I Cannot Root For Kuchar Ever Again

Kuchar apparently heard the jeers today and it rattled him. So he is paying in full.
50K.

Matt Kuchar to apologize to caddie, pay him full $50,000

Kuchar to apologize to caddie, pay him full $50K

LOS ANGELES -- Matt Kuchar heard a few catcalls from spectators at the Genesis Open on Friday. He's seen the negativity on social media and in the golf world at large. And he decided to make amends.

After his first round Friday at Riviera Country Club, Kuchar issued a statement in which he apologized and said he would be making full payment of the amount a fill-in caddie requested after the veteran golfer paid him just $5,000 following his November victory at the Mayakoba Classic.

David Giral Ortiz, who filled in as Kuchar's caddie during the tournament in Mexico, had requested a total of $50,000; Kuchar earned $1,296,000 for the victory and caddies are typically paid a percentage.

"I let myself, my family, my partners and those close to me down, but I also let David down," Kuchar said. "I plan to call David tonight when I'm off the course to apologize for the situation he has been put in, and I have made sure he has received the full total that he has requested.''

Matt Kuchar defended paying caddie David Giral Ortiz $5,000 from his $1.296 million winner's check in November, telling GolfChannel.com, "Making $5,000 is a great week."

Kuchar then compounded things by telling Golf.com on Wednesday that Ortiz had agreed to his terms.

"The extra $1,000 was, "Thank you -- it was a great week,'' Kuchar said. "Those were the terms. He was in agreement with those terms. That's where I struggle. I don't know what happened. Someone must have said, "You need much more.'''

At the crux of all this is what is considered proper payment for a week of working carrying a golf bag. Ortiz would not have worked that week at the club in Mexico due to the tournament had Kuchar not been in need of a caddie. He was paid far more than he would have made in any other week. And Kuchar could not understand why anyone would turn down $15,000.

The other side is that a regular caddie typically receives a percentage of a player's prize money, with a 10 percent bonus paid for a victory.

At minimum, Kuchar's full-time caddie, Wood, would have been expected to receive a six-figure payout. Few believe Ortiz deserved that much. But much of the outrage has centered on a player who just won more than $1.2 million (and who has earned in excess of $47 million in official prize money in his career) not seeing clear to paying even more than the extra $15,000 that was offered.

Kuchar was catching plenty of abuse on social media. And, perhaps most of all, no prominent PGA Tour players were coming to his defense. Those who have spoken anonymously basically shared the same sentiment: Kuchar had done himself no favors, and that the caddie deserved more than what was paid.

In recent days, Steinberg worked behind the scenes to try and come to a resolution. He spoke with several of Kuchar's sponsors who "as this escalated to the height that it did. Part of the equation you have to think about here is Matt is one of the highest character guys and those partners know that.''

Steinberg also contacted Ortiz to assure him that Kuchar would be contacting him and that another payment was forthcoming.

"I never wanted to bring any negativity to the Mayakoba Golf Classic,'' Kuchar said in his statement. "I feel it is my duty to represent the tournament well, so I am making a donation back to the event, to be distributed to the many philanthropic causes working to positively impact the communities of Playa del Carmen and Cancún.

"For my fans, as well as fans of the game, I want to apologize to you for not representing the values instilled in this incredible sport. Golf is a game where we call penalties on ourselves. I should have done that long ago and not let this situation escalate.''

Kuchar is set to return to Mexico next week for the WGC-Mexico Championship.

Zooky said:

Kuchar apparently heard the jeers today and it rattled him. So he is paying in full.
50K.

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I think he just wanted this to go away...too bad he had to be dragged thru the muck to realize his rep was worth more than $30k...but, you live and learn.

ATL96Steeler said:

I think he just wanted this to go away...too bad he had to be dragged thru the muck to realize his rep was worth more than $30k...but, you live and learn.

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Yep & I kind of knew that it would turn out sort of like this. The relatively small amt of $$ for Kuchar was just not worth the hassle & potential long term $$ hit (whether he really agreed with the outcome or not).

As I indicated previously - I knew that the caddie would somehow get the additional money - just didn't necessarily see it playing out like this.

Yeah because to hell with contracts, verbal or written. If he came in dead last and did not make a penny that caddy would still have wanted his money.

But, I get it, white is automatically wrong, wealthy is automatically wrong. So which means white and wealthy just deserves the death penalty, not matter what.

Could he have paid him, yes. But he is being destroyed for upholding a contract.

