As the Americans recover from a nightmare start to the Ryder Cup, another concerning story has come to light putting the fate of the US team in jeopardy. According to Sky Sports, close friends Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele are apparently confined to separate areas of the team dressing room. Cantlay has allegedly admitted a desire to be paid for competing at the Ryder Cup and is thus leading a split behind the scenes.
The Ryder Cup is the only tournament where the players do not get paid for playing, rather the organizers donate money to certain charities on behalf of them. The honor of playing at the biennial tournament and the pride of representing one’s country is the sole motivation going into the championship. So, is Team US really ‘fractured’ during the most important week of the year?
Patrick Cantlay Allegedly Behind US Team Split
In a wide array of reports that have come to light, things are not looking good for the US team. With a tragic start of 4-0 trailing 6.5-1.5 after day one, Captain Zach Johnson was seen citing major health issues among certain team members. And if that wasn’t enough, Cantlay was spotted not wearing a cap for his team this week, which led to speculations that it could be a demonstration of unhappiness regarding lack of pay. Cantlay was, however, spotted wearing a cap at last year’s President’s Cup, a tournament where golfers do get paid.
Acoording to Sky Sports reporter Jamie Weir, Patrick Cantlay is not happy with the lack of pay that comes with the Ryder Cup, and thus has been involved in arguments over it with his team. This has led to a rift between him and Xander, leading them to sit away from each other in the team room. It was also reported earlier that prior to the start of the Ryder Cup, Cantlay and Schauffele were the ones restricting the Netflix team from entering the team room for a shoot following up to the second season of their original, ‘Full Swing.’ The former FedEx Cup champion also didn’t attend the gala dinner in Rome, preceding the Ryder Cup.
Understand from several sources that the US team room is fractured, a split led predominantly by Patrick Cantlay.
Cantlay believes players should be paid to participate in the Ryder Cup, and is demonstrating his frustration at not being paid by refusing to wear a team cap.— Jamie Weir (@jamiecweir) September 30, 2023
However, Dan Rapaport from Barstool Sports called out the reports as being “unfounded,” highlighting that Team US was, in fact, united and if Cantlay was indeed unhappy, he wouldn’t be there playing.
Regarding Cantlay—source close to him says reports of any sort of “fracture” are unfounded. U.S. team are united. Getting butt kicked, but united. Cantlay and Schauffele are in same locker room as everyone else. He also didn’t wear hat at Whistling Straits. Took pictures at Gala…
— Dan Rapaport (@Daniel_Rapaport) September 30, 2023
What is really happening behind the scenes, only time will tell. The only thing certain right now is the disappointing performance of the Americans this year.
Team Europe Takes Record Lead Over Team US
Amid rising illnesses among the team, the Americans have been faring badly in the Ryder Cup plays. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler broke down into tears after he and Brooks Koepka lost to Victor Hovland and Ludvig Aberg in a record breaking defeat in the Saturday foursomes. It is the largest margin of 18-hole victory in the history of the Ryder Cup.
Europe took the Saturday foursomes 3-1 to extend their lead to seven points, taking the score to 9.5-2.5.
“We were playing two strong guys – the No 1 in the world and a five-time major champion – and we did not give them anything,” said Hovland. “We played really, really solid. I don’t think we could have done a lot better.”
Cantlay and Schauffele also went on to lose their foursomes match together, for the very first time, against Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood. Cantlay was also reported to not have played in the afternoon fourballs, and lost yet another foursome on Saturday with Schauffele against Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton. If reports are true, this is a huge drawback for the Americans who stand divided at a time when unity and team spirit are of the utmost importance.
