Matt Kuchar is in line to win his ninth PGA Tour event on Sunday on Oahu at the Sony Open in Hawaii, but much of the chatter surrounding his latest big payday is not favorable to the affable pro.
Late last year, Kuchar ended a four-year winless drought with a victory at the Mayakoba Golf Classic in Mexico while employing a local caddie, affectionately known as El Tucan.
The local looper, whose full name is David Giral Ortiz, was in line for a potentially life-changing payday given the $1.3 million prize Kuchar claimed and the assumed 10% cut a caddie typically receives for winning.
However, former PGA Tour pro and current PGA Tour Champions member Tom Gillis took to social media to air out Kuchar for allegedly paying Ortiz just $3,000 for his week’s worth of work.
If Kuchar wins this weekend let’s hope he pays his man more than 3k like the last win. 45 mil in earnings. Could’ve changed the mans life. ?
— Tom Gillis (@tcgillis) January 12, 2019
I’m sure the guy never helped him but when u win 1.3 and give a guy 3k and u made 45 million in your career and you could change his life??? https://t.co/EeJa3hXwzB
— Tom Gillis (@tcgillis) January 12, 2019
Gillis is no stranger to monetary public call outs. In April of 2017, Gillis publicly claimed Ben Crane had balked on paying a $6,000 putting green bet.
The latest accusation set off a firestorm about one of the more speculative sides of professional golf: what should a caddie earn? The temporary nature of Kuchar and El Tucan’s arrangement only added more fuel to an already simmering fire.
Given Kuchar’s stellar play in Hawaii this week, there were plenty of opportunities for assembled media to ask about the accusation, and Brian Wacker of GolfDigest.com did just that.
Asked Kuchar about local caddie situation in Mexico: “That’s not a story. It wasn’t 10 percent, it wasn’t $3,000. It’s not a story.” He came back few minutes later, expressed disappointment. “We had an agreement to start the week. He was excited to go to work that week.”
— Brian Wacker (@brianwacker1) January 13, 2019
“That’s not a story,” Kuchar told Wacker. “It wasn’t 10 percent, it wasn’t $3,000. It’s not a story.”
Kuchar’s regular caddie, John Wood, is on the bag this week at Waialae Country Club. The pair will take a two-stroke lead into the final round on Sunday as Andrew Putnam, Keith Mitchell and Chez Reavie lead the pack of chasers.
