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          Bryson DeChambeau, caddie taking a break ahead of Rocket Mortgage Classic

          • Michael Collins
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            Michael Collins
            ESPN Senior Writer
            • Senior writer/video talent for ESPN.com
            • Worked for several players as PGA Tour caddie
            • Former stand-up comedian
          • Tom VanHaaren
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            Tom VanHaaren
            ESPN Staff Writer
            • ESPN staff writer
            • Joined ESPN in 2011
            • Graduated from Central Michigan
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          Jul 1, 2021, 04:36 PM

          DETROIT -- Bryson DeChambeau and caddie Tim Tucker are taking a break, DeChambeau told ESPN's Michael Collins on Thursday.

          DeChambeau is playing here in the Rocket Mortgage Classic, and Tucker was on the bag for DeChambeau at the start of the week. DeChambeau told Collins that Tucker has not quit outright, but the two are going to take some time apart.

          He did not specify how long the break would be, but Ben Schomin will caddie for DeChambeau during the remainder of the tournament. A search for a new caddie will begin after the tournament.

          "They have gone their separate ways for now," DeChambeau's agent, Brett Falkoff, told ESPN's Bob Harig. "That doesn't mean forever, but it means they are not working together now. They met last night and decided to move on. It's just an accumulation of things, and it's never easy when a player and caddie split up. They just decided the best situation for now was essentially to not be together anymore."

          Tucker and DeChambeau have had this situation happen before, when Tucker quit in 2017, though the two reunited in 2018.

          DeChambeau shot an even-par 72 in Thursday's suspended opening round, leaving him nine shots behind leader Davis Thompson.

          Schomin, Cobra Golf's director of tour operations, told ESPN's Collins after the round that he loves his current job and wasn't sure he would want another one should he be offered a chance to caddie for DeChambeau full time.

          "I think our interaction, he liked that, he liked walking down the fairway," Schomin said when asked what he learned in his first stint as DeChambeau's caddie. "I get it, these guys, they're on an island. So I guess it helps, maybe be there on an island and just chat and talk and try to keep it loose."

          Brooks Koepka, who has been engaged in a rivalry with DeChambeau, didn't let Thursday's news go by without comment. Koepka tweeted a shoutout to his caddie, Ricky Elliott, writing, "Couldn't do it without my guy Rick!"

          DeChambeau is the defending champion at the Rocket Mortgage Classic. He did not speak to the media after his opening round.