Anna Nordqvist is one of the biggest stars in the women's game, being the only non-American woman to have won Major championships in three different decades (2000's, 2010's and 2020's). As the latest chapter of her career begins, Nordqvist has begun life on tour with a new caddie...
Who Is Anna Nordqvist's Caddie?
Nordqvist's caddie is currently Jack Clarke, the man she employed before a four-year stint working with Paul Cormack between 2019 and 2023. The Swede enjoyed a particularly successful period of results with the Scottish looper, winning the 2021 AIG Women's Open at Carnoustie.
However, after Cormack was tempted away from Nordqvist's bag by the prospect of teaming up with Lydia Ko midway through 2023, the three-time Major winner was forced to find another caddie once more.
While Nordqvist has worked with a number of different loopers over the years, more recently, she has relied on close friends Mikey Curry and Patrik Jonsson on a temporary basis - Jonsson worked the 2023 Solheim Cup.
But after having Clarke fill in towards the end of the 2023 season - a campaign which ended with the news that her husband, Kevin McAlpine, had died - Nordqvist and Madelene Sagstrom's husband have become a permanent on-course team.
Clarke will accompany one of Team Europe's four vice-captains as she competes as a member of Suzann Pettersen's 12 at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club this September.
Clarke is from Essex in England and began playing golf at the age of five. Admitting he didn't take the game seriously until he was around 12 or 13, he later turned professional at the age of 18 and went on to win a Faldo Series event.
But following a spate of injuries that prevented his progress, Clarke stopped playing professionally at 27 years old and turned his attention to caddying instead.
Speaking to PLTCA about why being a caddie is so enjoyable to him, Clarke said: "What I love about caddying is the fact that I'm still very much involved with the competitive side of the game, and just having a great time on the fairways with other golf lovers."
Before agreeing to join Nordqvist and having worked with his wife on occasion, Clarke linked up with another world-class Swedish golfer in Ludvig Aberg. The pair had managed two professional wins - one on the PGA Tour and one on the DP World Tour - as well as eight top-25 finishes and a Ryder Cup victory.
Yet, the week before the season-ending Grant Thornton Invitational, Aberg told Clarke he was moving on without him, purely in order to employ a caddie with more experience, particularly in Majors. Rickie Fowler's former bagman, Joe Skovron was hired as someone with over 50 starts at the four biggest tournaments of the year.
Speaking to Bunkered about Aberg's decision to go in a different direction, Clarke admitted that he was shocked and disappointed but understood the Swede's rationale.
Clarke said: “He just turned around to me the week before last and said he was going to let me go, purely based on wanting more experience on the bag. When he said the experience in majors, I can’t say too much about it because I don’t have that.
“Before the conversation, I didn’t see it coming because of the results we had together, but I totally respect his decision.
"I was shocked and disappointed by the decision, but at the end of the day it’s his decision to hopefully become what he wants to become."
