Brooks Keopka and his caddie have downplayed a furore over Masters rules regarding playing partners consulting or receiving advice from one another after day one of the prestigious tournament. Koepka’s caddie, Ricky Elliott, had been seen on camera mouthing the word ‘five’ to caddie for playing partner Gary Woodland.
The controversy took an interesting turn when former golf pro turned commentator Paul McGinley suggested it was ‘common practice’ among many golfers – but the clear video footage showing Elliott directly indicating a five iron had been used to Koepka’s rival made cracking down a difficult prospect. He said the clear evidence likely meant officials would have to crack down, but said many players ‘hand on heart’ would admit to similar indiscretions.
Though a possible explanation could have been that Elliott was letting the broadcast know what had just been hit, the angle clearly showed him directing the message to Woodland’s caddie. While fellow commentator Brandal Chamblee disagreed with the suggestion it was a widespread issue, Koepka himself said Woodland had asked him what he hit as the walked the fairway of the 15th hole.
“Yeah, we looked at it when we got back in. GW (Woodland) and Butchie (his caddie) had no idea what we were hitting,” he said. “They didn’t even know because — I know that fact because GW asked me what we hit walking off, when we were walking down. So that’s all I can give you.”
After round one, Koepka was tied for the lead with Jon Rahm and Viktor Hovland after firing a seven-under 65 to start the tournament on a high note. The Masters Tournament Committee conducted a brief investigation, advising later that “All involved were adamant that no advice was given or requested”.
“It’s very obvious,” McGinley said on the broadcast. “Anybody looking at those pictures, it’s very obvious what happens. It’s staggering that they denied it because the video evidence is there.”
