04 January 2024 , 14:55
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Patrick Cantlay has issued a calming response to his critics, after finding himself at the centre of a number of golf's controversies in recent months.
Cantlay is gearing up to kick off his 2024 at the PGA Tour's season opener, The Sentry, in Hawaii this week, but will no doubt be hoping for a quieter year than the previous 12 months. The American first found himself engulfed in a slow play dispute in 2023, before being accused of forming a revolt at last year's Ryder Cup over pay.
The year then ended with the American being accused of trying to 'take over' the PGA Tour's Policy Board amid the ongoing framework agreement negotiations with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, according to a source from the Telegraph.
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As calm and collected as ever though, the American opted not to rise to the drama ahead of this week's event start to the golfing year. Quizzed on how he deal's with the ongoing question marks surrounding him, Cantlay responded: "In general I'm one that I would rather let my clubs do the talking.
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"I think this game is supposed to be a game of gentlemen, and there's just no need for that. We're all on the same side here. We're all trying to make the game and the PGA Tour as best as possible, so I just don't think it will help [rising to his critics].
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Patrick Cantlay returns to the PGA Tour this week (AP)Asked whether he was fazed by the criticism, he added: "I think, you know, it's expected that people will have different perspectives, and so if people have different perspectives, that's perfectly fine because that's what makes the world so exciting."
Cantlay's comments come a week after he had already rubbished the claims of his attempted coup on the Policy Board, admitting no player has the power to take on control of the setup. "I just don’t think you can trust everything you read on the internet," he told Golf.com.
"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."
Amid the noise off the course, the former FedEx Cup champion will no doubt keen to concentrate on his efforts on it, starting this week at the Kapalua Plantation Course. Cantlay heads into the season ranked the No. 5 golfer in the world, but will be hoping for improvements in 2024.
Having announced himself as one of the world's best at the turn of the decade the American has been unable to add a win to his PGA Tour tally. Uncharacteristically, 2023 saw him end the year win-less for the first time in five seasons.
Despite the lack of victories, Cantlay was often in the conversation come Sunday's final round, landing eight top-10 finishes in total throughout the year, including a runner-up finish at the FedEx St. Jude Championship.