Fluff returns to work for Furyk

Mike "Fluff" Cowan will be back at work as a caddie in the Masters. Just not for Tiger Woods.

Furyk, who finished third on the money list last year, fired caddie Steve DuPlantis after 4-1/2 years and gave Cowan a call after The Players Championship.

"I had a need, and there wasn't any finer man available," Furyk told Golfweek. "All the good caddies I know, they all have a great player's bag. I needed somebody, and he's the best available.

"I'd have been an idiot not to give Mike a call."

Cowan rose to tremendous popularity as the 50-year-old former hippie with the thick mustache, carrying the bag for the sleek and talented Tiger Woods from the day he turned professional and stormed to the top of golf.

Woods fired Cowan last month, saying it was "time to move on."

While players change caddies all the time, Cowan took on such a high-profile role that his split with Woods even got two pages in People magazine. The Masters draws hundreds of reporters from around the world, and the sight of Cowan on the Augusta fairways with someone other than Woods is sure to attract attention.

Furyk, who tied for fourth in the 1998 Masters, said he is prepared for it.

"Being that his first time back will be at Augusta, it'll definitely add a buzz," Furyk said. "But the flip side is that I'm also going with a guy who has been there lots of time, many more times than I've been there, and going with a guy who has won there."

Furyk conceded there would be one difference because of Woods' length.

"I'm sure the clubs he pulls for me will be a little different than the ones he used to have to pull for him," Furyk said.