And he paid 50k to end that caddie's career, because only the SJWs on the golf tour are going to hire him now

elguapo said:

Yeah because to hell with contracts, verbal or written. If he came in dead last and did not make a penny that caddy would still have wanted his money.

But, I get it, white is automatically wrong, wealthy is automatically wrong. So which means white and wealthy just deserves the death penalty, not matter what.

Could he have paid him, yes. But he is being destroyed for upholding a contract.

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To be honest, there is some of that in play...particularly the wealthy front.

But trying to justify his actions really made it worse...the general public saw this as a heartless gesture from a man that already has plenty of wealth...screw a contract at that point is what the avg Joe thinking. That's what got him roasted.

elguapo said:

And he paid 50k to end that caddie's career, because only the SJWs on the golf tour are going to hire him now

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I disagree...I would venture he would get a bag the next time the tour comes there.

ATL96Steeler said:

I disagree...I would venture he would get a bag the next time the tour comes there.

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Yes by some SJW but by and large the field will avoid him like the plague

elguapo said:

Yes by some SJW but by and large the field will avoid him like the plague

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I thought the caddie was an ass for refusing the additional money on principle since it was less than he requested...but Kuch was a bigger ass for not giving it to him to begin with.

Yeah, but largely because they will bring their own caddie. Idt think the avg touring pro would even remember this guy next yr if they lined him up with 5 other Mexican caddies.

ATL96Steeler said:

I thought the caddie was an ass for refusing the additional money on principle since it was less than he requested...but Kuch was a bigger ass for not giving it to him to begin with.

Yeah, but largely because they will bring their own caddie. Idt think the avg touring pro would even remember this guy next yr if they lined him up with 5 other Mexican caddies.

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Yep & in this era the general public will forget about him by the end of 2019. The next big thing is always around the corner.

elguapo said:

Yeah because to hell with contracts, verbal or written. If he came in dead last and did not make a penny that caddy would still have wanted his money.

But, I get it, white is automatically wrong, wealthy is automatically wrong. So which means white and wealthy just deserves the death penalty, not matter what.

Could he have paid him, yes. But he is being destroyed for upholding a contract.

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be more gay.

I ain't tipping anybody 50K, ever.


Why would a Pro golfer not have a dude on his payroll? For like 75K a year...

broncosmitty said:

I ain't tipping anybody 50K, ever.


Why would a Pro golfer not have a dude on his payroll? For like 75K a year...

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There's an optics problem of a $1.3M winner being a Scrooge. Only thing missing from this story is Tiny Tim.

Roy Munson said:

There's an optics problem of a $1.3M winner being a Scrooge. Only thing missing from this story is Tiny Tim.

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I get that.


But 50k for carrying a bag for a long weekend seems nuts to me.

So does the idea of the only person you have on your "team" being a complete stranger. And maybe one that doesn't even speak your language.


For future reference, anyone that could find themselves carrying my bag, you need to know what you aren't in store for.

broncosmitty said:

I get that.


But 50k for carrying a bag for a long weekend seems nuts to me.

So does the idea of the only person you have on your "team" being a complete stranger. And maybe one that doesn't even speak your language.


For future reference, anyone that could find themselves carrying my bag, you need to know what you aren't in store for.

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Not holding the bag and hitting golf balls for s week could get you over $2 million. I think carrying a bag with a ton of crap in it is worth 50k when said player wins as much

broncosmitty said:

I ain't tipping anybody 50K, ever.


Why would a Pro golfer not have a dude on his payroll? For like 75K a year...

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There is a market established for PGAT caddies...about $5k per tourney...the average touring pro plays about 30 tournaments a yr. These guys are in the low six figures if they have a player making the cut in most of the events they enter.

While it sounds pretty good, but you might have a hard time finding a good caddie on the PGAT for $75k a yr.

ATL96Steeler said:

There is a market established for PGAT caddies...about $5k per tourney...the average touring pro plays about 30 tournaments a yr. These guys are in the low six figures if they have a player making the cut in most of the events they enter.

While it sounds pretty good, but you might have a hard time finding a good caddie on the PGAT for $75k a yr.

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WTF!?!

Sherpas don't even get that.

I haven't golfed in over a decade...

broncosmitty said:

I get that.


But 50k for carrying a bag for a long weekend seems nuts to me.

So does the idea of the only person you have on your "team" being a complete stranger. And maybe one that doesn't even speak your language.


For future reference, anyone that could find themselves carrying my bag, you need to know what you aren't in store for.

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Why you cheap bastard.