The next time Matt Wallace turns up at a golf tournament, he’ll have a new punching bag.
Excuse The Forecaddie – a new man on his bag.
This is hardly a major news story except that no one has yet forgotten the sight of Wallace badgering bagman Dave McNeilly at the BMW International in June. After outcry on social media and within the professional golf ranks calling for a possible suspension of Wallace, the Englishman subsequently apologized after the condemnation. The ugly scenes were the latest in a series of high profile incidents where players berated caddies within earshot of microphones.
“I’m sorry but I just don’t enjoy watching that,” Sky Sports’ Rich Beem said at the time. “I know you’re intense, but get over yourself.”
Wallace’s decision to drop McNeilly only gets worse given what he posted on Instagram not long after the backlash: “2 years together, couldn’t have achieved any of it without you. Here’s to many more, thanks for everything Dave.”
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The two last worked together through the British Open, but word around the caddie ranks is that McNeilly’s loyalty is going unrewarded. He will be replaced by Jonathan Smart the next time the world No. 26 tees it up, likely the Omega Masters later this month.
Smart, who currently lists Lucas Bjerregaard on LinkedIn as his boss, was on Danny Willett’s bag for the 2016 Masters win. But he abruptly quit on Willett after the first round of the 2017 Heritage, saying he was tired of feeling like “the scapegoat when things went wrong.”
Sounds like a match made in … player-caddie hell.
