Meet Michael Cromie: Chris Kirk’s Caddie

 

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Chris Kirk is a PGA Tour professional that has been in recent news for breaking a 7-year drought by winning the 2023 Honda Classic. He has a solid track record and even though he had a long stretch without winning, he was still good enough to earn an average of $1.5 million every year. His most recent win (as of March 2023) will no doubt be an intense confidence booster, which should propel him to reaching his full potential on the tour. In addition to this surge of confidence, one other outside agent may be able to help him get there. That’s right, we’re talking about his caddie. Let’s get to know a little bit about Chris Kirk’s caddie.

Who is Chris Kirk’s caddie?

Chris Kirk’s caddie is Michael Cromie, a Georgia Golf alumn. As with most caddies on the PGA tour, Cromie has a strong competitive golf background. Cromie’s love for the game developed long after he was introduced. Though his dad had introduced him to the game around the age of four but didn’t like it all that much. He was also a well-rounded athlete, playing four different sports for much of his early life.

Around the age of 11, his parents told him to hone in on 2 sports, so he chose Golf and soccer. At that point, his love for the game grew and he became completely engulfed (pun intended) by the sport. This new found passion led to a strong work ethic, which landed him a scholarship on the Georgia Bulldogs golf team. Cromie went on to have a great career there, capping off his senior year with a top ten finish in four out of five starts.

When did Michael Cromie start caddying for Chris Kirk?

Chris Kirk has been on the record stating that he believes in a regular caddie rotation to keep things fresh but his partnership with Michael Cromie seems to be a lot longer than the three to four-week stretch he usually upholds. The exact timing of the partnership is unknown but my research indicates that Michael Cromie started caddying for Chris Kirk around June 2020.

How much does Chris Kirk’s caddie, Michael Cromie, make?

As we know, the compensation of caddies on the PGA tour has the tendency to fluctuate from one year to the next, based on the player’s performance. Because of this nuance, we’ll try to estimate how much Michael Cromie made caddying for Chris Kirk during the 2021-2022 season. To do that, we’ll use the following model: Caddies make 5% of earnings if the player places outside the top 10, 7% if the player finishes within the top 10, and 10% if the player finishes in 1st place. Using this model, we can estimate that Michael Cromie made at least  $113,833 in 2022 while caddying for Chris Kirk on the PGA Tour.

Here's the breakdown of how much money Michael Cromie made in 2022 caddying for Chris Kirk

Tournament	Finish	Chris Kirk's Earnings	% of Earnings	Michael Comie's Earnings
Sanderson Farms Championship	T35	$35,613	5%	$1,781
THE CJ CUP @ SUMMIT	T14	$169,065	5%	$8,453
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP	T48	$24,378	5%	$1,219
World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba	T64	$15,336	5%	$767
Sony Open in Hawaii	T27	$49,250	5%	$2,463
WM Phoenix Open	T14	$133,250	5%	$6,663
The Honda Classic	T7	$260,000	7%	$18,200
Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard	T5	$463,500	7%	$32,445
Valero Texas Open	T35	$41,925	5%	$2,096
Zurich Classic of New Orleans	T21	$24,111	5%	$1,206
Charles Schwab Challenge	T15	$132,300	5%	$6,615
the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday	T53	$27,994	5%	$1,400
RBC Canadian Open	T7	$273,325	7%	$19,133
Genesis Scottish Open	71	$16,240	5%	$812
The Open Championship	T42	$51,000	5%	$2,550
Rocket Mortgage Classic	T17	$128,100	5%	$6,405
BMW Championship	T61	$32,550	5%	$1,628
Grand Total		$1,877,937	5%	$113,833