Steve Williams began his most well-known caddying partnership with Tiger Woods in 1999, a collaboration that resulted in 13 major championship victories. 

However, before that phase of his career, Williams learned the fundamentals of caddying under Greg Norman.

In March 2025, Williams appeared on the Between Two Beers Podcast, where he spoke about his time working with Norman. 

“I would never have learned the art of caddying if it hadn’t been for Greg. He took me on, treated me like a son, and explained everything, why he hit a shot, how he hit it, and what decisions he was going to make. He taught me how to caddy.”

Steve Williams’ route to working with Greg Norman began while he was caddying for Ian Baker-Finch at the Australian Open at Metropolitan Golf Club in Melbourne.

Following the event, Norman obtained Williams’ contact details and later called him in New Zealand, explaining that he had observed his work during the round. 

At the time, Norman believed Williams was 20, although Williams was actually 17 and had already been caddying since the age of 13. 

Williams later admitted that he did not correct the assumption about his age in order to secure the opportunity to work with Norman.

Why did Greg Norman fire Steve Williams

Williams was on the bag at the 1986 Masters, where Norman finished runner-up, one stroke behind Jack Nicklaus. The duo parted ways in 1989.

In 1989, Greg Norman ended his working relationship with Steve Williams, with Williams later stating that their personal closeness affected their professional dynamic. 

“We spent so much time together. I was staying at his house in Florida. We were going fishing all the time, surfing, and just spending a lot of time together. He stopped being the guy I was working for; he became a mate.” Williams said during the podcast.

However, the two stayed in touch afterward, and Norman later said the decision was an error and sought to bring Williams back several years later.

Written by

Aditi Singh

Edited by

Oajaswini Prabhu