Xander Schauffele produced a scintillating stretch of golf during the 2024 season, which most professionals can only dream of.
Schauffele’s impressive consistency has only been matched by Scottie Scheffler this season, and the 31-year-old ends the year with two major championship titles finally added to his resume.
The American held his nerve brilliantly at the PGA Championship before landing major number two in brutal conditions at The Open Championship. Schauffele’s unbelievable final round at Royal Troon will be remembered for many years.
Schauffele has been brilliantly supported by his caddie, Austin Kaiser, throughout the season. The pair have worked together since the two-time major winner’s PGA Tour debut in 2015. However, an incident in 2017 could’ve cut short the successful partnership before the American’s meteoric rise.
What happened between Xander Schauffele and Austin Kaiser in 2017
In May 2017, after Schauffele had missed the cut at the AT&T Byron Nelson, the American was desperate to work on his game and rectify what had gone wrong in Dallas.
As reported by the San Diego Union-Tribune in 2020, Schauffele scheduled an early practice session after his failure at the Byron Nelson.
Unfortunately, Schauffele permitted Kaiser some time off, and it’s fair to say he enjoyed himself.
“He had no idea where he was,” Schauffele told the Tribune. “He was outside of a cemetery in a dumping rain. His wife sent me a friend-finder on her phone with his pin, so I found him. I’m pretty sure almost anyone would have fired him.”
Xander Schauffele: Austin Kaiser incident not a ‘huge’ deal
Thankfully, the two-time major winner saw the funny side of the incident, and Kaiser and Schauffele will be delighted that no cutthroat decisions were made.
“Actually, the whole thing was fine,” Schauffele added on the incident. “We already missed the cut, so it wasn’t a huge deal. The whole employee relationship goes out the window if my buddy is in trouble.”
It’s hard to think of a closer-knit caddie-player relationship on the PGA Tour at present. Michael Greller and Jordan Spieth have a long-standing relationship, but the three-time major winner has struggled in recent times.
Schauffele’s trust in Kaiser is clear, and the duo could well be set to dominate once more when the 2025 PGA Tour season starts in January.
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