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For an event which was founded on the underlying principle of there being no prize money on offer, the Ryder Cup continues to wrestle with an awkward reality of modern-day professional sport.
Namely, why should the players on both sides not be paid for competing in one of the most prestigious and globally popular sports tournaments on the planet?
For all it has become manufactured and slightly cringey with its dramatisation over the past 20 years or so, the Ryder Cup holds an appeal that few other sports can match and invariably delivers box-office excitement.
To the average armchair sports fan, the three golf events you can guarantee they will watch on TV will be the Masters, the Open Championship and the Ryder Cup. Everything else is optional.
With the PGA of America set to rake in multi-millions of dollars for organising and hosting this week’s edition at Bethpage Black in New York, why shouldn’t players be financially rewarded?
It seems like a reasonable question on the face of it. And it’s one which has been asked more and more frequently over recent years, most often from those within the American team room.
Patrick Cantlay denied claims he refused to wear his USA hat in Rome in dispute over money in 2023, and now says he will donate his full $500,000 fee to charity
Europe's players, who won the Ryder Cup in Rome two years ago, will not be paid for their efforts unlike their American counterparts
The issue has reared its head once again these past few days after it was confirmed that the US players will, for the first time ever in Ryder Cup history, be paid for their participation.
Each player will receive $500,000. From that sum, $300,000 will go to a charity of the player’s choosing, with the other $200,000 effectively serving as a paycheck, should they choose to accept it.
Some American players, including world No 1 Scottie Scheffler, have indicated that they they will donate all of their fee to charity.
But that didn’t stop them from kicking up such a stink about it in the first place. If they do give all of their money to good causes, it will be because a public backlash has effectively shamed them into it.
This has been a long-standing issue for the US team. You can take it as far back as Brookline in 1999, when Tiger Woods, David Duval and Mark O’Meara were among those questioning the lack of financial recompense.
It is no surprise that neither Duval nor O’Meara — former major champions, both of whom would fit the criteria of being captain — have never even had a sniff of leading the American team.
In 2023, it was claimed by Xander Schauffele’s father that his son was close to being kicked off the American team due to a dispute over contracts and money.
American captain Keegan Bradley speaks to the press ahead of this week's Ryder Cup
World No1 Scottie Scheffler gets a feel for Bethpage Black before the action gets under way
It was also reported in Rome two years ago that Patrick Cantlay refused to wear a Team USA hat in protest against not being paid, though he later denied those claims.
The debate about players being paid in the Ryder Cup is clearly a thorny issue, one which refuses to go away — and one which matters far more to the Americans than it does the Europeans.
Rory McIlroy famously said a couple of years ago that he would actually be willing to pay in order to play in the Ryder Cup. That’s how much it means to him.
While that was only a throwaway remark, it demonstrated the huge gulf in attitudes towards the Ryder Cup between the Europeans and the Americans.
The simple reality is that the Ryder Cup has become a shameless cash-grab, an event tainted by American greed and self-interest both on and off the golf course.
Just look at some of the prices at Bethpage this week. For the three main days of play on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, a ticket costs a whopping $750 (approximately £554).
For context, those very same tickets for the event at Marco Simone in Rome two years ago cost around £200.
Even prices for the practice days this week are steep, with the face value of tickets set at $255 (approx £188). A can of beer will set you back $15 (£11).
Keegan Bradley, far left, leads members of the US team on a walk to the 17th hole
Skipper Keegan Bradley, above left, has a few words of advice for Xander Schauffele
Patrick Cantlay plays a shot from the 17th tee in preparation for Friday's big opening
Spectators will be granted free food and soft drinks as part of the admission fee, but how many hotdogs and cheeseburgers do you need to eat to get your money’s worth? The numbers are eye-watering.
The Ryder Cup was never supposed to be about money. It was about passion, pride, patriotism, brotherhood, sportsmanship, and legacy.
It was about something greater than personal financial gain. Players were more interested in making birdies than boosting their bank balance.
The Ryder Cup has always resisted the idea of players being paid. The moment it becomes about paychecks and personal gain, it loses the very essence of what it was intended to be.
Bethpage Black is a very rare venue in that it’s a municipal facility which also boasts a world-class golf course. On the sign at the front entrance, it bills itself as ‘The People’s Country Club’.
On and off the golf course, however, American attitudes towards the Ryder Cup are increasingly out of touch with the common people.
At an event now driven by greed and commercialism, President Trump will be right at home when he arrives on Friday...
