Golfer throws headcover at caddie and sacks him on live TV
Bagman Brandon Davis bore the brunt of Rhein Gibson’s rage in the Bahamas. Alex Perry takes a closer look in this week’s episode of The Slam
What do you mean you haven’t heard of Rhein Gibson? Why else would I put “golfer” in the headline rather than his name?
You should know him, he’s won three times as a pro, including the Opens of Arkansas and Oklahoma, where his name is etched on the winners’ boards alongside esteemed company such as Matt VanCleave, Rocky Walcher and Willy Wood.
Maybe you know Gibson as a Guinness World Record holder for shooting a 16-under round of 55 in 2012. I didn’t know any of this until about five minutes ago. Thanks Wikipedia.
Anyway, now it looks like he’ll be remembered for an incident that marred the end of the Web.com Tour’s Bahamas Great Abaco Classic, where he removed his putter headcover on the 18th green then tossed it into the chest of his caddie Brandon Davis.
Luckily a whole bunch of people recorded it off their TVs to put on Twitter. I’ve chosen this guy because he offers his own commentary…
So what had happened before this incident? Well Gibson had hoiked his ball into a hazard near the 18th green.
Davis takes up the story: “We looked for the ball and I’m thinking, ‘There are some rocks here, a few other things… maybe we can find it, maybe we can hit it’.”
Davis said an official pointed the ball out to them.
“Rhein and I go over and look at it,” he adds. “I say, ‘It’s under two rocks, we’ve got nothing.’ Rhein turns around and walks to his bag as if to say, ‘Forget it.’ [He’s] clearly intending never to play the ball.
“Supposedly we’re a team in this game. The ball is dead, Rhein is clearly not hitting this golf ball, so I go over and pick it up.”
Fast forward a couple of minutes, Gibson takes a penalty drop and then the official informs him he will receive an additional one-shot penalty for Davis “not getting consent” to pick up the ball.
The docked shot was the difference between a tie for 2nd and solo 3rd. It also cost him $12,000 and Davis his job.
Gibson later apologised on Twitter – mainly because he’d been caught…
Before Davis hit back…
And here’s the YouTube video, titled “I got fired”. It’s wonderfully entertaining, and actually has a rather surprising ending…
As Shooter McGavin would say: “Dammit people, this is golf!”
What did you make of the Rhein Gibson caddie story on the web.com Tour? Have you ever heard a story like this Rhein Gibson caddie one? Tell us on X!
Alex Perry
Alex has been the editor of National Club Golfer since 2017. A Devonian who enjoys wittering on about his south west roots, Alex moved north to join NCG after more than a decade in London, the last five of which were with ESPN. Away from golf, Alex follows Torquay United and spends too much time playing his PlayStation or his guitar and not enough time practising his short game.
