A caddie wife’s motivating note, an empty Waffle House, tweeting for a cause and more

Kip Henley
Kip Henley had a touching, encouraging note from his wife on Twitter before setting off for another PGA Tour season. Credit: Allan Henry-USA TODAY Sports

“Caddying ain’t easy, baby!”

That’s a common refrain from longtime caddie Kip Henley, who began the 2019-20 season this week at the Sanderson Farms Championship with new boss, Stewart Cink.

While Kip usually passes that off as a joke — something he’s a master at — there’s a lot of truth to it. Is it incredible to be inside the ropes alongside the best players in the world week in and week out at some of the most beautiful venues on Earth? Of course it is. But there’s some serious sacrifice — especially for caddies — that comes along with it.

The biggest sacrifice? Time away from home. It doesn’t just impact the caddie, but also the family.

Need proof? Check out this heartfelt post by Kip’s wife, Sissi — a note of encouragement and support of her husband for the year that lies ahead (you’ll want to click on the tweet to get the full text):

Well put.

And, of course, Kip appreciated the support.

Another touching (?) post came via caddie Geno Bonnalie — Joel Dahmen’s righthand man. It was a poem to his wife acknowledging their 12th anniversary.

Life on the road can be lonely. Kip captured just that with an early-morning trip to a Waffle House on his way to the Country Club of Jackson.

If you’re visiting this site, you already know we think caddies are just the best. Another example of that this week? A tweet from Bubba Watson’s caddie, Ted Scott. You may not know this, but Ted is one heck of a player and coach. He also loves giving back. Check this out:

Imagine how cool that would be a for a high school golf team to have a two-time, major-winning caddie stop by to share a few words. Awesome stuff.

Not all the caddies are back to work just yet. Tim Mickelson was enjoying his final days of R&R in Maui before brother Phil’s season tees off this week in Napa with the Safeway Open.

Here’s a picture Tim posted on Instagram:

The photo caught the attention of his five-time, major winning brother. Phil commented: “Nice to see you training and now looking like me. Well done little bro!”

You’ve got to love big brothers.

During Thursday’s opening round of the Sanderson Farms Championship, J.T. Poston — making his season debut after a spectacular 2018-19 season that saw him win the regular-season ending Wyndham Championship in August — had a sweet bunker hole-out. Post-round, his caddie Aaron Flener was kind enough to open up — in a way only he could — about what a caddie can do for his or her player to have the same sort of success out of the bunker:

Also from Flener… It was HOT in Jackson. Via this tweet, he gave you a reason to watch other than the golf…

In case you missed it, cancer survivor Joel Dahmen has a hat he’s wearing for a special cause this season. It’s part of Imperial Headwear’s “End Cancer Collection.”

Here’s how Imperial explained it: “Imperial is proud to team up with PGA TOUR player Joel Dahmen and MD Anderson for the #endcancer collection, featuring Joel’s favorite bucket hat. A portion of all proceeds from the #endcancer Collection, featuring sun protection hats, rope hats, bucket hats and performance adjustable hats will go to MD Anderson Cancer Center and their pursuit of cancer patient care, research, education and prevention.”

Bonnalie sent out a tweet to help the cause:

Caddie Todd Montoya (Brian Stuard) captured a great moment in a convenience store that’s sure to put a smile on your face.

Caddie Damon Green put out a tweet this week looking for a little help for his son’s high school golf team:

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