How Much Caddies Make at the Masters — They Kind of Carry the Game of Golf
Published April 10 2023, 2:36 p.m. ET
Although caddies may not carry the weight of the world on their shoulders, but they do carry the golf clubs needed to help a golfer perform at their best. For centuries, caddies have been doling out advice and providing moral support to the players which have made them invaluable to the game.
And of the four PGA Majors, the Masters is by far the most prestigious game, where the highest skill is needed to succeed. While the winner of the Masters pockets millions of dollars, the same can't be said for their caddie. How much do the caddies make? Here's what we know.
How much do caddies make at the Masters? They do more than OK.
In 2021, former professional caddie Michael Collins went of the Green Light podcast where he spoke about the payment structure for caddies. Apparently it's somewhat flexible in the sense that there are no contracts, which honestly sounds very unstable. First and foremost, caddies pay for all of their own expenses which includes but isn't limited things like airfare, hotels, rental cars, and meals. This comes out of a weekly paycheck they get from each player.
Secondly, they have the opportunity to take home a percentage of what the player wins if they make the cut. The caddie gets 10 percent of the winner's purse, 7 percent if the player is in the top five, and 5 percent for everything else. However, the caddie and the player can choose to adjust this. For example, Michael said they can suggest taking home a bigger weekly paycheck and cutting the percentage on the backend.
To help put this into perspective, we checked out a very helpful breakdown of the 2022 Masters assembled by the Caddie Daddie, a name we simply can't get enough of. The year's winner, Scottie Scheffler, snagged a whopping $2,700,000. His caddie Ted Scott received $270,000, which is of course 10 percent.
Sometimes caddies can make a costly mistake.
According to CBS News, in January 2019 one golfer lost out on a six figure win when his caddie was standing in the wrong place. Professional golfer Haotong Li's caddie Mike Burrow "broke a rule that went into effect Jan. 1 prohibiting caddies from standing on or near the extension of the line of play behind a player's ball." Imagine losing that much money simply because someone else wasn't paying attention.
It happened when "sunk a three-foot putt on the final green, making what he thought was a birdie to finish in third-place with a one-under score of 71." Unfortunately, the caddie's error cost Lo two strokes, landing him at 12th place with a score of 73. Strange how this comes at a steep price when there are far more revealing mistakes that can be made.
Per The Daily Express, Viktor Hovland's caddie decided waiting for the bathroom wasn't an option. While Tiger Woods was walking down the fairway at the 2023 Masters, Viktor's caddie can be seen urinating in the woods behind him. Hey, sometimes you gotta get your pee on, after the tee off.