McIlroy fires caddie.

[Man_O_War]

his wife better be happy they are married...or he would be shopping around for a replacement there too to boost his game. Might be a tad too expensive to do that now....worse later of course

[Llortamaisey]

his wife better be happy they are married...or he would be shopping around for a replacement there too to boost his game. Might be a tad too expensive to do that now....worse later of course

 

It should come down to simple math of the opportunity cost. How much can he make if he stays compared to how much more he can make if he leaves, minus the settlement fees. You're absolutely right about the timing factor.

[J13]

Stevie?

[playa]

Moronic.

 

Fire the guy that takes you to the top of the mountain. Sad.

I think you are putting way too much weight in the importance of the hired help. Caddies don't take players to the top of the mountain,they just get paid well to turn up, put up and shut up.

[JaNelson38]

A new caddie isnt going to help Rory with his injury problems or his putting stroke.

[Your-away!]

A new caddie isnt going to help Rory with his injury problems or his putting stroke.

 

People keep bringing up his putting stroke, i actually dont think its as bad as people make out, i think he is just a really bad green reader, hence looking back at his wins he tends to putt better on "slower greens"

[Jordan Speeth]

Rory probably saw how great MG helped Jordan and realized its time to get that help on his side. A Rory Spieth rivalry would be awesome and you kinda get the sense they don't like each other.

 

I'm not sure that they don't like each other. I'm sure that Rory would love to be included on those SB2K vacations (or whatever they call them). I do think that they compete differently. Rory is a little more demonstrative when he's grinding, getting a "game face" on where Jordan smiles and acts humble and friendly, then slits their throat and stomps on their face while making 50' putts....a much more effective killer than Rory. It's a lot more frustrating to watch a guy make long putts than to watch long drives. That gets in guys' heads more than anything.

[BlackDiamondPar5]

Bones hopefully!

 

man i hope not... would crush my dream of a bones /phil reunion at the us open for a win...

I say no way on Bones ever being a regular on anyone's bag. Maybe occasionally (for something with Phil even) but never a regular, not with 2 artificial knees.

[golf1010]

If Rory asked bones would go

1.5 mil a year compared to what the NBC pay is?

 

[new2g0lf]

I think people forget that a caddies income can be affected by changes their player makes. JP has made a lot of money carrying Rory's bag but this year has been leaner at least partially due to Rory switching clubs and ball which put more money in Rory's pocket but hurt JP financially.

 

If I'm getting a percentage of what my player makes I'm going to be a bit vocal about the decisions he's making that affects how much money I make.

[MMB1500]

A new caddie isnt going to help Rory with his injury problems or his putting stroke.

 

People keep bringing up his putting stroke, i actually dont think its as bad as people make out, i think he is just a really bad green reader, hence looking back at his wins he tends to putt better on "slower greens"

 

Bingo.

[jimb6golf]

Seems unfortunate that the caddies always seem to get the blame for the player's poor play. Ever since Rory jumped to TM his play has been poor and combined with his rib injury he hasn't played that much either. He needs to find the clubs, and putter, that work for him and stick with them as it will take some time to get used to all the club changes he's made over the past year. It's a shame that both Rory and Jason Day have fallen off the planet with their play as both brought more fun to the game. Maybe Joey LaCava could help him - I'm sure he would be wiling to change at this point?

[mwkbmw]

I think what JP did for Rory in the first round of the Open is the type of caddie he needs all the time. Also, for Rory being one of the greatest ball strikers in the world, IMO there were too many times where he had a mid/short iron into a green after a gorgeous drive, only to fly it by 10 yards (re: 2017 Masters). Then they both look at each other in astonishment. Don't know how much of that is the caddie's fault but I'd say giving a distance, lie, wind, club selection recommendation falls at least partly on JP. Maybe the next guy can do better.

 

The choice of club is, IMO, 100% on the player. The caddie can recommend, but the final decision has to be made by the player. You always know a poor shot is coming when a player goes against their conviction and hits a club they are not fully committed to.

 

How in the world does a player get to the upper echelons of golf without the ability to read greens, read lies or assess the conditions in order to calculate which club and shot type to play?

[slimeone]

Rory likes to strut around and be a big man but he's quite emotionally vulnerable and sensitive. So does he go for someone who will enable him or challenge him?

[cvhookem63]

I think people forget that a caddies income can be affected by changes their player makes. JP has made a lot of money carrying Rory's bag but this year has been leaner at least partially due to Rory switching clubs and ball which put more money in Rory's pocket but hurt JP financially.

 

If I'm getting a percentage of what my player makes I'm going to be a bit vocal about the decisions he's making that affects how much money I make.

 

I think Rory's recent struggles have clouded the facts. He has 5 top 10s (6 if you count the Euro Tour) this year (2 in majors) and has made over $2 million on the PGA Tour. Add in a solo 2nd (playoff loss) at the BMW SA Open on the Euro Tour. I'd say JP was doing just fine financially.

[QuickFeet]

LOL.........hopefully it's that simple, but unlikely.

 

There should be an immediate improvement in Rory's game if there was an issue with JP. If his new caddie can provide the simple stuff like yardage, lie, wind, club selection, assistance with reading greens, etc. then Rory should be able to execute. Probably not going to happen. Seems to me that Rory is a streaky player at best.

 

Rory's putting seemed to vanish after he had Lasik........perhaps his visual perspective is off just a bit.

[Potatohead]

If Rory asked bones would go

1.5 mil a year compared to what the NBC pay is?

 

NBC isn't paying him pocket change

[dieselmd]

Billy Foster would be perfect for Rory! He's experienced enough to challenge Rory! These splits can be attributed to "just wanting to freshen things up". Bones and phil were the exception.

