Alex Smalley is becoming a major player on the PGA Tour, so now's the time to get to know his caddie.
After joining the PGA Tour in 2021, thanks to his success on the Korn Ferry Tour, Smalley has steadily built a solid reputation for himself.
Among the standout achievements in the early part of his PGA Tour career were a T2nd finish at both the 2022 Corales Puntacana Championship and the 2023 John Deere Classic.
For much of his pro career, Smalley worked with caddie Don Donatello.
Donatello had been on Smalley's bag since 2021, receiving a late call to join the golfer for the John Deere Classic.
He actually replaced Smalley's mom as his caddie. Dubbed Smalley's "momager", Maria is now responsible for looking after the player's stats and the commercial side of his game.
The partnership with Donatello was supposed to be a one-off, but it wasn't until 2026 that Smalley made a change, with Michael Burns taking on the role.
Burns has a playing background with success in high school, while he received college scholarship offers.
However, a career as a player didn't materialize, while life as a caddie didn't seem likely either, until he carried the bag for a friend, former MLB star Ivan Rodriguez, at a Senior Celebrity event.
At the tournament was 2009 PGA Champion YE Yang, who later offered Burns the chance to caddie for him at the 2022 edition of the PGA Championship at Southern Hills as well as the Senior PGA Championship.
Burns accepted the offer, and his career in caddying was underway.
More recently, Burns worked with Hayden Springer, including when he earned his PGA Tour card at Q-School in 2024.
That achievement came just a month after Springer tragically lost his daughter at the age of three, after she was diagnosed with Trisomy 18 at birth.
When he claimed his PGA Tour card, Burns became understandably emotional, while afterwards, he paid tribute to Springer, saying: "He's like my little brother, and I've never been so proud of somebody in my life.”
Springer and Burns parted ways in 2025, but they were reunited at the 2026 Zurich Classic of New Orleans when Springer teamed up with Smalley, who had hired Burns earlier in the year.
Springer and Smalley placed T2 at the event, with the pair narrowly missing out maiden PGA Tour titles to Matt and Alex Fitzpatrick.
Despite that near miss, the Smalley and Burns partnership was reaping rewards again at the PGA Championship, where he led by two at the 54-hole stage at Aronimink as his career continued its upward trajectory.
