Patrick Cantlay feels good about change. Well, at least when it comes to the change the Sentry field has seen this year, which makes it stronger and more inclusive. Aside from the 35 winners of last year, the 59-man field also comprises 24 players, including Cantlay, from the top 50 in the 2023 FedEx Cup points list.
The eight-time PGA Tour winner was asked what he made of the changes, specifically the field size. Traditionally, a ‘Tournament of Champions’, the year-opener for the PGA Tour, was exclusive to last year’s champions. But Patrick Cantlay totally supports the change and feels that broadening the field size also increases the field strength.
Patrick Cantlay bats for the PGA Tour yet again
Patrick Cantlay thinks it was the right move from the management to increase the field size. Speaking to the media after the first round, the eight-time PGA Tour winner said, “I think it’s great. I think having more of the best players in the world together playing against each other is great.” Interestingly, the 31-year-old is not the only player who is “supportive of that change.”
Patrick Cantlay made 9 look east today…
300yd off the tee, stares down 230 to the hole, puts it 9ft 10in out, and finishes it off with a pure putt for
The @atlantadrivegc star is -7 (T7th) after round 1 pic.twitter.com/1b34RZSpK1
— TGL (@TGL) January 5, 2024
Brian Harman, last year’s Open Championship winner, too, feels the same. The 36-year-old said, “You can have a really good year and not win. I think it helps the competitiveness of the field.” Harman was eighth on the 2023 FedEx Cup Points list and currently sits in the 12th position on the Sentry leaderboard. Whereas Cantlay finished tied for seventh place after the first round.
Sentry, earlier called the Sentry Tournament of Champions, has changed the qualifying criteria for players like Cantlay. The 31-year-old, despite seven top-five finishes, failed to win a title. Eventually, Cantlay earned his spot courtesy of FedEx Cup points. The new Signature event criteria, however, didn’t sit well with many PGA Tour pros who claimed that it’s a way of rewarding top players with more money and more points. Well, that isn’t something anyone wants, especially not Cantlay, who also sits on the Tour Policy Board and takes his job “very seriously.”
Cantlay wants to represent everyone equally
Just days before the Sentry, Patrick Cantlay sat down for a candid chat with Golf Magazine. The eight-time PGA Tour winner said that he cared “a lot about the PGA Tour.” He went on further to state, “When I joined the board, I viewed that as a responsibility,” to represent all the members equally. Cantlay’s words come as a surprise to many, especially the avid believers in his rebellion against the Tour.
Read More: “Not My Style”: Patrick Cantlay Reveals His Demeanor Behind the Tarnishing Accusations That Punctured His 2023 Legacy
When Jay Monahan took a sabbatical, a bombshell report claimed that the American pro was trying to wrest control over the board. Moreover, a recent report cited an insider to label similar “artless Cantlay coup” accusations. However, a year, multiple allegations, and a Ryder Cup controversy later, the soft-spoken Cantlay still remains adamant about a Tour, he is “personally invested” in.
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The post Despite Wild ‘Coup’ Rumors of the Past, Patrick Cantlay Proves His Loyalty to the PGA Tour Yet Again: ‘Supportive of That Change’ appeared first on EssentiallySports.
