JP Burke Steers Ryan Gerard to 2026 Top 50 Rise — Gerard Golf

JP Burke Steers Ryan Gerard to 2026 Top 50 Rise — Gerard Golf

Ryan Gerard’s caddie is JP Burke, and gerard golf now has a clear answer to the question behind his rise. Gerard became a mainstay in the world’s top 50 in 2026, with Burke on the bag as the partnership came into focus.

JP Burke and Ryan Gerard

Burke grew up on a golf course, but he was more interested in basketball and baseball when he was younger. He later worked in finance, software sales and property management before caddying for Gerard became the job most closely tied to his name.

He first got to know Gerard through Austin Hitt. Burke knew Hitt, a Korn Ferry Tour player who graduated from the University of North Carolina, and Gerard was one of Hitt’s teammates. Burke would take trips to the university to visit Hitt, and that is where he got to know Gerard.

Austin Hitt and UNC

Burke’s path to Gerard was not linear. Along the way, he occasionally caddied for Hitt, then later carried the bag for Walker Lee and Davis Shore before landing with Gerard.

That route helps explain why the connection feels more like a long build than a quick handoff. Burke was around the same circle before Gerard’s name carried the weight it does now.

Gerard Golf in 2025

Gerard was a surprise inclusion in the field for the 2025 AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open, a turn that fit the broader sense of his career going from strength to strength. By 2026, he was a mainstay in the world’s top 50, and Burke remained the caddie attached to that climb.

For readers following gerard golf, the practical takeaway is simple: Burke is the man on Gerard’s bag, and his route there ran through UNC trips, earlier caddying jobs and a background that started far from tour spotlight. That is the link now attached to Gerard’s recent run.

Next