[larrybud]

Rory needs a caddie to read all his putts and basically tell him what shot to play every time. Rory is a great ball striker but he doesn't have natural feel or awareness for the game that other great ones do.

 

I find it hard to believe that a guy who has won 4 majors, with a couple running away, can't read putts.

[redfirebird08]

Maybe a change will be good for him. Needs to hire the right guy obviously.

[lumberman2462]

Sometimes you just gotta make a change.....

[sshoe9]

This is a good move by Rory. I never felt JP was right for him. Too old, too slow, and just not able to relate to Rory's lifestyle. Very similar to the Fluff/Tiger dynamic, except JP didn't seem to be as hungry to steal the limelight and build his own brand as Fluff.

 

The reality is that these older caddies are too limited when it comes to facilitating a young gun's lifestyle; particularly ones as interested in fitness as Tiger was then and Rory is now. When Tiger went to Stevie, it opened up new possibilities because Stevie could lift with him, ate a similar high protein/low carb diet, listened to similar music, had the fire to enforce Tiger's no-camera policy, etc. It just made his experience on the road out on Tour more streamlined and efficient. Rory should look for the same - a guy who can lift, eats a clean diet, listens to Kygo/EDM, etc. JP looked like he should be selling insurance and never seemed comfortable wearing the Nike gear - just not athletic enough. By the time Rory completed his lifting session and pre-round warm-up routine (31 pitches, 10 bunker shots, 12 54 deg wedge shots, 13 9 irons, 12 7irons, 9 5 irons, 6 drivers, and 17 putts...it takes on average 50 minutes), JP was already worn out and had a difficult time keeping up on the course. As other posters said, he could be seen falling behind a number of times and this affected Rory's tempo and flow.

 

Look, I won't hide the fact that I'm a Rory fan and am very much anti-Spieth. I see Rory's potential as unlimited, whereas Spieth's ceiling is 5 or 6 or so majors. As I've written in other threads, Jordan isn't in the same universe as Rory talent-wise. However, one area that Jordan had a leg up on Rors was in the caddy department. Greller is younger and more energetic than JP....going up and down that steep dune at Birkdale to get the proper line after Jordan's drop would have burned JP out the rest of the round, for example. I applaud Rory for recognizing this and addressing a weak link in his system, which hopefully will begin to unlock the rest of his potential.

[golf1010]

If Rory asked bones would go

1.5 mil a year compared to what the NBC pay is?

 

NBC isn't paying him pocket change

Agree it's probably 500k just a guess but I think he could be the 10% of unknown factor Rory needs and probably wants to be a part of putting him on top again

Maybe he likes his new job

Certainly doesn't need the money.

[dlygrisse]

Where's Ferguson? Is rory not an awful person for doing this? "Kicking him to the curb?"

 

LOL it's a caddie, meh why should we care?

 

In the end it's a business decision.

[vjswing]

LOL.........hopefully it's that simple, but unlikely.

 

There should be an immediate improvement in Rory's game if there was an issue with JP. If his new caddie can provide the simple stuff like yardage, lie, wind, club selection, assistance with reading greens, etc. then Rory should be able to execute. Probably not going to happen. Seems to me that Rory is a streaky player at best.

 

Rory's putting seemed to vanish after he had Lasik........perhaps his visual perspective is off just a bit.

 

The fact that Kenny Perry and Vijay Singh are back in glasses leads me to believe that Lasik is perhaps not the panacea that some make it out to be. I've dealt with significant nearsightedness since I was very young, and continue to wear contact lenses to this day. Not sure if I'll ever seriously consider surgery for vision correction.

[R.Tobes]

Only read a little of this thread but so far I find it funny how most people are saying Rory is making a bad call in firing JP, when probably 90% of the conversation about him and his caddie before today was all talk about how Rory needs to sack JP. Now he has and people don't like it?

[Potatohead]

LOL.........hopefully it's that simple, but unlikely.

 

There should be an immediate improvement in Rory's game if there was an issue with JP. If his new caddie can provide the simple stuff like yardage, lie, wind, club selection, assistance with reading greens, etc. then Rory should be able to execute. Probably not going to happen. Seems to me that Rory is a streaky player at best.

 

Rory's putting seemed to vanish after he had Lasik........perhaps his visual perspective is off just a bit.

 

The fact that Kenny Perry and Vijay Singh are back in glasses leads me to believe that Lasik is perhaps not the panacea that some make it out to be. I've dealt with significant nearsightedness since I was very young, and continue to wear contact lenses to this day. Not sure if I'll ever seriously consider surgery for vision correction.

 

A good portion of Lasik patients will need glasses again at some point - Just like needing bifocals when you get older. Many, many tour pros have had it done.

[chrisronline]

From the limited times I've watched Rory this season, two major deficiencies come to mind: putting and wedge play. We don't really know the why to either of these, but both could be affected by the caddie. If we start to see an immediate improvement on putts made and distance to pin on 125 and in, I think we'll know the caddie was more involved in that bad play.

 

Overall, I think it's a GREAT move and I look forward to seeing what Rory can with the rest of the season.

[sshoe9]

 

The fact that Kenny Perry and Vijay Singh are back in glasses leads me to believe that Lasik is perhaps not the panacea that some make it out to be. I've dealt with significant nearsightedness since I was very young, and continue to wear contact lenses to this day. Not sure if I'll ever seriously consider surgery for vision correction.

 

Same here. I don't think most people understand how many corrective procedures are required to sustain it. They think it's a "one and done" type of deal when, in reality, it involves a lot of follow up.

[ebrasmus21]

*Waits for Ferguson to come in and say it's bc Rory didn't want to pay his benefits, 401-K or something else*

 

I fear we've seen the last of poor Ferguson. He's been eerily quiet since the Bones thread.