Ryder Cup golfers on United States, European teams deserve to be paid | D'Angelo
The popular stance is to be on the side of Ryder Cup players not being paid. PGA Tour pros — and those who have defected to LIV Golf — are doing just fine, thank you. And what's another hundred thousand or two in their portfolio going to mean? Another yacht to moor on the Loxahatchee River?
After all, the Ryder Cup is about playing for national pride, right? It's about representing the homeland, playing with an unbridled passion, the ultimate competition that pits 12 men draped in their nation's colors, placed in an arena like none other in the game.
A pureness we rarely see in sports today.
“The Ryder Cup represents true sport,” European captain and Jupiter resident Luke Donald said. “It’s the purest form of competition we have, and I think because of that, the fans love it. There’s no extrinsic motivation involved. It’s purely, purely sport. That’s what makes it so special.”
But just because in the court of public opinion these golfers would be crushed for daring to express their desire to be paid for playing in the Ryder Cup, it doesn't mean they do not have that right to be compensated for their time.
If the Ryder Cup weren't raking in millions — and I mean millions considering it generates at least $90 million in revenue every two years — then this would be a different argument.
But this is a massive moneymaker for the PGA of America and Ryder Cup Europe. And although the debate over whether those who participate in the Ryder Cup should be paid goes back decades, it bubbled up again, over, of all things, a cap last week.
Or lack thereof.
When it was reported that Patrick Cantlay's decision not to wear a cap during the three days of play at Rome's Marco Simone Golf & Country Club was a protest against players not being paid, the partisan, raucous European crowd latched on and put Cantlay squarely in their crosshairs. For two days, the Jupiter resident was taunted and serenaded on every hole. Tens of thousands of fans greeting him at the tee box, along the fairway, around the green, lifting and waving their caps.
This set off one of the most surreal scenes ever witnessed on a golf course when Cantlay drained a long putt on No. 18, quieting the Euros and sending his teammates into celebration by mocking the home crowd and raising and waving their caps.
The putt was a rare highlight for the U.S. during Europe's convincing win and led to an incident between Cantlay's caddie, Joe LaCava, and European star Rory McIlroy, who was irked when LaCava's celebration spilled over into his vision as he was lining up a putt.
Cantlay took all the heckling in stride, playing along and handling himself with class, and using it, as he said, as fuel. He later denied the reports, saying they were "the furthest thing from the truth," insisting not wearing a hat was not a sign of protest but more a simple matter of him not being comfortable with the fit of the team caps.
That may or may not be true. And if this was Cantlay's way of protest, so be it. All the power to him for exercising that right. But to believe better fitting hats for Cantlay could not be produced in time for Friday's first tee shot is hard to imagine.
In a time when college athletes are allowed to profit off their name, image and likeness, why shouldn't 12 professional golfers be compensated for generating millions of dollars, every penny for which they are responsible?
Ryder Cup should follow NBA All-Star Game model
And if you want to take an ultracompetitive event and ratchet it up a notch, make this payment based on the results. The NBA pays players on the winning team in the All-Star Game $100,000. The losing team makes $25,000.
And it should not even be relevant how much an individual is worth, or how much he or she makes, as to whether that person should be compensated for their time.
The PGA of America awards each player $200,000, all of it required to be directed toward the charity of his choice, which is not the definition of getting paid. The organization also gives the PGA Tour 20% of its media rights, which goes to its pension plan, according to what PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh told the Associated Press.
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Sure, most players probably would donate that money, put it back into charities and foundations, but that should be the player's choice.
This is a fraction of the amount generated by huge television rights, sponsorships, hospitality, ticket sales, merchandise and concessions.
The merchandise shop in Rome was over 40,000 square feet, selling more than 1,000 different items. At times, hundreds of people were lined up waiting to enter because the shop was overflowing. That money alone is astronomical.
The Ryder Cup has a 15-year, $440 million TV deal with NBC, and the Italian Golf Federation guaranteed $20 million in direct payments to Ryder Cup Europe. And that's just the beginning.
Spain's Jon Rahm, the No. 2-ranked golfer in the world said, “I don’t have to get paid to come here and perform in front of people, to be honest.”
And that's fine and his choice.
But every golfer who participates in the Ryder Cup should have that choice.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Ryder Cup golfers responsible for making millions deserve to be paid
