Tiger Woods’ caddie to loop for Patrick Cantlay ‘for foreseeable future’

With Tiger Woods still without a timetable for a return to competitive golf, Woods’ caddie has switched bosses.

First reported by Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis, Joe LaCava will be on the bag for Patrick Cantlay “for the foreseeable future,” beginning with this week’s Wells Fargo Championship. It will be the first time LaCava has had a full-time job caddying for someone other than Woods since the two teamed up in September 2011.

Lewis added that Woods, who is recovering from yet another surgery (a subtalar fusion on his right leg after withdrawing from the Masters last month), gave LaCava his blessing in making the move to Cantlay.

Woods has teed it up in just five PGA Tour events since the 2020 Masters.

“The thing about Joe is he’s as loyal as loyal gets,” said Justin Thomas, Woods’ good friend. “The amount of time that he spent at home when guys would, I mean, there’s so many guys out here that would have him caddie in an instant. When he was loyal to Tiger, and Tiger’s probably telling him go caddie, go do whatever, and Joe, that’s just not the kind of guy Joe is. But at the same time, very similar to Bones, he’s competitive and he’s a caddie. I mean, they love to caddie, and they love to win golf tournaments, and they love being in that moment. I’m sure that weighed into his decision as well.

“Obviously, I don’t know the details and don’t know how long it is or what’s going on, but I know that that’s something that would never ever, ever be done if Tiger would not OK that. … There definitely was some kind of conversation that went on there.”

All nine of Cantlay’s career PGA Tour wins came with previous caddie, Matt Minister, on the bag.