American pro Austin Eckroat, who won his maiden PGA Tour title at the 2024 Cognizant Classic, is good friends with his caddie, for the pair went to school together.
Eckroat’s looper is Stone Coburn, who met Austin when he was in his early teens. They became closer when they played for the same high school golf team, although neither could have predicted what happened next.
Eckroat had shown plenty of promise during his school years, and he finished in a tie for 12th at the Mayakoba Golf Classic on the PGA Tour as an amateur in 2020 when he got a sponsor exemption.
Coburn, who caddied for Eckroat that week, then agreed to go full time on the bag – and they’ve been enjoying the ride ever since.
Unlike a lot of caddies on the professional circuits, Coburn does not have a wealth of experience caddying, but, like the player he works for, he’s learning more all the time, and clearly the pair’s friendship counts for a lot on the course.
When Eckroat qualified for the 2019 US Open, Coburn couldn’t help but share his delight for his friend.
“Did Austin birdie the first sudden death playoff hole to earn a spot in the U.S. Open? Like a MAFK he did,” he said on his Instagram account.
Coburn graduated from the University of Arkansas in 2021, and has found himself fairly busy ever since as his buddy continues to impress on the PGA Tour and climb the world rankings.
Coburn might have shared the odd post on Instagram in the past, but he’s not a prolific poster, which suggests he’d rather let his friend do the talking on the golf course.
No-one knows Eckroat’s game better than Coburn. He had a front row seat when Eckroat, playing in his rookie year, was edged out at the 2023 CJ Cup Byron Nelson by Jason Day, who shot 9-under on Sunday to win by one stroke..
“We didn’t lose. We got beat,” Coburn said.
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