Steve Williams, who was Tiger Woods’ caddie during the peak of his success, was famously dismissed for temporarily switching to another player. The Kiwi golfing caddie supported Woods on various challenging courses around the globe between 1999 and 2011, a pivotal aid to Woods’s remarkable collection of 15 major career victories and record 82 PGA Tour titles – nine more than golfing titan Jack Nicklaus.
Thanks to this unparalleled run of victories, Williams accumulated an estimated net worth of £15.7million ($20m), chiefly due to his wage packet and a fraction of Woods’ competition earnings. With Williams accompanying him, Woods clinched 64 of his tour triumphs, 13 of his 15 majors, bagged the Tour Player of the Year award nine times, and secured a lofty 281-week tenure as World No. 1 from June 2005 to October 2010.
However, this prosperous period ended abruptly for Williams, who has previously divulged why Woods relieved him of his duties. In a 2021 documentary on Woods, Williams said: “After the Masters, Tiger took a little bit of a break away from the game just to get his mind fresh as well as to deal with some niggling injuries. As a caddie of Tiger Woods and a great friend of his, I wanted to deeply respect what he was going through but I still didn’t know when he would be playing again.”