PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Patrick Cantlay said he doesn’t expect anything “substantive” to come out of what could be the first meeting Monday between the player directors on the PGA Tour policy board and Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the governor of the Saudi Public Investment Fund.
Cantlay, the highest-ranked player on the Tour policy board, said that he expects to do more “listening than talking” during the first meeting between the Tour players and the head of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, which is also the financial backer for LIV Golf.
“I don’t imagine anything substantive,” Cantlay said after finishing his final round Sunday at The Players Championship. “It’s more of a meet and greet.”
Cantlay said that he remains “all for” a deal with the PIF if it’s in the best interest of the entire PGA Tour membership.
Webb Simpson, another player director, said last week there was a danger in not doing a deal with the PIF, given the division of the past two years. Adam Scott said this week that he “absolutely” feels a sense of urgency about a possible deal.
“I would like to resolve all of this, no matter what the outcome is, and we can all move on,” Scott said.
Cantlay was asked what the pro landscape would look like if the two sides can’t come to a definitive agreement.
“I imagine if it weren’t to happen, we would go in a similar paradigm to where we’re going on right now,” he said.
And is that a good thing for the sport?
“I think there’s pros and cons, obviously,” he said.
“I’m going into the first meeting with the idea of listening a lot more than talking,” he said. “I’m excited to hear all I’ll learn.”
