‘You owe me’ – Legendary caddie convinced Tiger Woods picked him after rescuing golf great from TOILET PAPER disaster

LEGENDARY caddie Billy Foster revealed the brilliant story behind Tiger Woods controversially picking him to fill in.

And it was all because Woods “owed” Foster after he rescued him from a toilet paper disaster.

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Billy Foster told the brilliant story of how he ended up saving Tiger WoodsCredit: INSTAGRAM

The pair ended up working together at the 2005 Presidents CupCredit: Getty

Foster came to the rescue on the opening morning of the 2002 Ryder CupCredit: EPA

Foster, 59, is one of the all-time great caddies, working with the likes of Seve Ballesteros, Lee Westwood, Darren Clarke, Matt Fitzpatrick, Sergio Garcia, Thomas Bjorn and Collin Morikawa among others.

But the Yorkshireman got a surprise call-up to carry the bag for Woods ahead of the 2005 Presidents Cup.

Woods’ usual man Steve Williams needed the week off for the birth of his child.

And the then-dominant world No1 asked Foster to step in – which apparently caused some angst among the rest of the American team who did not want a European in the camp.

But Foster revealed Woods was actually cashing in a favour from three years earlier – before the first tee on the first morning of the 2002 Ryder Cup at The Belfry.

He explained what happened just before the 8am start between his man Clarke and Bjorn against Woods and Paul Azinger.

Foster told the brilliant tale to the On The Road With Iona podcast.

He said: “He owed me a favour.

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“It was 7.45am and I was pretty nervous so off I go to the toilets, Davis Love III’s caddie Cubby is in there.

“I sit down, trolleys around the ankles… I look across, no toilet paper. Close call.

“So I walk into trap two, sit down, 20 rolls of toilet paper on the shelf.

“Next minute, I hear spikes on the bathroom floor then, ‘Morning Tiger,’ ‘Morning Cubby.’

“Bang. Trap one, where I’ve just been.

“Nine minutes to tee off at the Ryder Cup and I’m listening…

“Now I’m using the excess toilet paper, I’m drying my eyes because I’m crying, because I’ve got this vision of Tiger Woods with no toilet paper on the fifth hole of the day, walking like John Wayne that’s just got his horse.

“I hear this little sigh come from the cubicle, he’s realised there’s no toilet paper. Five minutes to tee off.

“I thought, ‘I can’t do it to him.’

“So I rolled up about 20 sheets, got down on my hands and knees under his toilet door. I went, ‘whoever’s in there, you might be needing this.’

“Now they go on about Diego Maradona and the Hand of God. This was the Hand of God for Tiger Woods, under the toilet door.

“As I walked out, I went, ‘Europe 1up’.

“And as he came out, he had the biggest smile on his face.

“It’s now like three minutes to tee off.

“I said, ‘You owe me, Tiger Woods.’

“He went, ‘Billy Foster, I owe you big time.’

“And I think that’s why I got the job for the Presidents Cup, not because I’m a good caddie.”

Clarke and Bjorn won that opening fourball match 1up and led 3-1 after the morning session.

But USA wrestled it back to 8-8 going into the Sunday singles before Europe completed a memorable 15½-12½ victory.

Fast forward to the 2005 Presidents Cup and an underperforming Woods won two, lost two and halved one of his five matches as USA beat the international team 18½-15½.

There was talk of Foster taking on the job on a full-time basis when Woods and Williams split in 2011.

However, Foster would not have accepted the offer because he was enjoying success with Westwood.

Foster has more than 40 years of experience as a golf caddie, starting out on the European Tour in 1983.

After several near misses and runner-up finishes, he finally secured his first major alongside fellow Yorkshireman Fitzpatrick at the 2022 US Open.

The duo split earlier this year, with Foster now reducing his workload but still doing freelance caddying, such as for Morikawa at The Open.  

Woods remembered the hilarious interactionCredit: Getty

Foster was on the bag when Matt Fitzpatrick won the 2022 US OpenCredit: Getty