Kuchar - Mayakoba Caddie Drama - Your Take?

Not going to pile on, but the caddie rejecting an additional $15k stemming from that weekend tells me all I need know. If they had a gentleman's agreement on pay and Kuchar followed through with that at a minimum, who am I to get angry?
 
Time will tell.
This Kuchar story reminds me of when Stewart Cink cheated at Harbour Town, 2004. From that Cink "won the tournament" but in doing so his reputation was harmed and he still today has to answer questions about it. The $200,000 or so Cink gained (from taking 1st place versus 2nd place), was not worth the damage to his reputation and image.

and by "cheated" you mean he reviewed the situation with rules officials and they deemed there to be no penalty because he was in a waste area and not a bunker? Honestly, Cink hurt his reputation more by defeating Tom Watson in The Open.
 
and by "cheated" you mean he reviewed the situation with rules officials and they deemed there to be no penalty because he was in a waste area and not a bunker? Honestly, Cink hurt his reputation more by defeating Tom Watson in The Open.

How dare he beat Tom, still hurts me seeing him as Open Champion for that year when they run highlights
 
20 years? dude this story won't even be a blip on the radar down the road. Hell, I don't think even think it's a story now.
Bingo. Posts go on for a week then nothing. It'll be gone by the next news cycle and, in the end, I think it hurts the caddie if anything.
 
For TWENTY years? Really?

I'd say more like give it a couple months and people care even less than they do already.

I had forgotten all about this whole thing until this thread popped up.
 
And I'm quoting this because I'd really love an answer on just how his rep has legitimately been harmed.

Time will tell.
Consider that next year when corporation XYZ is considering which player to pay $250,000 to do a Monday clinic, and it comes down to Kuchar or another guy, the decision maker may choose the other guy.
Or when one of Kuchar's equipment sponsors is considering whether to resign Kuchar to a multi year deal, or go with another player, the equipment company might choose the other player.
Time will tell.
 
Time will tell.
Consider that next year when corporation XYZ is considering which player to pay $250,000 to do a Monday clinic, and it comes down to Kuchar or another guy, the decision maker may choose the other guy.
Or when one of Kuchar's equipment sponsors is considering whether to resign Kuchar to a multi year deal, or go with another player, the equipment company might choose the other player.
Time will tell.

If Kuchar loses his equipment deal over this, and can be proven that’s the reason, I will buy you a new driver of your choice.

That’s how confident I am that this is a non issue with this endorsements.
 
This whole thing is crazy...I think in the future if you are going to have a local caddie you should have some paperwork agreeing to a monetary number for how much money you will pay them regardless of the outcome of the event.
All Bagger Vance asked for and agreed upon was $5 from Rannulph Junuh in the exhibition with a grand prize of $10,000. And this was just after the Great Depression no less!

Take the 15K and thank him for the extra coin when you already agreed on a number. He'll never caddie again for that type of cash/bonus.
 
So, no answer as to how, it just will. Got it.

And now we are comparing a GRATUITY to cheating?

I gave you the answer. It's about reputation, image.
 
Kuchar did nothing wrong. This is pure greed from the caddie based on everything that has come out. The amount of money he gave up is selfish because that could have helped his family for a long time.

I think people are confusing full time tour caddies with "one week rentals" when comparing what compensation should be. A full time caddie who is with his guy week in and week out, not getting paid if they dont make the cut, traveling on their own dime most of the time, they absolutely deserve a bigger piece of the winnings given that it has been earned over a longer period of time and not a "one week rental" situation like we are seeing with this one.

Kuchar will not suffer endorsements, public perception or anything negative from this one. if anything he'll get more support from people now that they know how greedy the caddie is being.

I have to disagree with you on this one. A caddie making less then 45,000 is being greedy by hoping/expecting that a VERY wealthy pro (who he helped win 1.3 MILLION) by wanting less than 40% of what a tour caddie would have received? You think 5,000 was fair? Only after sending the emails and this getting to the public did the offer of an additional 15,000 come into play.

If anything, after all the good publicity Kuchar would have/did receive by winning this event he should have paid the club caddie close to the normal 130,000.

To me, I always rooted for Kuchar. I thought he was a good golfer that I hoped would win in tournaments of the past. Now, he looks more like a rich elitist that only cares for himself. I will never root for him again.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I have to disagree with you on this one. A caddie making less then 45,000 is being greedy by hoping/expecting that a VERY wealthy pro (who he helped win 1.3 MILLION) by wanting less than 40% of what a tour caddie would have received? You think 5,000 was fair? Only after sending the emails and this getting to the public did the offer of an additional 15,000 come into play.

If anything, after all the good publicity Kuchar would have/did receive by winning this event he should have paid the club caddie close to the normal 130,000.

