A surprising turn of events occurred during the final round of the RBC Canadian Open at Hamilton Golf and Country Club in Ontario. Longtime PGA Tour caddie Mike “Fluff” Cowan had an unfortunate accident while caddying for C.T. Pan, slipping and falling on the third fairway. He was treated for minor injuries but was unable to continue for the rest of the round.
In a unique twist, a local fan named Paul Emerson stepped in to help Pan after Cowan’s fall. Emerson, a self-professed “golf nut,” quickly offered his assistance when he saw Pan’s caddie go down. He took over temporarily before a member of the caddie services team replaced him on the fifth hole. Pan then switched to Al Riddell, who lives nearby and caddies for another Tour golfer, for the back nine. Riddell became Pan’s fourth caddie of the day.
Despite the unexpected change in caddies, Pan managed to shoot a 1-under 69 in the final round, including a spectacular eagle hole-out on the back nine. This put him at 3-under for the tournament, more than 10 shots behind the leader when he finished. Pan has one career PGA Tour victory at the RBC Heritage in 2019, with inconsistent results this season.
Cowan’s caddying career dates back to 1976 when he started working with Ed Sabo. He later caddied for Peter Jacobsen before teaming up with Tiger Woods in 1996
