Veteran bagman Ant Knight hits the road again tomorrow, this time bound for China and the HSBC Shanghai Open, buoyed by his employer Aaron Baddeley's stunning year ... and the All Blacks winning the Rugby World Cup, as sports editor Kelly Exelby writes.
Ernie Els, you can run but you can't hide - Kiwi caddie Ant Knight knows where to find you and he wants his $500.
As Knight this week prepared to leave his Papamoa home and head to China for the HSBC Shanghai Open, the first stop on a month-long swing that will take him and his boss Aaron Baddeley to the Australian Open in Sydney and the President's Cup a week later at Royal Melbourne, the Big Easy is in Knight's sights after a World Cup wager the affable Kiwi has waited years to call in.
Els and Knight stuck five red ones on whose team, the Springboks or All Blacks, would progress furthest in the tournament - and it's $500 Knight will be happy to pocket when he tracks Els down in China.
"Ernie was supposed to be coming out to stay with me to watch the World Cup but I think he saw the Boks' first few games and decided not to bother," Knight said.
"Hosting him here would have been a prime chance to collect what he owes but I think he'll pay up on this one - in the past we've had a few wagers on the Tri-Nations and it's been hard getting money out of him."
Knight has been in the employ of Australian Baddeley since 2009, his second stint with the player, having spent almost two decades looping for a living, among them Kiwi Frank Nobilo whom he stood alongside for seven years in the 1990s.
He loves getting back to his own little slice of paradise at Papamoa but the past month has been particularly pleasurable, squeezing in as many All Black games as possible, including watching last weekend's epic final from the grandstand at Eden Park.
He's been the butt of good-natured ridicule for years about our national team's tendency to choke on the grand stage so plans to strut the fairways like a peacock as he basks in the winning afterglow.
"Badds, who is Victorian, is big into AFL and doesn't know the first thing about rugby, has watched these last few years as I've been worn down by guys like Els, [Retief] Goosen, in fact most of the South Africans, calling us chokers, while I've been adamant every year for 20 years that we were on course to smash everyone, so this year I used reverse psychology, agreeing we'd choke again just to defuse these guys.
"Badds is Aussie through-and-through but actually wanted the All Blacks to win because of how much it would mean to Kiwis. The morning of the game he texted 'big day Antman!', and then 'well done Antman' when we won. That's the class of the guy."
Baddeley's year with Knight on the bag has been sensational, winning for the first time in four years when he captured the Northern Trust Open at Riviera, finishing 14th in the FedExCup after tying for third in the Tour Championship and earning US$3.1 million. From outside the world's top-200 he's now inside the top-50 and is guaranteed a start in all four majors next year.
Yet Knight believes the two-time Aussie Open champion has only scratched the surface of what he's capable of.
"Badds was in a dark place with his golf for a couple of years and only just came out of it at the beginning of this year, although he's always stayed positive and has remodelled his swing on when he was winning Aussie Opens as teenager. It's taken him a few years and now his ball striking's great his putting isn't as good as it was. If he gets that right he's capable of anything because he's matured hugely mentally."
Knight discussed with Baddeley for years the possibility if going back on tour but wasn't actively seeking fulltime employment two years ago when the offer came. They'd worked together back in '02 and '03 before Knight chucked it in.
"Baddeley's obviously a devout Christian - doesn't drink, doesn't swear and he's a solid straight-shooter. We're completely different people but he's a great guy who'd do anything for you."
Knight had a reputation for enjoying a beer a decade or more ago but said the PGA Tour had changed considerably in the past decade, mainly for the better.
"Baddeley knows my past but when I started working for him I told him he didn't have to worry about any of that. It was the same with Sergio Garcia because players don't want their caddies turning up on the first tee bleary-eyed, stinking of booze.
"I made the decision a while back to clean up my act, although the reputation I had was mainly because of some of the guys I hung around with who were big boozers.
"Tiger [Woods] coming along in '96 changed everything - all of a sudden the money was flooding in, players were going to the gym and nearly everyone was trying to keep their nose clean. The days of a guy like Ian Woosnam winning the US Masters having downed eight pints before he teed it up in the last round are long gone."
Knight bases himself at former New Zealand Open champion Matthew Lane's home in Los Angeles when he's not on the road, and made the conscious step this year to duck downunder, even if just for 7-8 days, when the schedule allows.
"It's the single weeks off that kill you. Stevie Williams gets on a plane and flies home even if it's just for three days, although he's on a different pay rate to me."
It was Williams who got Knight started caddying and Knight said he owes everything to the brash Aucklander, who was sensationally dropped by Woods this year. Woods has since hired Joe LaCava as his caddy, a decision that surprised Knight considering he rates LaCava's old boss Dustin Johnson as a potential world No 1 in the next few years.
"Joe's not hurting for a dollar and maybe spending more time in the US with Tiger was appealing."
Knight believes Woods can return - if he gets his game on the short grass back to where it was. "Everyone forgets with Tiger that he's won majors hitting it to every part of the course but never missed a putt under 10 feet for 14 major wins. Now he's missing them from 4, 6 and 8 feet, so there's some scar tissue there that he has to deal with."
Knight is looking forward to his first visit to China this week but says the President's Cup, with Baddley's International team taking on the US, would be special.
On the subject of special moments, one of the highlights of Knight's year came in May when he won the annual "Bruce Edwards/Caddie Closest to the Hole Contest" on Wednesday at the 17th hole at TPC Sawgrass. He hit a borrowed 9-iron from 130 yards to 9 feet on the famed island par-three, with footage captured by Baddeley on his phone camera posted on YouTube.
Knight teed it up in the caddy competition seven times before with varying success.
"One of the scariest moments was in '94 or '95 when I was with Nobilo and Greg Norman and Jack Nicklaus were our playing partners. Frank told them to get right up in my face and put me off, so I teed the ball up a foot off the ground so I didn't miss it and somehow got it on the green with my knees shaking."
This time the five handicapper borrowed a club from Aussie pro Michael Sim, swung sweetly and banged it close.
"I was telling the other caddies it was my time to shine, although secretly I just wanted to hit the green. Usually a couple of feet wins it so it was a pretty neat day to come through."
Bagman tips rookie for big success
The player-caddy relationship lasted just a few months but US-based bagman Ant Knight is picking Danny Lee to stick around on the US PGA Tour for a lot longer.
The former Bay of Plenty No 1 is already confirmed on the PGA Tour for 2012 after a sensational rookie season on the Nationwide Tour and Knight has tipped Lee to be a huge success.
Lee and Knight paired up in early 2009 but their working relationship ended abruptly, reportedly due to a clash between Knight and Lee's father Sam.
"Danny wants me to work for him but me and Danny's old man didn't quite see eye to eye on a few things, so it looks like we've parted ways," Knight told the Bay of Plenty Times at the time.
Lee's self-belief would be his biggest asset next season, he predicted.
"Having worked for him a bit in the past it's fantastic to see what he's achieved this year - Danny's a great kid and deserves to be there. "He'll do well, although whether it's right away only time will tell, but it's neat to see another Kiwi make it onto the tour.
"He's got all the talent but the big thing is the belief that he has.
"My guy (Aaron Baddeley) has got it but there's some guys who go out there week in, week out thinking if they hit it alright they should do well, while others play a bit scared and don't believe much in themselves yet still make a living. My guy, whenever he tees it up, knows he's a genuine chance of winning, and Danny's the same." Kelly Exelby