Justin Thomas has parted ways with caddie, Jim “Bones” Mackay.
“While incredibly difficult for me to say, Bones and I have parted ways,” said Thomas in a post on X/Twitter.
“I’m going to be forever thankful for him joining me on the bag in 2021. The things we’ve been able to accomplish together — the PGA Championship in 2022, the Presidents Cup, the Ryder Cups were all unforgettable experiences. His wisdom on and off the course has been a blessing during a tough stretch of my career and he was there every step of the way.
“I know there are great things coming for both of us down the road. I wish him the best of luck and will always count him and his family amongst my friends.”
— Justin Thomas (@JustinThomas34) April 3, 2024
In late 2021, after splitting with longtime caddie Jimmy Johnson, who was on the bag for all of his then 14 PGA Tour victories, including a major and the Players Championship, Thomas announced that he’d hired Mackay.
At the time, Thomas was the PGA Tour’s most prolific winner, and the new partnership was expected to take the Kentucky native to another level, particularly related to majors. Instead, he’s won just once with Mackay on the bag (the 2022 PGA, mostly thanks to Mito Pereira) while enduring a slump for the ages, starting in 2023.
In late 2023, after Thomas sunk to No. 27 in the world rankings and failed to even make the FedEx Cup playoffs, the 30-year-old Alabama alum announced he was ditching the year-long gluten-free diet he’d started in early 2023.
Whether it was a placebo effect or not, Thomas appeared to be back to his old self, posting seven consecutive finishes inside the top 12, including five straight top-10 results. But since a T6 at the rain-shortened Pebble Beach Pro-Am in early February, Thomas is once again struggling and has failed to post a single top-10 finish in the past two months with results of MC, T12, MC, and T64. Those are not the results any player wants heading into the Masters, never mind a player like Thomas who was once considered an eventual sure-bet winner.
— Justin Thomas (@JustinThomas34) April 3, 2024
Thomas did not say who his caddie would be for the remainder of the season, or even who would loop at next week’s Masters.
