Tiger Woods and Steve Williams seemed to patch things up during the British Open, but the caddie, who handled the luggage in 13 of Woods’ 14 major championships before enlisting with Adam Scott, has more to say to his ex-boss before he speeds off into the sunset in one of his race cars.
Steve Williams has unfinished business with Tiger Woods
Since the good times between them ended some time ago, Steve Williams has made a few choice remarks about Tiger Woods. While caddie and golfer appeared to make up a few months ago, Stevie says the conversation’s just begun.
Rob Carr
Williams, a 35-year-veteran of the golf wars, has announced he will trim his schedule -- a la Steve Stricker, Phil Mickelson, and Woods -- after next year’s campaign. He plans to ease into semi-retirement by working about six months starting in 2015, which will leave the New Zealander, who’s soon to turn 50, more time to focus on car racing.
Counting down 2013's top 25 golf stories
• No. 25: Rory moves to Nike, misery follows • No. 24: Ko wins again, 16-year old turns pro • No. 23: Stenson dominates both tour playoffs• No. 22: Snow! Floods! Wind! Lightning! • No. 21: Guan youngest ever at Masters, still makes cut after slow-play penalty The Tiger-Stevie duo was perhaps the most successful player-looper combination in golf history but their relationship soured dramatically after Woods fired his bagman in 2011. The Kiwi caddie, who had already worked with Scott, hired on full-time with the Aussie and quickly ensured the world knew who was signing his paycheck.
Shortly after adding Williams to his team, Scott won the 2011 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational but his caddie took center stage with a barbed shot at his former employer.
“I’ve been a caddie for 33 years,” Williams boasted to CBS following Scott’s victory, which left Woods 18 strokes back, “and that’s been the best week of my life ... The greatest week of my life.”
Not long after that, Williams directed a racist insult at Woods, followed by the standard, non-apologetic, mea culpa.
When the two former mates shook hands on the 18th green at Muirfield it seemed the air was clear.
“It was [more than perfunctory pleasantries],” Woods told reporters after finishing T6, two shots behind Scott’s T3. “He was saying it was a good fight out there today.”
Williams, at least, believes there’s more to say than “good fight,” according to the New Zealand Herald’s Paul Lewis.
“I think Tiger and I need to sit down and have a conversation,” Williams told Lewis during last week’s ISPS Handa World Cup, in which Scott finished third behind Jason Day in individual play and shared the first-place team prize with his countryman. “That opportunity hasn’t arisen yet, but that’s something I’d like to do.”
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