Whenever a celebrity, golf great or, heck, the President of the United States comes to Pinehurst for a round, there’s a good chance you’ll know who the caddie will be:
Thomas Trinchitella.
Trinchitella has caddied for all walks of life. And while he treats everyone in a way to feel special, it’s clear who gets the call when there is an all-timer in the house.
“Anytime we ever had a special person, for whatever reason, who needed a caddie, I always said, ‘I have just the guy – Thomas,’” Padgett said. “When Tiger was here? Thomas. Rory? Thomas. Keegan? Thomas. The President of the United States? Thomas.
“I can say I’ve had three of the best caddies ever here at Pinehurst. One was Fletcher Gaines. Another was Willie McRae.
“But the one man I knew I was going to play my best with? Thomas. Just like Fletcher, just like Willie, when you only need to know the one name, you know he’s special. That’s Thomas.”
Here are just a few of Trinchitella’s memorable moments:
“The one below, from a practice round before the 2005 U.S. Open, Tiger was telling me about the putt he lipped out on 17 in the 1999 U.S. Open,” Trinchitella says.
It’s pretty easy to see the respect given both ways in Trinchitella’s photos with President Bush.
Note the different clothes on the President. Obviously, Trinchitella was asked back.
Rory played three rounds on Pinehurst No. 2 before the U.S. Open practice rounds in 2014. Whom did he have on the bag each day? Thomas.
At the time the best women’s player in the world, Sorenstam made sure to have the right man on the bag.
