For defending champs Cameron Smith and Marc Leishman, success goes deeper than just the two guys swinging the clubs

NEW ORLEANS – Some people will tell you caddies aren’t that important.

Cameron Smith and Marc Leishman aren’t those people.

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Sitting down, beers in hand, with their caddies, Sam Pinfold and Matty Kelly, respectively, after winning the Zurich Classic of New Orleans a year ago, Smith and Leishman soaked up perhaps the most content feeling of their already successful careers.

“There is no doubt being great mates is an advantage in this type of tournament,” Leishman says. “We know each other. We know our games. We have fun together. And last year we all even stayed together, which doesn’t always happen because we have families, but happened to work out well for us last year.

“That’s a win that will always feel different,” he continues. “A win with your mates, for your mates … I’m not sure it gets much better for us. This is predominantly an individual sport but to win something you can truly share with three other guys you truly care about … well it’s beyond special. We will be talking about the moments together when we are old and gray.”

Their foursome enjoys a bond as strong as any in the sport. And in Kelly and Pinfold, Leishman and Smith have two of the best caddies in the game, a pair of consummate professionals who do so much more than show up, put up, and shut up.

Leishman and Kelly lay claim to one of the longest partnerships on the PGA TOUR, having started together before Leishman made the big time and became the 2009 Rookie of the Year.

Smith began with Pinfold, who hails from the same area in New Zealand as caddie legend Steve Williams, when his PGA TOUR dreams began in 2015.

Smith, Pinfold and Kelly live in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, and spend time together socially, and while Leishman is based in Virginia Beach, they all sync up on TOUR. The connection goes back to their upbringings and shared culture. Both Australia and New Zealand value the importance of “mateship,” which with humor and grit all adds up to “ANZAC spirit.”

The origins of this are from World War I, when Australian and New Zealand soldiers battled against tremendous odds at Gallipoli. As a group they showed endurance against all odds, incredible courage in adversity, and an ability to keep humor and mateship at the forefront.

So while mateship isn’t a real word in any other country, it was almost added to Australia’s constitution at the turn of the millennium, such is its importance. In practical terms, it’s helpful to recall last year’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans, when Smith hit his tee shot on the drivable par-4 16th into the water Sunday. Leishman told the crew not to worry, he would just chip it in.

Of course, Leishman did exactly that, for an incredible birdie. The one rule the team has is they cannot say sorry. In fact, they try to make light of any adversity. “That shot is a great example of where the dynamic might have been the difference,” Kelly says.

“Some players’ headspaces might not have been as positive after being forced into a drop by their teammate’s shot,” he continues, “but Leish was already calling the next shot. And not one of us doubted that he could hole it. It’s hard to explain but all week we had a quiet confidence. It all just feels natural when we are together, and Leish owed Cam a shot like that anyway.”

The “owed shot” is just Kelly playing into the humor narrative and comes from when the foursome had almost combined to win a World Cup in 2018 for Australia, finishing second to Belgium. In the final round, which used Foursomes, Leishman left a bunker shot in the sand at a critical moment as the locals were charging towards a potential comeback victory.

Rather than leave his mate feeling like he’d killed off the charge, Smith just jumped into the sand, took aim, and holed out for an incredible birdie before quipping, “That’s how you do it,” taking the edge off. Also that week, in the Four-balls, Smith made an early birdie and eagle and turned to Leishman to say, “You can turn up at any time,” with a grin.

The ribbing worked; Leishman quickly made three birdies in four holes.

To the untrained ear, that type of banter might sound strange or cruel, but the more an Aussie or Kiwi makes fun of you, the more they like you. Walk with this crew and you’ll be in stitches.

“We all grew up the same way in a pretty relaxed country where we don’t take ourselves or things too seriously,” Kelly says. “If you get too wrapped up in yourself or in a moment you won’t last long among Aussies and Kiwis. We don’t do anything special; we’re just ourselves. I guess that helps take away some of the pressure of the big moments.”

For all the talk of fun and frivolity, don’t for a second think they don’t take their jobs seriously. Both Kelly and Pinfold are extremely thorough in their preparations as caddies. They stay together at tournaments and are often spotted out on course in the early hours of practice days taking notes and studying yardages. They’ll take a side of the fairway each, get the numbers, and combine intel around the greens. This is another reason the dynamic works.

“The boys are both excellent caddies,” Smith says, but then catches himself. “Wait – are they going to read this? In that case they suck.” He laughs. “In all seriousness, they are as good as caddies as they are as blokes, which is brilliant. Pinna works hard, gets everything he could possibly need, so that when I need him, he’s always ready.

“And it’s just great to have someone out there you enjoy spending time talking with,” adds Smith, who had Pinfold by his side when he torched TPC Sawgrass with 10 final-round birdies and won THE PLAYERS Championship last month. “Putting crap on each other between shots, talking about common interests… the little things really help.”

The foursome would love to defend their Zurich title, and they have higher aspirations in team golf also. They want to be part of a winning International Presidents Cup Team. After Ernie Els relied heavily on data to make pairings at Royal Melbourne in 2019, the duo wound up not playing together. It stung at first, but they each sucked it up and played their role. Els’ data-driven side led going into Singles before being run down by Tiger Woods U.S. side, 16-14.

Last year’s Zurich win may have added an intangible to the data, something like Strokes Gained: Mateship, if you will. Trevor Immelman, who will captain the Internationals at the Presidents Cup at Quail Hollow in September, took notice. And he’s well aware of the foursome dynamic; Immelman even had Pinfold as his own caddie for a stint before Smith made it to the TOUR.

“The data is important but not always more important than your gut,” Immelman says. “They can hold equal importance. And to be fair, Cam Smith right now is a completely different player than what he was in 2019. If you compare his data from then to now you might find it shows their compatibility in both ways.

“There is no doubt those four guys have a very special relationship. And that can rub off on others in a team room, also. They will no doubt be a very big part of our squad going forward.”

This year the team comes to New Orleans with even more gravitas. Leishman still has the edge with six TOUR wins, but Smith has since added the Sentry Tournament of Champions and THE PLAYERS to his trophy case, and he pushed Scottie Scheffler hard at the Masters.

Leishman and Smith are making a combined 9.7 birdies a round this season, the most of any team in the field. And when you add their Strokes Gained: Putting totals, they also rank first. In Strokes Gained: Approach, they sit second. They are the only team to rank in the top five of both of those stats. Plenty of pointers suggest they can defend their title belts.

“We love a feed or beer together for sure, but we also know there is a professional side to the relationship and to this week or any other week,” Pinfold says. “We are always learning and evolving as a team – whether that’s the four of us this week, or the two of us most weeks. You have to get the work done, and done well, for the friendship to continue to thrive.

“I’m very lucky to work for Cam,” he continues, “and I think Matty would say the same about Leish, but we won’t ever take that privilege for granted. We might play hard at times, but we work hard to earn that right. And this week won’t be any different.”