When in Rome, Patrick Cantlay only had one thought in mind: Team U.S. players should get paid to represent their country in the Ryder Cup. The Hatgate controversy strongly suggested that. Or at least that’s how the entire situation was presented. Many tend to forget that Cantlay was one of the only three players to get 2 points or more in Europe that year. And in 2025, he was one of the stronger performers for the American side again, despite what the scoreboard suggests. Despite that, there is a perception of him only being concerned about money. And Jamie Lovemark wanted to clarify it in the latest episode of Any Given Monday.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
The ex-Ryder Cup vice-captain had joined the podcast recently, where he was asked what the atmosphere was like at Bethpage. Lovemark told the host, “I was with mostly Patrick Cantlay the entire week. I can’t describe to you what a warrior Patrick is. He’s five matches, no complaining. He’s tired, it’s brutal out there, and the team’s doing bad. But he’s like, whatever it takes to win, I’ll play with whoever, whenever, wherever I have to play with. As part of the team, I was so proud of him for being so tough. Such a great team member. Whatever it takes, it doesn’t matter. I’ll play with anybody.”
Time and again, Cantlay has proven himself to always step up when it comes to playing for his country. Keeping his personal agendas aside, even in the 2023 Ryder Cup, the 33-year-old played four of the possible five matches to try his best to win points for Team U.S. At Bethpage, he was one of the strongest performers as he consistently caused trouble for the Europeans, despite suffering three losses. Cantlay & Xander Schauffele were the only pair to win points for the American side during the opening foursome match that saved them from a complete whitewash. That again proves that he was a major threat to the continental team playing away from home.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
via Imago
LA JOLLA, CA – FEBRUARY 15: Patrick Cantlay watches his drive from the second tee during the third round of the Genesis Invitational tournament, Saturday, February 15, 2025, at Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California. Photo by Tony Ding/Icon Sportswire GOLF: FEB 15 PGA, Golf Herren The Genesis Invitational EDITORIAL USE ONLY Icon46520250215179
However, unlike 2023, Patrick Cantlay wasn’t the big topic of discussion for Team U.S.’s failures this year. In fact, he was praised for his efforts, despite not earning the team the most points. Let’s understand why that happened.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
Did Patrick Cantlay exceed expectations at Bethpage?
Before the 2025 Ryder Cup began, fans questioned Keegan Bradley for choosing Patrick Cantlay as one of his Captain’s Picks. Many assumed that he was a part of ‘the boys club’ of players who had to be picked to make space for faces like Cameron Young, Ben Griffin, & Co. While Young proved himself to be a strong player by earning Team U.S. the most points at Bethpage, Cantlay wasn’t far behind as well. But the real shocker was that everyone else who was expected to play great actually underperformed.
The likes of Scottie Scheffler & Bryson DeChambeau were supposed to be the star players for Bradley’s side. However, out of a possible 10 points, they only managed to earn a combined 2.5 points for Team U.S. Scheffler struggled throughout the tournament, losing nearly every match except his singles contest against Rory McIlroy. DeChambeau got a great foursome win on Saturday, paired with Young and halved with Matt Fitzpatrick on Sunday to get 1.5 points. All this happened while Patrick Cantlay consistently troubled the Europeans in every match he played. So it’s understandable why he wasn’t catching as much heat this time around as he did back in 2023.
