Scott Matheson, '86, Living His Back Nine as a Professional PGA Caddie
By Tony Scott

Scott Matheson, '86, took a job as a caddie for PGA tournaments after his early retirement
in 2023. (Photo credit: Scott Matheson) 

Following a successful multi-decade career in information technology, Scott Matheson, ’86, retired and traded his computer screen for lush greens.
 

“I am a professional caddie on the PGA Champions Tour,” he said. “After taking early retirement in 2023, a friend of mine asked me to caddie for him in a tournament as his caddie of many years retired. That began a partnership where we’ve had success in many events, including high finishes in three majors.”

Matheson grew up in suburban South Holland, Illinois, with three brothers, and got into golf at an early age with encouragement from his father, who was a plumber but also an avid golfer. The boys’ mother, a real estate agent, was a successful athlete in a variety of sports. 

“She definitely is the one who instilled in us our highly competitive nature in sports,” Matheson said.

After a first year at Indiana University on a golf scholarship, Matheson transferred to NIU, where he found success as a captain of the Huskies Men’s Golf team. That team won the MAC Championship in 1985. 
 

He credits teammate Kelly Holmes, ’88, as being someone who gave the team a boost and helped them find success.

“Kelly Holmes provided great motivation to work harder to excel,” Matheson said.

Following his graduation with a degree in finance, Matheson worked in financial forecasting for two years at Spiegel. 

After Spiegel, he worked in information technology at AT&T for 25 years, followed by 10 years working for Navisite, a cloud service provider. He finished his career in the managed IT hosting division of Sirius/CDW.

Matheson names MAC Coach of the Year Jack Pheanis as a big influence on him during his time at NIU and beyond.

“Coach Pheanis provided great examples of leadership, teamwork and determination,” Matheson said. “Along with my degree in finance, those qualities have been core to my success throughout my career in business and also now in being a PGA caddie.”

Matheson calls caddying physically and mentally challenging.

“There is a lot of travel, and I average walking almost 10 miles a day,” he said. “Competing as part of a professional team against the best golfers in the world is definitely the most rewarding aspect of my job.”

Matheson's favorite course has been Carnoustie in Scotland for the Senior Open. He also enjoyed Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio.

"Both are so steeped in golf history," he said.

Matheson shared some stories about two well-known PGA golfers who made a positive impression on him.

Last year, his golfer was paired with John Daly at a tournament in Des Moines. 

“We were in about 20th place going into the final round, yet our gallery with Daly was much larger than the final group, which included eventual tournament winner Ernie Els,” he said. “The fans really go wild over JD!”

Matheson called Stewart Cink the nicest player on tour.

“We’ve been paired together a few times, and he never fails to ask me about my family and just genuinely cares about others,” he said. “He has a great sense of humor as well. When I asked him how he felt about beating Tom Watson in a playoff for the British Open, he replied that even his own wife was rooting for Watson!”

Matheson said true Huskies are not intimidated by strong competition and that NIU grads can compete on a global scale.
 

"We can and we do!" he said. "Go Huskies!"
 

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