaid his local caddie at the Mayokoba Golf Classic. By Lewis Blain.

Matt Kuchar Denies Caddie Pay Rumours

Matt Kuchar managed to hold off Andrew Putnam to secure a second PGA Tour win inside four events amid accusations that the 40-year-old had previously underpaid a local caddie.

A series of tweets from former PGA Tour professional Tom Gillis, whose best finish was a playoff loss to Jordan Spieth at the 2015 John Deere Classic, claimed that Kuchar had shortchanged his caddie after winning the Mayokoba Golf Classic in November.

Kuchar quickly denied the rumour following his third round at the Sony Open saying: “That’s not a story. It wasn’t 10%, it wasn’t $3,000. It’s not a story.”

His regular caddie, John Wood, was unable to attend the trip to Mexico due to Kuchar being a very late last-minute entrant to the tournament.

So the nine-time PGA Tour winner enlisted the help of local caddie, David Giral Ortiz, off of the recommendation of the Mayokoba tournament director.

Following the win, Kuchar praised his temporary caddie: “He was definitely my lucky charm. He brought me good luck and certainly some extra crowd support and did a great job as well. He did just what I was hoping for and was looking for.”

The 40-year-old netted nearly $1.3m for the win – caddies will normally receive 10% of the winnings – making $3,000 seem awfully short for the local knowledge that in no doubt helped contribute to his victory enormously.

A number of current and former PGA Tour professionals threw in their thoughts to the rumours. Australian Cameron Percy was one to add fuel to the fire, hinting that it could well be true with this tweet:

It’s not out of character if true

— cameron percy (@cameronpercy1) January 12, 2019

Though not every tweet was of a serious nature…

I'm shocked that the guy who plays Augusta and St. Andrews in Skechers isn't a good tipper. https://t.co/nfTJyWs07P

— Kyle Porter (@KylePorterCBS) January 13, 2019

Kuchar closed with a four-under-par in his final round to finish four shots ahead of his nearest challenger Putnam. It moves him into second place in the FedEx Cup rankings.

“Yeah, I’m tickled, I’m thrilled to have won two events this early in the year,” beamed Kuchar.

“To have won two out of three starts on the PGA Tour is mind boggling to me.

“Yeah, to set up the year, it absolutely sets up the year to be in great position for the FedExCup. There is a lot of the year left and a lot of great things that are out there to be done.”

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