Harry Diamond has received plenty of criticism during his time caddying for Rory McIlroy.
However, a lot of Diamond‘s critics were silenced at Augusta National back in April when McIlroy won The Masters.
Diamond’s naysayers suggested that he was nothing more than a ‘yes man’.
However, Diamond proved those people wrong when caddying for McIlroy during a practice round ahead of The Open on Monday.
McIlroy’s childhood friend made it very clear to the Masters champion that he should take his two-iron out of the bag and replace it with a three-iron at Royal Portrush.
He will have a key role to play at Portrush if McIlroy is to win his second Open Championship this week.
Wayne Riley says whether Harry Diamond is a good caddie for Rory McIlroy
McIlroy is one of the favourites to win The Open this week.
The 36-year-old has been putting in plenty of reps on the range and out on the golf course alongside Diamond this week.
And when speaking on Sky Sports in the UK, Wayne ‘Radar’ Riley offered huge words of praise for McIlroy’s caddie.
The Australian said: “There has been a lot of chat over the years about Harry and sometimes other caddies that Rory has had. Rory picks caddies basically who he likes as friends, and why not?
“Harry Diamond right now is the best caddie in the world in the respect that he is caddying for a career Grand Slammer. I hate it when I hear that stuff. Harry Diamond is a great player himself, a wonderful amateur career and a wonderful caddie. The coolest guy you will ever meet. And he suits Rory McIlroy. People should take note of that. It’s what makes a great caddie.
“He does not fluster at all, he does not. He has got his back and that makes a great caddie and that’s what Harry Diamond is. He will go down as one of the legendary caddies and so he should.“
What Shane Lowry has said about Harry Diamond
Shane Lowry launched a passionate defence of Diamond earlier this year.
When speaking to the Irish Independent the week before The Masters in April, Lowry stood up for his friend McIlroy and his caddie.
Lowry said: “He’s [McIlroy] the greatest golfer of our generation and I don’t think he gets any leeway at all,” the 2019 Open winner said. “And some of the s*** Harry gets off the back of it, now that really does my head in. Dustin Johnson had his brother caddying for him for 10 years and nobody said anything; other players have had the same caddie for 15 years, but everything Rory does is scrutinised.
“To be honest, there is no caddie in the world that would be better for Rory than Harry Diamond. Harry is always there a day before Rory.
He’s always walking the course and doing his work. And I see it, but these guys sitting there on their stupid podcasts don’t see it.“
That is a very fair point that Lowry has made. Nobody sees the hard work and preparation that Diamond puts in for McIlroy behind the scenes.
It’s pretty clear to see now that Diamond is actually the perfect caddie for McIlroy, and the duo will undoubtedly go on to win many more tournaments together.
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