The 19-year-old world number one has sacked her caddie just six months after firing her previous bagman
Lydia Ko Sacks Caddie…Again
World number one Lydia Ko has sacked her South African caddie Gary Matthews just nine events and six months into their partnership.
Ko, who went throughs seven caddies in her rookie year, is now on the lookout for her 10th bagman.
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The two-time major winner shot rounds of 65 and 64 on the weekend at the Lotte Championship in Hawaii to finish second, but that was not enough for Matthews to keep his job.
He now has a trial with Ko’s fellow LPGA Tour star – world number 19 Minjee Lee.
The Kiwi’s game underwent major changes last year after she changed clubs from Callaway to PXG and sacked her caddie Jason Hamilton in October, who caddied for her in 10 of her 14 victories.
Lydia Ko after winning Silver for New Zealand at the 2016 Rio Olympics. (Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images)
She also parted ways with her coach David Leadbetter in December, who had strong words to say about her and her family’s role in her career.
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Leadbetter said, “They tell her when to go to bed, what to eat, what to wear, when to practice and what to practice. And they expect her to win every tournament.
“They are good people, who love their daughter and want the very best for her. But they are naive about golf. And at some point, they’ve got to let the bird fly from the nest. I would often think, ‘It’s not easy coaching three people.’ ”
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Gary Matthews, who has previously caddied for Sergio Garcia, Anthony Kim, Trevor Immelman and Camillo Villegas, told Golf Digest’s Tim Rosaforte: “In all honesty, there is no communication in the whole camp. You never know anything or are told anything.
“The agent called me on the Monday after Palm Springs and said, ‘She needed a change, we’re going with somebody else.”
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