Patrick Cantlay stuck to his story when the topic of Ryder Cup headgear arose on Tuesday.
Multiple outlets reported in 2023 that Cantlay chose not to wear his team-issued hat at the Ryder Cup in Rome as a form of protest for not being compensated to play. He was wearing a United States hat at his press conference at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, N.Y.
“Like I’ve said a million times, the hat didn’t fit last year, and this year we worked with them to make sure we had one, and we got one, so we’re good,” Cantlay said.
But Cantlay, who was serenaded by European fans with the chant, “Hats off for your bank account,” nevertheless is seen as a central figure in the rise in player stipends from the PGA of America.
While members of Team Europe do not make a dime for Ryder Cup participation, American players and captains had been given a $200,000 donation to a charity of their choice since 1999. The PGA of America raised each individual payout to $500,000 — $300,000 earmarked for charity and another $200,000 “stipend” for players to use as they see fit.
“The PGA of America came to me, they wanted to bring the Ryder Cup into the present day,” U.S. captain Keegan Bradley explained Monday. “The charity dollars hadn’t changed since 1999 and they asked me to sort of shepherd their way into making it into 2025.”
Bradley is donating his full $500,000 to charity, as is World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler. Both men said they don’t do community work for the recognition.
“We have something planned for the money that we’ll be receiving,” Scheffler said. “I think it’s a really cool thing that the PGA of America has empowered us to do. I have a deep passion for the city of Dallas, I have a deep passion for the organizations that we support at home, and I’m excited to be able to take this money and be able to do some good in our local community.”
Xander Schauffele — whose father said in 2023 and players should be paid and made further accusations about the PGA of America using “strong-arm tactics” regarding the participation contracts — is also planning to donate the full $500,000.
“I think sort of being a product of the PGA Tour, if there’s one thing besides competing at a high level that’s taught me, it’s to sort of have a positive impact on the areas that you’re in, and I don’t see why this would be any different,” Schauffele said.
“There’s a lot of pride that comes into playing in one of these, and yes, we’re happy to get paid for this, and yes, I plan on donating it. It’s something that selfishly will make me feel good about what I do.”
As for Cantlay? He’s also sending the extra dough to charitable causes, naming the First Responders Children’s Foundation, St. Jude and the SCPGA Junior Tour in his native California.
“If I can give back to organizations that have helped make me who I am today, hopefully someone growing up in Southern California gets that opportunity and can follow their dreams as well,” he said.
Cantlay was later asked about the narrative that European players care more than Americans about the Ryder Cup because they play for free. It’s a narrative European captain Luke Donald fed into when he implied U.S. fans might turn on their well-paid team this week if they don’t perform well.
“I think this event is very good at generating lots of noise, and that’s not going to help any of us put points on the board,” Cantlay said. “I think we need to put 100 percent of our focus on playing the best golf we can and let the noise be exactly what it is, just noise.”
