Legendary Player-Caddie Duo Jim Furyk And Mike 'Fluff' Cowan Split After 25 Years
First reported by Golfweek, one of the longest player-caddie relationships has ended after a quarter of a century
It's no secret that players are very particular when it comes to their caddies and, often, a partnership between player and caddie can finish before it has even begun.
However, some stand for long periods of time, with one of those being Jim Furyk and Mike 'Fluff' Cowan. Now though, 25 years on from their debut tournament together, the pair have “amicably” separated.
First reported by Golfweek, Cowan stated: "It’s hard to part ways after 25 years. Sometimes the right thing to do is staring you right in the face and you’ve got to have the guts to do it."
According to Golfweek’s Adam Schupak, Furyk in fact, jokingly, threatened to fire Cowan, with the caddie now moving on to C.T. Pan's bag full-time, after Furyk had seen his schedule limited due to a number of injuries.
The parting brings an end to a relationship that has lasted for a quarter of a century, with the pair claiming a Major scalp at the 2003 US Open, as well as notable wins like Furyk's victory at the 2010 FedEx Cup, his PGA Tour Player of the Year honors and the 2021 US Senior Open.
According to Golfweek, a text from Furyk read: “Love the guy. I’m still struggling with injuries and I pushed him to work for C.T. full time. We (Champions Tour) play for $2 million. They play for $8-, $20-, $25-million. I knew it was a good opportunity for him, and C.T. has been playing pretty good (T-3 at the Mexico Open being his best result). (Fluff) was hesitant because he’s a great person at heart. But I pushed and we both knew it was best for him and his family.”
Fluff began caddying full-time in 1976 for Ed Sabo and, following two years with the American, Cowan moved to Peter Jacobsen's bag, a partnership which spanned two decades.
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Following that, the 76-year-old was then caddie for none other than Tiger Woods in 1996, with Fluff part of the historic 1997 Masters victory. Splitting in 1999, he has been working for Furyk ever since, but now his next venture will be with Pan, a one-time PGA Tour winner who sits inside the world's top 150.
Matt joined Golf Monthly in February 2021 covering weekend news, before also transitioning to equipment and testing. After freelancing for Golf Monthly and The PGA for 18 months, he was offered a full-time position at the company in October 2022 and continues to cover weekend news and social media, as well as help look after Golf Monthly’s many buyers’ guides and equipment reviews.
Taking up the game when he was just seven years of age, Matt made it into his county squad just a year later and continues to play the game at a high standard, with a handicap of around 2-4. To date, his best round came in 2016, where he shot a six-under-par 66 having been seven-under through nine holes. He currently plays at Witney Lakes in Oxfordshire and his favourite player is Rory McIlroy, despite nearly being struck by his second shot at the 17th during the 2015 BMW PGA Championship.
Matt’s current What’s In The Bag?
Driver: Honma TW747, 8.75°
Fairway Wood: TaylorMade Rocketballz Stage 2, 15°, 19°
Hybrid: Adams Super Hybrid, 22°
Irons: Mizuno MP54, 5-PW
Wedges: Cleveland 588 RTX 2.0 Tour Satin, 50°, 56°, 60°
Putter: Cleveland TFI 2135 Satin Cero
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x
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