RUMOUR: PGA Tour stars to confront majors over prize purses
According to a report, PGA Tour stars such as Patrick Cantlay are willing to pressure the governing bodies of the four majors to increase prize money.
PGA Tour stars such as Patrick Cantlay are reportedly willing to up the ante with the governing bodies of the four major championships next year in an attempt to increase prize purses.
The topic was discussed on the most recent edition of the No Laying Up podcast.
According to contributor Tron Carter, he believes the subject of money is still simmering under the surface despite golfers competing for more cash than ever before.
Carter said: "I do think that the majors, there's going to be a big issue with [Patrick] Cantlay and the gang [and] Stefan Schauffele and other various malcontents going after the majors and saying, 'Hey, we're getting a paltry percentage of your total revenues here, like, where's the f---ing money guys?!'
"And that's, I think that's boiling behind-the-scenes. It's simmering."
Carter is referring to Xander Schauffele's father who revealed his son was almost booted out of the Team USA Ryder Cup side over a disagreement pertaining to a player benefit contract the golfer took his time to sign.
Only weeks before the 2023 dust-up in Italy did the PGA of America confirm the situation was resolved.
Stefan Schauffele also spoke about the wider issue of whether Ryder Cup participants should be paid.
Xander's father urged there to be more transparency with how much money is generated from the Ryder Cup.
Should all of the net proceeds be donated to common charitable causes then it wouldn't be an issue, he said.
Xander also clarified his father's 'skewed' statements before he teed it up at the ZOZO Championship.
| Here's Xander Schauffele explaining his father's comments about whether or not Ryder Cup players should be paid.
Schauffele was reportedly threatened with being kicked out of the U.S. Ryder Cup side over a contractual dispute with the PGA of America. pic.twitter.com/MfUTF9OQlS
— GolfMagic (@GolfMagic) October 18, 2023
Soly jumped into the debate on NLU: "Here's where I'm ready to flip that though, TC, and I've thought a lot about this Cantlay money thing a lot with the Ryder Cup. And I was like, alright, on the surface it makes sense.
"All the money that is being produced and made off this Ryder Cup for the players to make some money off it... on a simple basis yes. Also, though, all of that equity, all of that, has been built up by everyone that's come 90-plus years before them.
"That event is going to look the exact same whether Patrick Cantlay walks onto that tee box or not.
"He's not the value of this. It spits in the face of... [and] I don't want to get too high up on a pedestal or whatever you want call it [but] it spits in the face of what the competition was supposed to be and what Seve [Ballesteros] turned the event into, what all the American captains that come before you have turned this event into and have dedicated their lives to.
"I'm kind of like that about the majors as well. They've put up a prize pool, the reason it is a big as it is and as much interest there is [because] all of the work that has gone on in the years before you ever put a peg in the ground to ever play the game originally. I'm sorry, you're not a value driver here. People are just sick of it."
He added: "Not all of golf has to be this s----- vibe that we have just had to put up with on repeat here. We kinda look to you guys [golfers] as being entertainers and, frankly, I am way more interested in other sports right now."
Prize purses for the four majors in 2024 have not yet been announced.
In 2023, the Masters had a total prize purse of $18m, U.S. Open $20m, the Open $16.5m and PGA Championship $17.5m.
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