From the thrill of winning the US Amateur to the ordeal of surgery at 21, Andy Ogletree‘s life has been a rollercoaster ride. However, while navigating through all the challenges his parents and his trusted caddie played a significant role. Interestingly his caddie is equally talented and their partnership comes with an interesting story.

Andy Ogletree’s father built the foundation of his son’s golf career

Andy Ogletree was born to Jim Ogletree and Melissa Ogletree on April 3, 1998, in Little Rock, Mississippi. Although Jim had limited knowledge about golf, as he owned and operated a Piggly Wiggly grocery store in Little Rock, he was there to support his son when young Ogletree wanted to practice golf. His mother, Melissa Ogletree, is a first-grade teacher and likes to support his son outside of the classroom. He spent his childhood in rural Mississippi, and his father built a practice area in the family’s yard replete with a bunker and greens with a floodlight.

He honed his skills in the practice area under the guidance of his father. Although the community is familiar with Andy Ogletree, he keeps his parents’ lives private. Aside from mentioning their job, the golfer hasn’t shared much about his family. Just as his parents support him, Ogletree also prioritizes his family and shows his dedication to them. In 2019, before claiming the title of the US Amateur, the golfer skipped the Western Amateur to attend a family function.

It was “a huge family reunion” for him as his extended family of 40 members participated. Interestingly, the party was given the nickname “Mississippi’s Giant House Party.” After the party, Ogletree described his happiness and said, “For us, it’s a huge family reunion, and it’s the time that all our families get together and stay for a week,” as per the Sports Illustrated website.

This reunion served as a great reset for the golfer, as he won the 2019 US Amateur Championship after defeating John Augenstein at Pinehurst No. 4. Thanks to his victory, the golfer earned exemptions into the 2020 Masters Tournament, U.S. Open, and Open Championship.

Following his victory at the US Amateur, Ogletree joined the PGA Tour as a pro and made his debut at Mayakoba, where he finished 46th and missed the cut in his first three events. However, he was still eligible to play at the 2021 Masters and the US Open, but he was unable to play due to hip surgery in 2021. In the following year, the pro moved to LIV Golf and has been part of it since then. While Andy Ogletree has the support of his family outside of the greens, his caddie, Michael Pisciotta, does the same inside the ropes.

Michael Pisciotta is a long-time friend of Andy Ogletree

Andy Ogletree graduated from Georgia Tech, where he met Michael Pisciotta for the first time. Ogletree was playing college golf, his friend was doing the same. Interestingly, Michael was rated as the best junior in the state of Georgia in 2014, as per the Georgia Tech website. He was also ranked among the top 50 golfers in America in 2014 by the Junior Golf Scoreboard.

He played golf until 2018 but didn’t choose to play professionally. None of them has talked about why Michael didn’t choose golf as his full-time career. In April 2023, Pisciotta became the golfer’s full-time caddie, and since then they have been working together.

With his friend and caddie having a similar understanding of the game, he might be one of the best partners on the greens. Although Pisciotta has a public Instagram account with over 700 followers, he appears to be a private individual. He hasn’t talked about his personal life but seems to be fond of traveling. While Michael Pisciotta is with Andy Ogletree as a good friend and bagman, it will be interesting to see how the LIV Pro’s professional career continues to unfold.