To me, I always rooted for Kuchar. I thought he was a good golfer that I hoped would win in tournaments of the past. Now, he looks more like a rich elitist that only cares for himself. I will never root for him again.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

For a normal tour caddie I agree he deserves the bigger cut because it’s a reflection of the body of work and not a “one week rental” this situation presents. Again it isn’t set in stone that 10% is mandatory, the amount is an agreed upon percentage between caddie and player before the year starts.

If I was a caddie at some resort and got lucky one week because a pro I worked for won and pockets $20, I would be happy because I just made kore money than I normally make.
 
I have to disagree with you on this one. A caddie making less then 45,000 is being greedy by hoping/expecting that a VERY wealthy pro (who he helped win 1.3 MILLION) by wanting less than 40% of what a tour caddie would have received? You think 5,000 was fair? Only after sending the emails and this getting to the public did the offer of an additional 15,000 come into play.

If anything, after all the good publicity Kuchar would have/did receive by winning this event he should have paid the club caddie close to the normal 130,000.

To me, I always rooted for Kuchar. I thought he was a good golfer that I hoped would win in tournaments of the past. Now, he looks more like a rich elitist that only cares for himself. I will never root for him again.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

two questions:
1) do you believe el tucan only received $5k from kuch?
2) do you believe el tucan declined the $15k from kuch?

at this point, i don't believe a g-----n thing el tucan is saying. kuch seems to be taking a stand. just because you have celebrity does not mean you have blank checks to throw around at any johnny-come-lately who wants to shove his hands in your pockets. even if this whole thing blows up and kuch never collects another penny in endorsement money or tour winnings, i'm fairly confident that he is still set for life. i applaud his principles and resolve.
 
This caddie is being so short-sighted. Rather than accept what was given or laid out in the contract, he’s asking for more. Cheap and narrow minded in that no player will ever use him again which will cost him much more down the road.
 
One thing that will probably never happen again is a handshake deal with a local caddie for compensation. My opinion of Kuchar has not changed one bit and no way does this hurt his reputation long term.
 
Nope, not at all.

500.00? Now THAT would have been low. 1k? Probably considered low.

5k for a local who otherwise maybe wouldn't have even been on a bag that week? Pretty solid.

This exactly. $5k for a guy living in Mexico who likelywouldn’t have been on a bag that week. The average household income in Mexico is $10,116 annually and average per capita income is $2,700 vs $29,850 in the U.S.

Paying him 6 months of wages for a last minute 4 day job was a very lucrative week for the cadddy. Paying him $130k like some have suggested is the equivalent of paying a U.S. caddie $1,437,000. IMO, excessive for 4 days of work.
 
I have to disagree with you on this one. A caddie making less then 45,000 is being greedy by hoping/expecting that a VERY wealthy pro (who he helped win 1.3 MILLION) by wanting less than 40% of what a tour caddie would have received? You think 5,000 was fair? Only after sending the emails and this getting to the public did the offer of an additional 15,000 come into play.

If anything, after all the good publicity Kuchar would have/did receive by winning this event he should have paid the club caddie close to the normal 130,000.

To me, I always rooted for Kuchar. I thought he was a good golfer that I hoped would win in tournaments of the past. Now, he looks more like a rich elitist that only cares for himself. I will never root for him again.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Where is this normal. A full time Tour Caddie with their own expenses? Maybe.

That's a number that keep getting thrown around yet there's very little relation between the two relationships.
 
I still like Kuch, just sayin. That's right, I said it. I said it online even which means forever and to infinity.
 
and by "cheated" you mean he reviewed the situation with rules officials and they deemed there to be no penalty because he was in a waste area and not a bunker? Honestly, Cink hurt his reputation more by defeating Tom Watson in The Open.

No.
First of all Official Slugger White should have accompanied Cink to the waste bunker, but he chose instead to stay on the tee box and only talk about waste bunkers with Cink.
Next, Cink went to the waste bunker alone and used his finger to dig a trench behind his ball, effectively build up a lie, which is cheating.
Post round, after watching the video White knew he had screwed up (by not accompanying Cink to the waste bunker). But instead of doing the right thing and penalizing Cink , White decided to cover his own as$ and double talk his way out of it. For his part Cink could have penalized himself, but he chose not to do so.
 
I am more impressed that you think this 'situation' is going to be discussed for another 20 years.

Haha I don’t have an opinion but taking just core golfers, it died already until a publication wrote more on the subject.
 
Time will tell.
This Kuchar story reminds me of when Stewart Cink cheated at Harbour Town, 2004. From that Cink "won the tournament" but in doing so his reputation was harmed and he still today has to answer questions about it. The $200,000 or so Cink gained (from taking 1st place versus 2nd place), was not worth the damage to his reputation and image.

And yet after that time, Cink signed his most lucrative endorsement contract of his career.
 
For a normal tour caddie I agree he deserves the bigger cut because it’s a reflection of the body of work and not a “one week rental” this situation presents. Again it isn’t set in stone that 10% is mandatory, the amount is an agreed upon percentage between caddie and player before the year starts.

