Argentina’s Angel Cabrera won the U.S. Torture er, I mean, Open Golf Tournament yesterday over Tiger Woods and Jim Furyk, but the more interesting story from the Open was Colin Montgomerie’s extraordinary effort to retain his “most unpopular golfer” status on the PGA Tour.
A couple of weeks ago, Monty summarily fired his longtime caddy while going through the worst stretch of his career. Thus, for the U.S. Open, Monty picked up a local caddy who had previously worked for Jack Nicklaus. Apparently, while Monty was missing the cut at the Open, things did not go swimmingly between Monty and his new bagman:

Colin Montgomerie’s love affair with the US Open is on the rocks after his latest attempt to win the championship ended in abject failure and an ignominious falling out with his 62-year-old caddie.
On a day when a quartet of Britons conjured up hopes of ending Europeís eight-year drought in the majors, Montgomerie slumped to his worst score in the tournament since his debut in 1993.
He missed the halfway cut at unforgiving Oakmont by eight shots and allowed the volatile side of his nature to wreak its revenge on the hapless Billy Goddard.
The veteran caddie, hired to carry Montgomerieís clubs after the 43-year-old Ryder Cup star sacked long-term bagman Alistair McLean last week, tried to find a kind word to say about his temporary employer.
“Heís a good guy but he just gets mad at himself,” said Goddard. “And he got mad at me, absolutely.” [. . .]
After contacting the caddiemaster at Oakmont Country Club to request an experienced bagman ó the main condition of his employment being that he should not talk too much ó Montgomerie was allocated Goddard, a man with a reputation as a kindly soul who can get along with anyone.
Even though Goddard is so valued that he has caddied for Jack Nicklaus, he was to learn that Montgomerie can be easily upset by what seem innocuous comments.
After a first-round 76 left him with plenty of ground to make up, Montgomerie was unable to cope with the increasingly difficult demands of Oakmontís penal rough and slick greens as he tossed shots away like a highhandicapper having a bad day.
Montgomerie was so distressed by an incident during the front nine of his second round that he walked over to speak to his girlfriend, Gaynor Knowles, on the 10th fairway and was overheard to say: “Itís such a shame. Itís really upset me. It really, really has.”
When Goddard was asked whether he knew what had caused Montgomerie to become so agitated, he admitted being responsible, saying: “On the fourth hole he asked me what the yardage was and I said: ‘Lay up or go for it?’. He said: ‘Iím going for it’. After he made a bogey on the hole, he said to me: ‘You should never have said the words lay up’. After that we hardly talked. That was the first taste I had of his reputation.” [. . .]
On the 18th his drive landed in such thick rough that he could not see the ball and hacked it only 10 yards forward.
When he launched his third towards the green, a youth yelled ëGet in the holeí to be greeted by the coldest stare Montgomerie could muster. As the object of his anger was identified, the spectator turned to the rest of crowd and appealed: ëI was only trying to encourage him.í [. . .]