Brian Harman says ‘ridiculous’ incident at 2023 Ryder Cup was an absolute ‘joke’

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Team USA star Brian Harman has shared his honest thoughts on an incident that occurred during the 2023 Ryder Cup.

Zach Johnson’s American side famously fell to a crushing defeat, having been well-fancied before the event in Rome.

Harman, who is set to be part of the 2024 United States Presidents Cup team, has now spoken about an infamous incident involving Patrick Cantlay.

Brian Harman shares view on ‘Hatgate’ at the 2023 Ryder Cup

• READ MORE: Brian Harman shares why he was so frustrated whilst playing on the PGA Tour in 2024

Cantlay allegedly refused to wear a hat at the Ryder Cup due to the fact he wasn’t being paid, an accusation the American denies.

After the European fans got wind of rumours surrounding the 32-year-old, Cantlay was ridiculed throughout the event.

The situation eventually boiled over during the Saturday afternoon fourball match involving Cantlay, Wyndham Clark, Rory McIlroy and Matt Fitzpatrick. After Cantlay sunk his birdie putt on the last, his caddie, Joe LaCava, celebrated profusely whilst McIlroy was lining up his putt to save a half point.

McIlroy was then seen engaging in a heated debate with Jim ‘Bones’ Mackay before being pushed into a car and taken away.

Harman, however, believes the whole incident was “ridiculous”.

“The hat stuff, what a joke that was,” Harman told the Fore Play Podcast. “Rory doesn’t wear a hat at any Ryder Cup, and he’s Mr Europe, and Pat takes his hat off; it’s ridiculous.”

Why Patrick Cantlay didn’t wear a hat at the Ryder Cup

The real reason why Cantlay refused to wear a hat remains somewhat of a mystery; however, there’s now some clarity around the event.

Daryl Evans, owner of a leading sports marketing agency, told Bunkered that Cantlay’s decision to avoid wearing a hat came from higher up the commercial food chain.

“The injustice for him is not the fact he’s not getting paid; it’s that all these other executives are getting highly-inflated fees for being connected to the Ryder Cup. That’s more his problem,” Evans explained.

“The Ryder Cup is worth several million dollars in media valuation per player. I don’t think you’ll have one player that’s not generating at least $10 million for the week in media value, so I understand his point about not getting paid.”