Funk and Long, Partners in Prime

PGA Tour Veteran, and His Longtime Caddie and Friend, Work Together

Fred Funk and caddie Mark Long walked toward the clubhouse Tuesday, signature-seeking children tailing not far behind. They waved to fans and smiled as they passed practice greens and moved into the bag room, greeted by handshakes and backslaps.

Funk and Long, both of whom grew up in the area and have remained together all these years, had returned home.

Their decades-long relationship has formed a bond uncommon for other golfers and their caddies. Technically, Funk is the boss and Long is his employee. But sometimes they're partners taking on the rest of the field.

"If it hadn't been for Fred, I'd be a respectable member of society by now," Long said earlier this week. "He's kept me from having a real job forever and ever, which is nice."

Both men mostly enjoyed the familiar environs yesterday, when Funk shot an even-par 70 despite a bogey on the 18th hole.

That was a little disappointing," Funk said, "but overall it was a good day."

Except for details -- Funk has a glut of local fans and now travels in a Learjet instead of his diesel Jetta, and Long greets, by name, every caddie or golfer who walks past -- they have not changed much from when they first befriended each other at the University of Maryland Golf Course.

Funk, a Takoma Park native, is the same guy who used to play with friends on the weekends and afterward grab a slice at Ledo Pizza in Adelphi. Long, who grew up on 29th Street near St. John's College High in the District, still crashes at his parents' place when he returns to the area. "It's always great to come back home," Funk said. "It truly is my home."

Funk was 21 years old when he met Long, 14 at the time, as employees at the university's course. They buzzed around on ball-collecting carts at the driving range.

Long joined the Maryland golf team years later and played under Funk, then the Terrapins' coach.

About 15 friends -- a group known as "the Turds" -- played in groups of six or seven, went into the clubhouse for beers after 18 holes and then returned for a nine-hole scramble. Bets were made once to see if one friend could swim across the course's pond before another ran around it.

"It was so much fun growing up and playing golf there," Long said. "You couldn't replace it."

When Funk became a member of the PGA Tour in 1989, Long became his caddie. They split for about a decade but have been back together since 2002.

"They know each other, and they respect one another," said Jim Summy, Congressional's longtime caddie chairman. "And that's sort of makes a pretty good combination with boss man and workman."

Funk and Long sometimes vacation together, stealing away to Hawaii a few days early if a Tour event is scheduled on one of its islands. Both now live in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., and Long occasionally travels to events on Funk's jet, a rare privilege for a caddie. They take nights off to attend baseball games at different cities on tour or go out to dinner, the most recent of which was a trip for Funk's favorite indulgence: Old Bay-seasoned Maryland blue crabs.

In the bag room on Tuesday, a handful of course employees gathered around the two hometown favorites and watched as Funk unsheathed clubs, trying to find the right combination for a practice round, and passed them to Long. The caddie took inventory, removed clubs deemed unfit, and then passed the rest back for Funk to put in the bag.

"Here, carry these, will ya?" caddie said to golfer.

"You amuse yourself, don't ya?" golfer said to caddie.

And everyone in the room had a good laugh.

Staff writer Andrew Astleford contributed to this report.