Justin Thomas Splits With Caddie Jim 'Bones' Mackay

The 15-time Tour winner hasn't won since the 2022 PGA Championship and did not say who would be on his bag next week at the Masters.
Justin Thomas (right) and caddie Jim Mackay are pictured at the 2022 Charles Schwab Challenge.
Justin Thomas (right) and caddie Jim Mackay are pictured at the 2022 Charles Schwab Challenge. / Jim Cowsert-USA TODAY Sports

A week prior to the Masters, two-time major champion Justin Thomas has decided to make a caddie changing, announcing via social media that he and veteran Jim “Bones” Mackay have split.

Thomas, who has not won since his 2022 PGA Championship victory, has mostly struggled in the past two seasons, last year failing to make the FedEx Cup playoffs.

He began this year with three consecutive top-12 finishes but missed the cut at the Players Championship—where he won in 2021—and tied for 68th in his last start at the Valspar Championship, where after tying for the lead early in the third round, he went on to shoot 79.

“While incredibly difficult for me to say, Bones and I have parted ways,” Thomas wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “I’m going to be forever thankful for him joining me on the bag in 2021. The things we’ve been able to accomplish together—the PGA Championship in 2022, the Presidents Cup, the Ryder Cups, were all unforgettable experiences. His wisdom on and off the course has been a blessing during a tough stretch of my career and he was there every step of the way.”

Mackay, 58, who had a 25-year run with Phil Mickelson before they parted ways in 2017, left a broadcasting assignment with NBC/Golf Channel in 2021 to go back to caddying.

 He had worked part-time for Thomas in 2020 and was with the player when he won the FedEx St. Jude Championship that summer.

“Caddying gets in your blood,” Mackay said after starting with Thomas. “I have to admit, I’m spoiled. I did it for a number of years, a long time for one of the greatest players in the history of the game.

“I think, more than anything, it’s those moments. It’s those weeks. It’s the Ryder Cup. It’s the Masters. The British Open at St Andrews. It’s Torrey Pines in beautiful weather. It’s just those moments. And there’s something to be said for the thrill of the chase. If you’re out here on Sunday and you have one of the last tee times, that buzz you feel as a caddie, at least in my experience, is one of the coolest things ever.”

Thomas, 30, who is ranked 28th in the world, has 15 PGA Tour victories and four on the DP World Tour. He won the PGA in 2017 and also captured the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup that season. He has four victories since the beginning of 2020.

Golf Channel's Todd Lewis reported Wednesday afternoon that Matt Minister will be on Thomas's bag at the Masters. Minister worked for Patrick Cantlay when he won the 2021 Tour Championship.


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Bob Harig
BOB HARIG

Bob Harig is a senior writer covering golf for Sports Illustrated. He has more than 25 years experience on the beat, including 15 at ESPN. Harig is a regular guest on Sirius XM PGA Tour Radio and has written two books, "DRIVE: The Lasting Legacy of Tiger Woods" and "Tiger and Phil: Golf's Most Fascinating Rivalry." He graduated from Indiana University where he earned an Evans Scholarship, named in honor of the great amateur golfer Charles (Chick) Evans Jr. Harig, a former president of the Golf Writers Association of America, lives in Clearwater, Fla.