NBC just recruited another caddie to follow in Jim ‘Bones’ McKay’s footsteps

Longtime PGA Tour caddie John Wood is headed to NBC. The network announced Tuesday that Wood will serve as an on-course reporter for its PGA Tour coverage across NBC and Golf Channel beginning in 2021.

“We’re thrilled to add John Wood to NBC Sports’ rotation of on-course reporters,” said lead NBC golf producer Tommy Roy. “John’s experience as a PGA Tour caddie for nearly two decades, combined with his passion and knowledge of the game, will be a great addition to our team during our busy slate of events in 2021.”

The move makes Wood the second high-profile caddie in the last few years to make the jump to television. In 2017, Phil Mickelson’s longtime caddie Jim “Bones” Mackay transitioned into a similar role also with NBC.

Wood, who served on four professional bags over his 20-year caddie career, hinted at the potential move after he parted ways with Matt Kuchar earlier this year.

“John Wood called me after the week of Greensboro and said he was going to be done caddying, at least for me,” Kuchar told Golf Channel shortly after the split. “Said that he was going to look into some options with TV. And so I kind of had to piece together a couple caddies in the interim.”

It remains to be seen what Wood’s transition means for his caddying career. While his television opportunities take up the majority of Mackay’s schedule, he’s managed to continue his former career on a spot basis, even filling in for Justin Thomas en route to a victory at the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational in August. Most recently, Wood has worked with Cameron Champ.

In a Golf Channel release announcing the decision, Wood’s tone focused more on his future in front of the microphone than any potential paths back to the bag.

“I couldn’t be more excited to be joining the incredible team at Golf Channel and NBC,” said Wood. “They’ve set the standard in golf coverage and I hope to bring an interesting perspective to their incredible production.”

For NBC, Wood adds to a stable of experienced Tour voices responsible for covering half of golf’s major championships and a glut of PGA Tour events. For Wood, the move means the extension of his broadcast career, a role he first tried to some success alongside Mackay at the RSM Classic in 2015.