Tiger Woods and Steve Williams were once one of the most dominant golfer-caddie duos in the sport, sharing incredible success over 12 years. Sadly, their partnership came to an abrupt and unexpected end, leaving Williams blindsided. “I was told after the U.S. Open that I no longer had a job,” he once revealed, reflecting on the surprising split. Despite the rocky ending, Woods has since acknowledged the impact of their time together, saying, “So that was awesome to have Stevie for all those years.” Their journey had its highs and lows, but there’s no denying the legendary run they had as a team.
via Imago
Reminiscing about their journey, Steve Williams, along with Evin Priest, wrote a book, ‘Together We Roared’, where he narrated the 12-year-long legendary saga. On the latest episode of the Fried Egg Golf, they revealed some of the tidbits from the book. Andy Johnson asked Evin Priest to share their favorite parts of the book. That was when he said, “I think I’ve told a few people now and I’ve decided that when Steve and I were researching and I was researching and writing, and we were doing twice weekly interviews.”
He added how Steve Williams would often interrupt and get back to the previous interviews and reveal something about Tiger Woods and his days, and Priest would immediately sit down and write it out, because as he mentioned, “They were the most raw, organic kind of memories, like they had laid dormant in Steve’s memory for decades, and he’s just remembered them until now.”
One such interesting thing was when Priest revealed, “Tiger and Steve handed letters to each other. That answer came from a totally unrelated question, and he just remembered at that moment that he and Tiger had handwritten letters to each other.” Well, as he shared this intimate detail was indeed a fact that rarely anyone would know.
12 years is indeed a long time, and well, time and again, the two have shared about their days together, and how they miss it. But exactly what happened?
Tiger Woods shares the story of him and his former caddie
The 15-time Masters champion reflected on how he first partnered with Steve Williams. At the time, Williams was working for veteran golfer Raymond Floyd, who was transitioning to the senior tour. Meanwhile, Woods was making waves on the PGA Tour with his rising success. Recognizing his potential, Floyd encouraged Williams to team up with Woods, a young star who was quickly becoming a dominant force in the game.
From 1999 to 2011, the New Zealander carried Woods’ bag, playing a crucial role in 13 of his 15 major victories. Their partnership brought immense success, despite experiencing several ups and downs along the way. Williams once described their time together as the highlight of his career, saying, “I’ve been caddying for 33 years, and this is the best week of my life.”
However, their relationship took a turn when Woods dismissed Williams amid a turbulent period in both his personal and professional life. The split became a major talking point in the golf world, with one particularly controversial moment occurring in 2011. Williams, after obtaining permission from Woods, shook hands with Adam Scott at the U.S. Open. However, reports suggest that Woods later had a change of heart about the situation, adding to the tension between them.
Despite their rocky history, their time together remains one of the most successful golfer-caddie partnerships in the sport’s history. What are your thoughts on their dynamic—was their fallout inevitable, or could things have played out differently?
