The 2025 Ryder Cup is still more than nine months away, but talk of the competition has ramped in recent months -- and that's thanks to the potential payouts involved. With reports of the PGA of America potentially paying American players $400,000 for their services at Bethpage Black, U.S. Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley has chimed in on the matter.
"To be honest with you, there's not much to talk about [pay]; these leaks that came out were ... leaks," Bradley told Sports Illustrated. "I was shocked to see the leaks, as was the PGA of America. As was everybody involved. There's been nothing that's been finalized, done. This is all speculation at this point. I was definitely disappointed that someone leaked out that information. That was a shock, for sure."
The PGA of America currently offers players $200,000, which is then donated to charities and junior golf organizations in their name. Discussions about Ryder Cup compensation date back to 1999 when Tiger Woods made his second team. The 15-time major champion spoke on the current discourse ahead of the 2024 Hero World Challenge, the event he hosts annually in the Bahamas.
"The Ryder Cup itself makes so much money, why can't we allocate it to various charities?" Woods said. "And what's wrong with each player, 12 players getting a million dollars and the ability to divvy out to amazing charities that they're involved in that they can help out? It's their hometowns, where they're from, all the different junior golf associations or endeavors that the members are involved in.
"It's never really been about getting paid; it's how can we allocate funds to help our sport or help things that we believe in back home -- because it's so hard to get onto that team; there's only 12 guys. What's wrong with being able to allocate more funds … 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?"
Pay was at the forefront of the 2023 Ryder Cup when rumors spread throughout the grounds of Marco Simone that Patrick Cantlay was not wearing a team hat as a silent protest due to lack of compensations. Emotions boiled over following a heated match featuring Cantlay and Rory McIlroy and sparked a back-and-forth between the Northern Irishman and Cantlay's caddie, Joe LaCava.
Resurfaced discussions regarding the Ryder Cup emerged this past fall when the PGA of America released ticket prices for the 2025 competition at Bethpage Black. Offering general admissions tickets for competition days for roughly $750, the organization ultimately sold out despite the backlash received from golf fans.
"What Tiger said was 100% correct," Bradley continued. "I don't think the charity dollars have changed from '99. It's been the same number. But it's the PGA of America's decision. I have to wait and see what they want to do. I don't have the power to change any of that. What I can say is that not a single player has asked for this, has come to me with this. No player was part of this. Zero percent."
