June 9, 2026, 11:27 a.m. ET
New professional golfer Ben James will make his debut at the RBC Canadian Open with veteran caddie Tim Tucker.James earned a full PGA Tour exemption for the 2026 and 2027 seasons by finishing first in the PGA Tour U rankings.Tucker previously caddied for Bryson DeChambeau, including during his 2020 U.S. Open victory.James has a busy schedule ahead, including the U.S. Open and the Travelers Championship.
Newly minted pro Ben James will have a veteran caddie on the bag in Tim Tucker for his professional debut at the RBC Canadian Open.
James, 23, finished first in PGA Tour U and earned a full exemption for the rest of the 2026 and 2027 season.
James wrapped up his college career at the University of Virginia last week and became just the fifth player to earn four first-team GCAA All-America honors, joining Gary Hallberg, Phil Mickelson, David Duval and Bryce Molder.
More: Virginia’s Ben James tops PGA Tour University Class of 2026, full rankings and status
Tucker is best known in the caddie ranks for his work with Bryson DeChambeau, including being on the bag for his victory at the 2020 U.S. Open. He caddied for Kurt Kitayama during his victory at the 2023 Arnold Palmer Invitational before parting with him last summer and doing a short stint with Tony Finau.
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James was a member of the U.S. Walker Cup and Arnold Palmer Cup teams. In 2021, he won the Junior Players Championship. He finished his amateur career ranked second in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, winning the NCAA Winston-Salem regional last month.
James is set for a busy three-week stretch. In addition to competing this week in Canada, he qualified on Monday for the U.S. Open next week, and the Connecticut native was awarded a sponsor’s exemption into the Travelers Championship, a signature event on the PGA Tour, the week after that.
As previously reported, Max Homa will have John Ellis, former caddie for Wyndham Clark, by his side for their first week working together and Joel Dahmen has hired former Oregon State men’s golf coach Jon Reehoorn, who had served as University of Washington’s assistant golf coach during Dahmen’s freshman year on the Husky men’s golf team in 2006-07, as his full-time caddie. Dahmen’s former caddie, Geno Bonnalie, will be on the bag of Hao-Tong Li this week. Too bad those two won’t be mic’ed up for comedic pleasure because that should be an entertaining pairing.
Adam Schupak is a senior writer for Golfweek, covering the PGA Tour.