Wyndham Clark missed three cuts this season before he teed off at Shinnecock. Now, he is doing quite well in the U.S. Open. He started his campaign with a 6-under 64, which included an eagle on the 5th, and then followed it with a second round of 1-under 69. One significant difference between those early events and the third major of the year is the man on his bag. After a challenging stretch spanning the 2025 season and the first few months of the 2026 campaign, the 32-year-old switched his caddie to get a fresh start.

Who is Wyndham Clark’s caddie, David Pelekoudas?

Wyndham Clark’s current caddie is David Pelekoudas, also known as Big Wave Dave. The two joined hands when Clark split with his long-term caddie, John Ellis, in mid-March 2026.

“We’re friends before business, and things just weren’t right. Something had to give and it felt like it was just time maybe, you know, a different voice for both of us would help,” Ellis said about their split.

Pelekoudas had already caddied for the golfer for a couple of rounds at the 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational. Ellis was sidelined because of a fever, and Pelekoudas was available to cover for him. Based on that experience, Wyndham Clark decided to bring him on as a bagger in a long-term role now.

Before Clark, David Pelekoudas had caddied for Blayne Barber, Brian Campbell, Shawn Stefani, Jonathan Byrd, and Marty Dou. Born and brought up in Newport Beach, California, David Pelekoudas has been caddying since 2010. Although he started playing golf late, at 16, he has played collegiate golf.

Ever since David Pelekoudas joined Wyndham Clark, the golfer’s performance has seen a significant improvement. Although he missed the cut at the PGA Championship 2026, he followed it with a win at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, and a solo 3rd finish at the Memorial Tournament. He has entered the test at Shinnecock Hills with a T11 finish at the RBC Canadian Open.

David Pelekoudas’s education and career before caddying

Wyndham Clark’s caddie graduated in the class of 2012. From there, he attended Orange Coast College for the 2012-2013 academic year. He then moved to Pepperdine University to earn a Bachelor of Arts in Sports Administration. This is also where he played college golf from 2014 to 2016.

During those two years, he was part of the NCAA Men’s Golf Team. During his junior year, the Pepperdine University team won the WCC Championship, which is also Pelekoudas’s greatest golf memory.

While studying at Pepperdine University, he took on two jobs. One of them was an athletic sales and external relations intern at the university’s athletic department. He worked there for five months, from August 2014 to December 2014. Then, he took the next role for five months as a collegiate services division intern.

Wyndham Clark’s caddie’s lifestyle

There’s not a lot publicly known about David Pelekoudas’s personal life. However, during an interview with the Caddie Network, he revealed that his interests beyond golf are basketball, going to the gym, fishing, going to the beach, and traveling.

His Instagram profile shows exactly that. There are many posts of him traveling with friends and family across different regions. Some posts also show him enjoying the heat at the beaches and watching the NFL and other sports.

Much of David Pelekoudas’s life away from the golf course remains private. But his interests reflect the active lifestyle he enjoys outside his work. As Wyndham Clark continues his resurgence with “Big Wave Dave” on the bag, their partnership is already showing signs that the caddie change could be paying off.