When Zach Johnson’s caddie had to call for a sub, a familiar face stepped in to take his place at the Mayakoba Golf Classic.
According to a Golf.com report, Johnson’s longtime looper, Damon Green, was struggling in the Mexican heat Thursday and left the group with four holes to go. Johnson was playing the first round with Billy Horschel and Matt Kuchar, and when Green subbed out it was Kuchar’s wife, Sybi, who stepped in for the rest of the round.
Sybi had been walking with the group while watching her husband, but she finished the back nine with Johnson’s bag on her shoulder.
“I knew Sybi was in the crowd, I knew she’d caddied for me before, she’s friendly with Zach Johnson,” Kuchar said. “I figured she’d be a good one to handle Zach, and Zach would definitely go easy on her. She knows the deal of keeping up and staying out of the way, and so I knew she could handle it, she’d be good to fill in.”
The change on the bag appeared to bode well for Johnson, who was 2 over at the turn when the switch was made. He rallied during his second nine, making an eagle on the par-5 seventh hole among three pars with Sybi on the bag.
Kuchar, meanwhile, grabbed a share of the lead with a bogey-free, 7-under 64 as he looks to win on Tour for the first time since 2014.
“It’s funny how when you just have a friendly face around and just go back to playing golf and not worrying so much about making golf too complicated, some good things happen,” Kuchar said.