Players 2025: Collin Morikawa’s caddie just made the first caddie ace in 25 years at the infamous 17th hole

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If you’re a hardcore golf fan, you probably know J.J. Jakovac is Collin Morikawa’s caddie. If you’re somewhere beyond hardcore, you might know he was a terrific player himself, winning both the 2002 and 2004 Division II individual championship at Chico State University in California. And now, you may know him as the only caddie to make an ace at the 17th hole – the infamous island green – in 25 years of the Wednesday caddie closest-to-the-pin competition.

Watch the incredible shot here:

The caddie competition, in which caddies take a crack at the island green, began in 2000, and that year Ben Englebrecht, looper for Steve Flesch, took top honours with a shot that came rest five feet, seven inches from the hole. The standard improved over the years until Chris Rice, Harold Varner III’s caddie, hit his tee shot in 2021 to one foot, two inches. It’s hard to get much closer than that without putting it in the hole, and on Wednesday, that’s exactly what Jakovac did.

Along with the thrill of victory, Jakovac will actually make money for his feat. Knockaround Sunglasses is sponsoring the competition with a $US10,000 prize to the winner, and when players register for the competition, they also have the option to donate. According to the PGA Tour, they’ve contributed at least $US17,000. Jakovac will collect both prizes for a total of $US27,000, and the Players Championship will match the player contribution of $17,000 for a charitable donation. Jakovac will be able to choose how that money is dispersed from a list of five charities. He’ll also get his name on a plaque in the Sawgrass clubhouse, and come away with some swag, including a VIP parking spot until Sunday, an engraved money clip, and a “custom drawing by sketch artist Casey Jones”.

All this is true unless, of course, someone else makes an ace to tie him. We’re not betting on it.

“I was a little nervous it wasn’t enough club because the wind started coming more off the right than helping,” Jakovac said, “but I talked to my man here (Morikawa) and I said, ‘If I just turn it with the wind, it should be good, right?’ And he’s like, ‘Yeah, it’s perfect.’ So I just hit a draw pitching wedge and landed about five feet past and swung down the hill.”

“I knew he was going to have a chance [at the competition],” Morikawa said, “but for it to go in was actually crazy… I think we’re all drained after that.”