Being a caddie for a professional golfer can be a rewarding career. It can also be a frustrating, humiliating, and mentally taxing job if a caddie is paired with the wrong golfer on the wrong day. While golf fans hear about many heartwarming stories of caddie-golfer relationships, other PGA pairings end in terrible outbursts and embarrassing firings.

Robert Allenby replaced caddie with a fan

In 2015, Robert Allenby made headlines during the Canadian Open. Allenby, who tends to get involved in controversial shenanigans, had a heated exchange when his caddie, Mick Middlemo, suggested the wrong club and the ball landed in a creek. Whether it was the caddie’s fault or not, Allenby voiced his displeasure in a profanity-laced exchange.

Middlemo was fired after the exchange. Meanwhile, a fan named Tom Fraser offered to carry the bag for the rest of the tournament. Allenby later withdrew from the competition, citing rattled nerves. Later, Allenby claimed Middlemo threatened him before exiting, causing the golfer to request extra security.

Jay Williamson got dumped by his own caddie

The 2007 Canadian Open began well for golfer Jay Williamson and caddie Mike Mollet. The pro shot well, but in the ensuing week, his production declined. According to Mollet, Williamson began blaming him for the issues. When Williamson claimed the caddie gave him false information about wind direction, Mollet told him to look at the flag. Williamson refused, and tensions boiled over.

According to ESPN, Mollet wanted to throw the entire bag into the water but decided to pump the brakes a little. Instead, the caddie took every ball in Williamson’s bag, threw them in the water at the 15th hole, and told an official exactly what he’d done. According to Mollet, the two have not made up yet. 

D.A. Points’ caddie got fired via text

After missing the cut in 2017, D.A. Points was sitting with his caddie, Mike Darby. Points decided to hit a few balls and asked Darby to film him. As the caddie held his golfer’s phone, a text arrived from Points’ wife. Depending on who you ask, the text either asked if Darby was fired yet, or if Points had talked to Darby yet.

Either way, Darby saw the writing on the wall. The caddie told Points about the text, and the golfer acted dodgy. Eventually, it came out that Points intended on using a new caddy. 

Danny Willett loses his caddie in real time

Danny Willett experienced one of the most shocking victories in PGA history when he won the 2016 Masters. A year later, however, Willet found himself in an unusual position after being fired by his own caddie, Jonathan Smart.

After Willett blamed the caddie for many of his recent struggles, Smart fought back. He told Willett that he was fed up with being his scapegoat and left on the first plane back to England. The pro golfer eventually missed the cut.

Rhein Gibson fires caddie using a putter cover

Rhein Gibson made headlines during the 2018 Web.com tour, a tournament that feeds into the PGA. Just one stroke behind the leader and tied for second place, Gibson hit a ball into the hazard and lodged it beneath two rocks. After it was clear he was not going to hit the ball, his caddie Brandon Davis picked the ball up. This resulted in not only the penalty drop but an additional penalty for “not getting consent.”

The penalties dropped Gibson into third place. The golfer shouted at Davis and threw his putter cover at the caddie. Davis claimed he was fired on the spot, and video of the incident went viral. Afterward, the caddie declared he did nothing wrong.