Tommy Fleetwood working with former Augusta National caddie master

Tommy Fleetwood won’t have his longtime caddie alongside him at this week’s Masters, but he’ll be privy to local knowledge as he eyes his first major title.

With his caddie Ian Finnis sidelined due to illness, Fleetwood will employ former Augusta National caddie master Gray Moore for this week’s competition. Moore has since retired from that role, per the Augusta Chronicle, to work as a regular caddie at the club.

This marks just the second time in eight years that Finnis won’t caddie for Fleetwood at a major, Fleetwood said Wednesday at Augusta National. Fleetwood’s dad caddied at the 2018 U.S. Open – the week after Finnis’ son was born. “Other than that, he’s done every tournament with me,” Fleetwood said Wednesday.

“He’s not been well all year,” Fleetwood continued. “At the moment he's at home trying to recover and get the right treatment … We just wish him all the best. The sooner he can get better, the better for all of us. Everybody has been asking about him, which has been great. I know he'll be desperate to come back out here as soon as possible.”

Fleetwood has previously spent time with Moore at Augusta National, comparing notes in advance of prior Masters Tournaments. Fleetwood, 33, has knocked on the door in several major championships to date – he has compiled six top-five finishes – but has yet to break through for his first major title. He has made six cuts in seven prior Masters starts, his best result coming in 2022 (T14).

“The first two or three years that I came here, I always had Gray in practice and would always sit and speak to him,” Fleetwood said of Moore. “So I've known him well for the last few years and I just asked if he could do it this week.”

Finnis was also sidelined for last week’s Valero Texas Open, in which Fleetwood finished T7 with Adrian Rietveld on the bag – a senior manager at TaylorMade who works closely with Fleetwood, Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler on equipment issues.

Fleetwood was hopeful at the time that Finnis would feel healthy enough for the Masters, but that, unfortunately, proved not the case.

Some little things are different without Finnis by his side. Fleetwood doesn’t normally look at the weather forecast, he said, but this week he has ensured to keep tabs himself.

The most important thing, of course, is that Finnis returns to full health soon. In the meantime, Fleetwood is in good hands for his eighth Masters.

“It’s definitely very, very different,” Fleetwood said of competing without Finnis. “Last week was weird just going out there and doing I guess so many things that he would … There is definitely a comfort, huge comfort level when he's out on the course with me.

“It’s just a bit weird really. But I'm far more bothered about him getting better and his health being right. He's definitely in the right place at the moment … I look forward to when he does get back out.”