Tommy Fleetwood leads, Joe LaCava tries to convert Patrick Cantlay to a NY sports fan and Rory celebrates his birthday among takeaways from Round 1 at the Wells Fargo Championship

One day into his new job, Joe LaCava is finding out why Tiger Woods told him, “You’d be crazy not to take the job.”

On Thursday, LaCava, 59, began his latest caddying gig on the bag of world No. 4 Patrick Cantlay, who fired a 4-under 67 (T-7) in the opening round.

“Played really well today,” Cantlay said. “The course was gettable on my front nine, although I kind of finished with a flurry there with the eagle and the birdie on 7 and 8.”

Cantlay, who won both the FedEx Cup and was named PGA Tour Player of the Year in 2021, hired LaCava to take over his bag at the suggestion of World Golf Hall of Fame member Fred Couples, who employed LaCava when he won the 1992 Masters and for more than two decades.

“Fred’s just spoke so highly of him not just as a caddie but as a friend, that he’s just a great dude,” Cantlay said. “I trust Fred a lot, he’s a good friend of mine and I’ve gotten pretty close to him over the years, so when he says something like that, I know he keeps a tight circle, he means it.”

LaCava most recently had been Woods’ sidekick for 11 official wins and 12 in all, including the 2019 Masters. With Woods sidelined for the foreseeable future after undergoing ankle fusion surgery, LaCava was available for work. He had received offers to pick up a bag for other players before but always remained loyal to Woods. He and Cantlay have worked together before during the 2021 Northern Trust when Cantlay’s former caddie, Matt Minister, missed time due to COVID-19.

LaCava told Sports Illustrated, he’d be with Cantlay, “As long as Patrick will have me going forward. I’m saying this kiddingly, if (Woods) could physically carry his own bag, he could win. I think he’s fine without me. We’ll miss each other with the friendship and not seeing each other as we normally would.”

Cantlay described working with LaCava in the first round as “a pretty easy transition,” adding, “I felt like I needed a change and it just seemed to work.”

Cantlay, 31, finished with a flourish, taking advantage of benign conditions on a Chamber of Commerce day to make a 26-foot eagle at No. 7 and an eight-foot birdie at No. 8 thanks to a helpful hand from LaCava.

“He had a really good read on eight and made a tricky putt there up the hill,” Cantlay said.

That’s not all he did. LaCava, who is a devoted sports fan, also began indoctrinating Cantlay into the cult of New York sports. Asked if LaCava had converted him into supporting the Giants, Rangers or Yankees, Cantlay smiled and said, “Not yet. He’s working on Yankees fan, though. He’s working on me.”