It was the 2023 Valspar Championship. Matt Wallace was two under for Saturday and was readying himself to play the 17th hole at Innisbrook. But a bogey at the same time, followed by a mistargeted drive to the right at the final hole, caused the ball to end up on an asphalt car path.

The subsequent swing caught a bit of tar and fell 30 yards short of the green, bringing an expression of disbelief to his face, aimed at his caddie, Sam Bernard. However, what followed surprised everyone as the golfer, during the walk down the fairway, stopped in his tracks and cussed at his looper, “Shut the f**k up!”

Although the situation could have escalated more, it quietened down soon after he made a par putt at the par-4 finisher. He then went ahead to place T7 the next day, dishing out an overall score of 4-under. Regardless of the finish, the two were later spotted laughing and hugging it out on the course. But now, traveling back to the present at the CJ Cup with Byron Nelson, curiosity naturally arises if he is supported by the bagman whom he initially had the spat with!

Who is Matt Wallace’s caddie at the CJ Cup, Byron Nelson?

The hype is undoubtedly high in the golfing world, all thanks to the CJ Cup Byron Nelson. It has managed to portray an amazing display of golf. Wallace, in particular, has had a huge role to play in the same. The Englishman has cemented himself among the top rungs of the leaderboard. But accompanying him on his side at TPC Craig Ranch is not Bernard but another caddie, Jamie Lane.

It seems the Frenchman and the Englishman parted ways soon after the incident following which his current looper picked up the mantle, or in this case, the bags, in 2023 itself. Interestingly, Lane himself, before helping out Wallace, caddied for the likes of Bernd Wiesberger and Matt Fitzpatrick, among others.

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Now, with a scintillating performance on the greens, the golfer has managed to dish out a figure of 63-66 over the two days in Texas, placing himself at T3, a stroke behind Knapp, who is leading the scorecard. A victory seems to be in sight for the athlete as long as he manages to keep the momentum going while hoping to clinch his second PGA Tour win, the last of which came in 2023 with his previous looper, Bernard.

What happened at the Valspar between Wallace and Bernard?

“Matt was simply frustrated with his bogey on 17 and the errant drive on 18,” explained Cara Banks, the reporter for the NBC Channel who was covering the event. Adding on, she reported, “He was frustrated at Sam, questioning whether he should take a drop before the second shot. He felt he should just play it as it lies, as he did. Sam’s questioning him interfered with his flow.” 

A bit over-the-top as it was, the whole drama, which later on witnessed the two reconciling on the greens, was nothing short of entertaining. However, what would have passed through Wallace’s mind would have been the hope that this wouldn’t blow up like the last time he berated his looper. Yes, this wasn’t the first time.

Wallace’s caddie incident that blew up

During the 2019 BMW International, the professional went ahead to hit the ball into the water on the final 72nd hole. This, in turn, led Matt Wallace to score a bogey at the par-5 19th, causing him to place third, tied with five other athletes. Consequently, he couldn’t hold it in and went off on his then-bagman, Dave McNeill. Although the two reconciled, they parted ways soon after, leading to him partnering up with the Frenchman.

Coming down the lane, in an interview with Golf Digest in March 2020, he was quite remorseful about the whole thing that went down during the competition. “I should have saved it for after the round,” said the golfer before recounting his parent’s advice to him; “My parents told me, ‘You’ve got to remember that you’re in the limelight now. It’s not like you’re playing on the Alps Tour where there are no cameras around and nobody’s watching. You’ve got to control your emotions more and think about what you’re going to say or do on the golf course.”

Wallace would surely hope to have a better and longer relationship with his current caddie after experiencing the two one-sided beratings that he had with the two loopers. The Englishman will look forward to having an even better career with Lane in tow!