Meet Scottie Scheffler’s Caddie Ted Scott: Life & Career of His Trusted Henchman of Many Years Explored

Scottie Scheffler is making history at THE PLAYERS Championship. No one has hoisted the swinging golfer trophy for two consecutive years, and Scheffler wants to change that. The seven-time PGA Tour winner has put his trust in the veteran bagman, Ted Scott, for the eighth victory of his career.

Scott, who comes with two decades of caddying experience, partnered with the 27-year-old in 2021. All of Scheffler’s seven pieces of silverware came with Scott on the bag. Early signs of success were already there. Justin Ray tweeted two years back, “In nine starts with Scott on the bag, Scheffler has made more than $9 million. In his previous 62 starts, he made $8.5 million.” What more do we know about Ted Scott, who has worked wonders for the world no. 1?

Scottie Scheffler banks on Scott’s experience on the greens

Scott has previously caddied for Bubba Watson for 15 years. The veteran looper was on his bag during his two victories; at Augusta in 2012 and 2014. Previously, Scott was also on the bag of Ryder Cup-winning US captain Paul Azinger. Before that, he was with the now-famous putting coach of Viktor Hovland, Grant Waite. Watson said they parted ways mutually, not due to any difference of opinion. It was mainly because Watson, at 43, understood he was in the twilight of his career and that it was time for Scott to move on from him. 

However, Scott is still in touch with his former employer.  “I say we’re still friends. We still text each other, so behind the door, he might not be friends with me, but he has made more money, so now I guess he’s happy he left,” Watson said after the 2022 Masters.  The veteran looper too echoed, “Bubba and I are still very good friends. We just had some different ideas in our life of where we are and where we wanted to go.”

Scott, after splitting with Watson, almost hung up his clubs. The veteran bagman thought to move where his previous employer, Grant Waite moved to — golf instruction. However, around that time, he received a call that forced him to change his decision. The call came from Scottie Scheffler. 

How did Scottie Scheffler convince Scott?

Scheffler first met Scott in a Bible study group. And then Scheffler was paired with Bubba Watson at the Zurich Classic. “I already thought the world of him as a person,” the seven-time PGA Tour winner said in an interview. The hard part was convincing. 

Scott wanted to check a few things before saying yes to Scheffler’s proposal for collaboration. The main concern was that the youngster often threw tantrums after missing a shot on the course. That frustration was sometimes directed towards his caddie as well.

Before saying yes, Scott asked world No. 1 to work on these areas. As Paul Tesori, Scott’s friend and colleague, revealed, “I want to come work for you, but you have got to promise me that you’re going to work on these areas.’ And not only did Scottie say yes, he has absolutely done it.”

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Scott revealed, “He called me up and said, ‘I really want to work with a Christian.’ That’s how I try to live my life,” Scott said on Sunday. “The other thing he said was, ‘I really like competing.’ I said, ‘I like competing.’” Scott asked his family to “pray upon it for a week.” It was a decision that his family approved, and veteran Bagman didn’t wait to shake hands with Scottie Scheffler. Two years later, the decision has definitely paid him well.

Ted Scott has been generously rewarded for the past three years

Generally, caddies earn 10% of the golfer’s share if they win. Whereas, a top-10 finish brings that down to 7% and 5% for a finish outside the top-10. Scheffler was in red-hot form last year. The PGA Tour Player of the Year earned around $21 million in 2023 alone, setting a new record on the PGA Tour. On top of that, riding on the strong momentum, Scheffler knocked off five top-10 finishes this season, along with a victory at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. 

The last victory at the Arnold Palmer Invitational alone put $400,000 in Scott’s pocket. Last year, Scheffler’s 17 top-tens and two titles earned the looper around $1.8 million. That $1.8 million would rank Scott 83rd in the Tour this year, Business Insider reported. In fact, that also puts him ahead of 158 golfers on the Tour. 

Scott came to caddying like most loopers do; his Tour career didn’t kickstart the way he thought it would. The veteran bagman reportedly has a handicap of +4 as well. Besides golf, Scott also has a niche interest in foosball, or tabletop soccer. In fact, Scott introduced his previous employer, Paul Azinger, to the game as well. 

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