Team Europe Just Got One Hell of a Ryder Cup Rallying Cry

The PGA of America announced today that, for the first time, the United States team would be paid for their participation in the Ryder Cup. Each of the 12 Americans on the team will receive $300,000 earmarked for a charity of their choice, plus an additional $200,000 “stipend” that they can use as they see fit. Prior to this year, American players received $200,000 earmarked for charity but no stipend.

The news comes after weeks of controversy following a report that the Americans would, in breaking with tradition, receive money simply for showing up at Bethpage Black next year. This became a hot-button topic at last year’s Ryder Cup in Rome, when a report on Saturday surfaced that Patrick Cantlay refused to wear a Team USA hat in protest for not being paid. That story took on a life of its own and dominated discourse that weekend, and it resurfaced weeks ago when a Telegraph report suggested each American on the team in New York would receive $400,000.

When asked about the matter, most Americans have taken a middle-road stance: they’ll still play if they’re not paid, of course. But does that mean they shouldn’t be paid?

Meanwhile, the Europeans have remained steadfast that they will not seek payment.

Analyzing the statement

In its statement, the PGA of America went out of its way to try to take pressure off the American players by suggesting none had outright asked to be paid. That could well be true; it’s also quite possible they didn’t need to outright say it, because it’s doubtful the PGA of America is doing this simply because it wants to.

They also earmarked $300,000 for charity but left $200,000 to the players’ digression as a “stipend.” That word puts the ball squarely in the players’ court. They’ll be asked how they intend to use that stipend, and Tiger Woods threw out a gauntlet of sorts when he suggested last week that guys should give it all to charity.

It’s sort of a half-measure, too: if you’re good enough at golf to make the American Ryder Cup team in 2025, $200,000 isn’t going to change your life. It seems more symbolic than anything: throwing a bone, of sorts. But this won’t quiet the media interest in the matter—guys will 100% be asked what they’re doing with their stipend money, and the European team now has one helluva rallying cry: They’re playing for money, we’re playing for passion.

The arguments for payment

The Ryder Cup brings in a helluva lot of money, and there’s no Ryder Cup without the players. If there’s tons of money flowing around, why shouldn’t some of it funnel to the talent that the event’s built on? It’s also not like the Americans wouldn’t play if they didn’t get any money beyond what’s earmarked for charity; they’ve been doing that for decades. Justin Thomas likened it to the pre-NIL conversation in college sports: Do the players need to be paid? No, there was still college sports before athletes started making money. Should they be paid? That’s a separate question. And it’s not so much about players getting rich off the Ryder Cup, it’s a symbolic nod to their importance in the event. Soccer players are compensated for playing for their national teams. It’s not life-changing money, but it’s something, and it doesn’t change how hard they play or how much they care.

The arguments against payment

Does everything need to be about the money? There has been so much nauseating discussion in golf about dollars, dollars and more dollars. Players are making more than ever before—surely there can be one event that’s all about national pride, about camaraderie, about inspiring the next generation and growing the game…and not about bank accounts? Precisely one of the reasons we love the Ryder Cup is because it’s not about the money. There’s a pureness in the competition: players are there because it’s an honor to be there and they want to be there. There shouldn’t be anything more to it. And it’s not like there are people making mansion-money off the Ryder Cup; much of the money it produces goes back to funding grassroots golf organizations.

What's been said

Justin Thomas: “It obviously generates a lot of revenue. This is why I play golf and I’m not on the business side of things, but I see both sides.

Tiger Woods: “I hope they would get $5 million each and donate it all to charity, different charities. I think it's great. What's wrong with that?

Rory McIlroy: “I personally would pay for the privilege to play on the Ryder Cup. The two purest forms of competition in our game right now are the Ryder Cup and the Olympics, and it's partly because of ... the purity of no money being involved.”

Luke Donald: “It’s one event we don’t need to get paid for…we haven’t been paid before, so why do we need to add this other extrinsic motivator?”