Alejandro Tosti’s opening round in Asheville took a bizarre turn when caddie Cliff Ellis dropped the bag and walked away after nine holes.

Alejandro Tosti has never exactly been mistaken for the quietest guy on the PGA Tour. Thursday at the Biltmore Championship Asheville, though, the drama came from the man carrying his clubs.

Tosti’s caddie, Cliff Ellis, walked off during the Argentine’s opening round at The Cliffs at Walnut Cove, leaving Tosti to finish without the looper who had started the day on his bag. Tosti opened with eight straight pars and was even par when the split happened on the 18th hole, his ninth of the day. He eventually signed for a 1-over 72.

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The scene was apparently abrupt.

According to reports from the course, Ellis dropped the bag, removed his bib and was done. Tosti didn’t immediately realize the relationship had ended. He reportedly believed Ellis had stopped for a bathroom break near the 18th green before learning that his caddie wasn’t coming back.

Tosti’s reaction was classic Tosti.

“He couldn’t keep up with eight pars in a row,” he joked afterward in a text to Golfweek.

The punch line may have been light, but the backstory wasn’t. Tosti and Ellis reportedly had already clashed during Tuesday’s practice round, and Tosti has developed a reputation for running hot inside the ropes. He was suspended during the 2023 Korn Ferry Tour playoffs for conduct unbecoming a professional following multiple on-course incidents.

Tosti hasn’t exactly hidden that side of himself, either.

“It’s been the challenge for me my whole life, dealing with myself,” he told Golfweek in late 2024 while discussing the mental side of competition.

His career has included frequent caddie changes, confrontations and enough fiery moments to make Thursday’s walkout feel less like a bolt from the blue and more like another chapter in a complicated history.

Still, the timing was extraordinary. Caddies don’t often quit while the scorecard is still live.

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And somehow, Tosti kept the round together.

Eleven consecutive pars helped him limit the damage before he finished at 1 over, eight shots behind first-round leaders Max Greyserman and Eric Cole, who opened with 7-under scores.

Now comes the practical problem.

Tosti is scheduled to begin Friday’s second round at 1:49 p.m. ET, which gives him several hours to solve one of professional golf’s more unusual overnight assignments: find somebody willing to carry the bag after the previous guy walked off the job.