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From Spectator to Caddie: Four Caddies in just One Day for PGA Tour Player

Record round on the PGA Tour: In his final round, C.T. Pan had a total of four caddies at his side, as his actual caddie was injured early on.

C.T. Pan and spectator Paul Emerson, one of his four caddies. (Photo: Getty)
C.T. Pan and spectator Paul Emerson, one of his four caddies. (Photo: Getty)

C.T. Pan’s caddie ribbon adorned more than just one caddie at the RBC Canadian Open on Sunday and was passed on to new hands like a baton. In total, it was passed on three times, meaning that a total of four caddies were at the professional’s side.

Pan and his caddie Mike “Fluff” Cowan already had 54 holes behind them on the PGA Tour. The two have only recently become a team since “Fluff” parted company with Jim Furyk, at whose side he played golf tournaments for 25 years. The cut they made and their position in the top half of the leaderboard showed that they made a good team. On Sunday morning, however, the two parted ways: the caddie fell on the third hole and was unable to finish the round alongside Pan. A veritable relay race ensued.

PGA Tour: A caddie’s bib as a baton

Shortly after “Fluff’s” fall, C.T. Pan’s flight partner Shane Lowry was carrying his own bag, and Lowry’s caddie Darren Reynolds was carrying Pan’s bag. This, of course, was not a permanent state of affairs and that’s where Paul Emerson came in, who quickly went from spectator to caddie. Emerson offered his help when Pan accompanied the injured man to the medics: “I helped Fluff get the bib off, threw it on and started walking up the hole,” said Emerson. However, he didn’t last long. After around 30 minutes, he gave up his task.

Good performance despite chaotic circumstances

From then on, the shirt adorned the upper body of a member of the caddie team, Michael Campbell. But even he was not to remain at Pan’s side for long. In the end, Al Riddell, Paul Barjon’s caddie, took over the shirt for the back nine and finished the final round of the RBC Canadian Open together with Pan. Player and caddie knew each other from before. Despite all the circumstances, Pan played a 69 and finished tied 35th. The highlight of his round: an eagle on the par-4 12th.

At the start of the back nine, Shane Lowry laughingly remarked that Pan was probably setting a record with this round.