Woods sacks bagman Steve Williams

Tiger’s caddie of 12 years admits he was ‘shocked’ to have been sacked

Bagged: Tiger Woods has decided to sack long-time caddie Steve Williams, who admiited he was ‘shocked’

Tiger Woods has ended the most successful player-caddie partnership in the history of the game by sacking his long-time bagman, Steve Williams. In a vague statement, Woods said that he had decided that it was “time for a change.”

Though Woods revealed the news on his website yesterday, the decision had been made around two weeks ago.

Via his own website Steve Williams was frank in admitting, “after 13 years of loyal service needless to say this came as a shock.”

Candidly, the Kiwi revealed that he was perplexed as to why the decision had been made to relieve him of his duties after a troublesome period in which Tiger only played sporadically and played well even less regularly.

“Given the circumstances of the past 18 months working through Tiger’s scandal, a new coach and with it a major swing change and Tiger battling through injuries, I am very disappointed to end our very successful partnership at this time,” said Williams.

A relationship that reportedly made Tiger Woods’ caddie Steve Williams the highest earning “sportsman” from New Zealand has been dismantled after Woods decided that it was “time for a change.”

Williams had carried Wood’s bag for a 12-year period that yielded 72 victories in total, including 13 major titles – the most successful partnership in the history of the game that reportedly made Williams the highest earning “sportsman” from New Zealand

The 48-year-old took on the most sought-after bag in golf after a career that had seen the Kiwi ‘loop’ for Australian golfing greats Peter Thomson and Greg Norman.

Since the revelations of Tiger’s extra-marital affairs surfaced in late 2009, Woods has dumped coach Hank Haney, split from his wife, and now sacked long-serving caddie Williams (though Woods has himself been dumped by many major sponsors in the wake of increasingly damaging controversies).

With Woods sidelined since the Players Championship with a knee injury, Williams had temporarily been on the bag of Aussie Adam Scott for three tournaments recently, including the US Open and last week’s Open at Royal St George’s.

With rumours surfacing of a fracture in the relationship between Woods and Williams during the Open, it would appear that the Kiwi already knew at Sandwich that Woods had decided to end their association.

Williams has now made his relationship with Adam Scott permanent, while Woods is yet to confirm who his next bagman will be.

Bryce Ritchie is the Editor of bunkered and, in addition to leading on content and strategy, oversees all aspects of the brand. The first full-time journalist employed by bunkered, he joined the company in 2001 and has been editor since 2009. A member of Balfron Golfing Society, he currently plays off nine and once got a lesson from Justin Thomas’ dad.

Editor of bunkered