Xander Schaffele had a 1-3-0 score at the Ryder Cup last week, but according a article in The Times his status as a member of Team USA was uncertain until a few weeks prior to the event.
Stefan Schauffele told The Times his son Xander was not sure if he would be able to join Zach Johnson’s team due to a disagreement over an agreement granting Netflix the right to access the team room to watch Full swing docuseries . It was reported that the issue wasn’t resolved before a team trip to Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome. Stefan claimed that the PGA of America also used “strong-arming techniques.”
Sky Sports reported during the Ryder Cup that there was tension in the U.S. Team Room. Patrick Cantlay, the report stated, was the main cause of conflict because he believed that players in the Ryder Cup were entitled to be paid. Jamie Weir also stated that, “Before Ryder Cup, it was widely reported (Schauffele) and Cantlay were the ones who refused to allow Netflix cameras to access the team room.”
It was reported before the Ryder Cup that the same two refused to let Netflix cameras into the team room.
Jamie Weir 30 September 2023 HTML0
Cantlay , who played two games with his friend Schauffele , refuted all the reports throughout the weekend.
Stefan said the “ink-smear,” about a fractured room, may have been caused by Xander and Cantlay requesting a “player benefit and participation agreement,” which he claimed was sent in July. One of the amendments referred to the Netflix access. After a unanimous vote from Johnson and his team, the U.S. denied access to the Team Room in order to maintain the “sanctity of Team USA”.
Stefan Schauffele said to The Times that “the PGA of America refused to talk to us at all about (the three changes)”. It was late in the schedule, right before the team arrived here [to Rome] for practice, because the deadline had been moved. They said, “If you don’t agree to it by that time, you will be kicked off the team”, but never provided us with the contact details of their legal counsel.
“On Saturday morning of Labor Day Weekend (Sept. 2nd), finally the head of PGA of America heard about this. He put our lawyers into contact with PGA of America general counsel and after a few more hours, everything was fine. I then received a notification that Xander had returned to the team. You can quote. “I think this is shameful and that’s how far it goes.”
Stefan confirms that the issue of not paying players is a source of contention. He told the Times, however, that it was not discussed in Rome because “it’s the wrong place and time.” However he does believe a conversation should be held and both sides should come to the table for negotiations.
He said that the PGA of America, Ryder Cup Europe and other organizations involved in the Ryder Cup should be more transparent about how money is distributed.
He added, “They use players’ intellectual property to make money while the American players are not paid.” “This would be a non-issue, if the Ryder Cup net proceeds were donated to charitable causes.” Currently, American players are being asked to give their time for free in the name patriotism. This allows these organizations to benefit from the profits.
The PGA (of America), uses the money and the PGA Tour receives 20 percent of the proceeds that go into the retirement fund for every member. It is said that the 12 players need to eat this money and their intellectual properties are abused by 200 people. “That’s not fair.”
Stefan did not stop there. Kevin Van Valkenburg , from No Laying Down, also received some quotes.
“If the PGA of America has a profit motive, then they should share that with the players instead of being so damned opaque about it,” Stefan said. They should release the numbers and then sit down and have a discussion. They can also donate the proceeds to a charity we both agree on after they have opened the books. We will then happily play free. Please print this.”
He continued, “I don’t think it is controversial at all.” Imagine if the winners received $2 million, and the losers got nothing. What kind of competition would we be having now? This could make it so much more interesting. I don’t think there is anything negative about it. I don’t see a negative there. They’re wrong. Especially these (PGA of America Members) don’t have any mirrors at home because they aren’t patriotic. The conversation will hopefully lead to a discussion that makes sense. Then everyone will be happy.”
Stefan Schauffele’s frenzied response to the Sky Sports report has ensured that the debate about player compensation will continue well after the Ryder Cup 2023 post-mortem concludes.