If I was a caddie at some resort and got lucky one week because a pro I worked for won and pockets $20, I would be happy because I just made kore money than I normally make.

I agree he isn’t and shouldn’t be expecting the same 10%. I don’t know the norm and only can go by the article saying club caddies or one week rentals usually get the stated pay and a bonus depending on money won. I think a 2,000 bonus for winning 1.3 million is a bit of a slap in the face and showing of the kind of person Kuchar really is.

It’s like in the restaurant business when a well known celebrity runs up a food bill of 1000, while you waited on them hand and foot. Then they tip you a 10. It just shows his true colors of the person he is and how he thinks of others.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I agree he isn’t and shouldn’t be expecting the same 10%. I don’t know the norm and only can go by the article saying club caddies or one week rentals usually get the stated pay and a bonus depending on money won. I think a 2,000 bonus for winning 1.3 million is a bit of a slap in the face and showing of the kind of person Kuchar really is.

It’s like in the restaurant business when a well known celebrity runs up a food bill of 1000, while you waited on them hand and foot. Then they tip you a 10. It just shows his true colors of the person he is and how he thinks of others.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

But that’s the thing, it was a $5k payment and a $15k bonus totaling $20k for the week....roughly 5times the monthly salary to be made for 4-5 days of work.

If it does anything, it shows the true colors of El Tucán and his greed.
 
I am not sure why some are roasting Kuchar.

The caddie felt that $5k was a good number for 4 days of work. He worked 4 days. What did he do differently or in excess to warrant MORE pay?
Like others have said, the 10% deal is a guideline used for caddies who work the whole year, experiencing good weeks and bad weeks. Going to the course early to walk it and work on strategy. Invest time studying the greens and the weather/wind conditions.
Knowing the players likes and dislikes, packing the right food/drink. Working through the emotional ups and downs of the round. Knowing when to press him and when to back off...there is so much to it that the local caddie doesn't do, or is expected to do. He was paid to carry the bag and offer some lines off the tee boxes...Kuchar took care of the rest.

Lastly, if he wanted more money based on how he finished, he should have taken a commission approach and asked for a % of the winnings.

You can't go flat fee then b*tch because you didn't want to take on any of the risk up front.
 
No.
First of all Official Slugger White should have accompanied Cink to the waste bunker, but he chose instead to stay on the tee box and only talk about waste bunkers with Cink.
Next, Cink went to the waste bunker alone and used his finger to dig a trench behind his ball, effectively build up a lie, which is cheating.
Post round, after watching the video White knew he had screwed up (by not accompanying Cink to the waste bunker). But instead of doing the right thing and penalizing Cink , White decided to cover his own as$ and double talk his way out of it. For his part Cink could have penalized himself, but he chose not to do so.

and yet what is funny, I bet there are 10 people on the site who even know what we are talking about, and that number might be high. So just like that case, the Kuchar thing will be a non-story down the road.

"A few people called in about something that happened out there
in the waste area," Cink said. "The whole thing is made of little
rocks. I moved rocks out of the way, and I didn't want the rocks
to come in between the club and the ball." Cink felt certain that
he'd done everything right, because as soon as his ball landed in
the waste area he grabbed White and started asking questions.
"What can I do? Am I allowed to move this or not?" Cink said. "He
told me exactly what I was allowed to move, and I did what I was
told I could do."

Cink was right: The same rule (Rule 23-1) that allowed Tiger
Woods to have the gallery move a huge boulder that sat in his way
at the 1999 Phoenix Open allowed Cink to pick and flick little
stones and shell fragments from behind his ball. The problem is
that some callers had questioned whether Cink had improved his
lie. That's not allowed.

The debate moved to the Tour's video booth where the replay was
reviewed 10 to 12 times, and officials determined that Cink had
not, in fact, improved his lie. The small trench viewers saw
behind his ball was a rake mark that had been there before Cink
even approached. Cink was pleased with the ruling but a little
perturbed that it even came up. "Honestly, it was a little
stressful because you play and you win and you play great and
you're proud, then all of a sudden you have something you need to
address," he said. "So I'm not quite as happy as I was 30 minutes
ago."
 
I would be surprised if this gets much more then the 15 mins of fame we are even giving this conversation here. Social media will probably pound on this for a day and then it’s gone by tomorrow.

Will Kuchar lose any endorsements? I HIGHLY doubt it.

Do I believe the club caddie was only paid 5k? ABSOLUTELY. Kuchar would have come out immediately if he gave more just to discredit the story and put everything on the club caddie. Kuchar wouldn’t have to say anything except the club caddie is incorrect. I paid him MORE then the 5k as the claim an believe I gave a fair amount. Leave it at that and the club caddie’s story is done.

Do I believe some will look at Kuchar in a more negative light? YES.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Back
Top