Why Ryder Cup Caddies Might Be Using Stand Bags This Week

The Ryder Cup matches often throw up some interesting equipment and apparel related stories. From the leaking US waterproofs at Celtic Manor in 2010 to Ben Crenshaw putting with a 3 iron during his singles match against Eamon Darcy after breaking his putter in anger, there are often talking points.

The 2023 Ryder Cup match could provide a slightly unusual and unexpected visual on the equipment front, with the use of stand bags!

The US team turned out for their first official practice round with a number of the caddies unusually carrying lightweight stand bags in contrast to their normal heavier leather tour bags.

This begs the question, why?

Well, simply put, Marco Simone is a "brutal walk" as US captain Zach Johnson puts it. With long distances between greens and tees and huge elevation changes throughout, many are predicting fatigue to be a huge factor in deciding the outcome of this match.

Former US captain Paul Azinger described the golf course as "a bit of an endurance test", while assistant captain Fred Couples said, "Zach has small bags for the caddies. That’s how hilly and tough this course can be!"

Whilst neither captain has ruled out the possibility of some players playing in all five sessions, there have been some strong hints dropped that this could be the case. 

"It is a possibility that some guys who are used to playing five might not play five" said Luke Donald. "You want some freshness, it is going to be a tiring golf course, it could be quite warm. We’ll have to make those decisions based on play on Friday and Saturday. They all want to be out there and play as much as they can but they understand the rationale behind it."

With the course measuring over 150 feet from its lowest to highest point, European captain Luke Donald has even considered the possibility of substitute caddies. "For the caddies, we have enough people there to fill in if someone can’t do 36 holes". 

With both sides working tirelessly to gain any slight advantage over their opponents, could shedding a few pounds of weight for the caddies to carry, or even resting a caddy for a session make the difference?