PGA Tour golfer Patrick Cantlay is said to be still bitter that he rejected a huge offer from the rival LIV Golf League.
PGA Tour golfer Patrick Cantlay is reportedly still obstructing peace talks with LIV’s backers because he ‘remains bitter’ he rejected such a large offer from the breakaway, according to a report.
The claim was made by golf journalist and author Alan Shipnuck in his most recent Q&A for MyGolfSpy.
Cantlay has been a top 100 ranked golfer since LIV’s noisy introduction to the sport
Cantlay has confirmed that he rejected offers from LIV before and after he joined the PGA Tour’s policy board.
According to Shipnuck, Cantlay was offered an eye-watering $75m to jump ship but he turned it down.
Wrote Shipnuck:
“Cantlay is one of the key obstructions in the neverending PIF-Tour negotiations and therefore partially responsible for the game remaining broken.
“He remains bitter that he turned down a $75-million offer from LIV and is now exacting his pound of flesh.”
Why is Patrick Cantlay accused of causing a problem?
Cantlay’s involvement in the PGA Tour-PIF negotiations have been the subject of intense media speculation.
The PGA Tour entered into a framework agreement with PIF and the DP World Tour last June but so far no deal has come to pass.
One of the issues, it is claimed, is that there has been a shift in power towards the players.
Evidence of that was illustrated when Tiger Woods joined the board, without being elected, and with no time frame given for how long his term will last.
Rumours about Cantlay’s stubborn views on the policy board emerged months after he was involved in controversy at the 2023 Ryder Cup.
Cantlay did not wear a Team USA hat because he allegedly was upset that he wasn’t being paid.
He denied this was the case and was supported by his teammates.
But hat-gate only fuelled controversy he was upset with the current structure of men’s professional golf.
Cantlay is also good friends with two-time major winner Xander Schauffele.
Schauffele has been critical of PGA Tour boss Jay Monahan, even calling for his resignation.
It has been alleged that Cantlay has been pushing back against a deal with the PIF because the players would lose leverage.
For his part, Cantlay has explicitly denied being involved in efforts to block or hinder a peace deal.
At the turn of the year, he gave a rare, in-depth interview with GOLF where he opened up on the subject of control.
“I care a lot about the PGA Tour,” he said.
“I grew up wanting to play on the PGA Tour and win tournaments on the PGA Tour, and I’ve been fortunate enough to have done that.
“So when I joined the board, I viewed that as a responsibility. It was important for me to take that very seriously and I have taken that very seriously.”
He added: “My goal, being on the PGA Tour policy board, is to represent all the members, both current and future, to the best of my ability.
“And so that’s what I’ve been trying to do. That’s what all the player directors have been trying to do.
“And we’ve been working really closely together over the last many months as a unit to make the best collective decisions that represent the interests of all the members.”
Denying the rumours about him, he added: “I just don’t think you can trust everything you read on the internet.
“I think if you just look at the facts that are out there, it would be impossible for any one player to take control.
“I mean, it would be impossible for all the players together to take control; we only have half the seats on the board.
“And any major vote around any of the things we’ve been talking about requires a two-thirds majority.
“And also, considering that the Tour has hired [investment bank] Allen and Co., and given the Tour has been driving discussions since even before the framework agreement was announced, I mean, given that set of facts it’s just impossible for that to be the case.”
