Rex Hoggard says whether he agrees with USA Ryder Cup players being paid with PGA Tour to receive ‘enormous’ sum of money

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Golf Channel pundit Rex Hoggard has reacted to the news that USA Ryder Cup players are set to be paid for the first time in the competition’s 97-year history.

United States players will receive $400,000 each after the American authorities granted just over $5m to split between the 12-man roster.

The news, unsurprisingly, has divided opinion.

Several Europeans have reacted, with the majority reiterating their desire to play the Ryder Cup for free. McIlroy said he’d pay to represent Europe, and Shane Lowry delivered a similar response in his press conference at the DP World Tour Championship.

Even outspoken commentator Brandel Chamblee has slammed the decision to pay US players, with the American suggesting a few US stars have been ‘misdirected’. Hoggard, however, is one of the few who supports the decision.

Rex Hoggard backs USA Ryder Cup decision

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Speaking during the latest Golf Channel Podcast, Hoggard revealed that US players are well within their right to receive payment with the PGA Tour set to receive a considerable amount of money from the PGA of America.

“For the players to stand up and say, we want to be paid to, of course they should be paid. It’s their piece of the pie. I have nothing against this. They’re not doing this out of the goodness of their heart. This is the age of athlete-player empowerment,” Hoggard explained.

“I don’t think we’re going to find a better example of what that means than where we are right now. The PGA of America makes an enormous amount of money from this. The PGA Tour makes an enormous amount of money from this. The PGA of America has to pay the PGA Tour for rights fees in that event.”

He continued: “The only people that aren’t being paid are the players, the product. In this particular case, we are talking about the players. There’s this idea that the players are just expected to show up, and you don’t get any thank you. If you lose, you’re going to get beat up. If you lose your match, whatever the case may be. It drives me nuts that the PGA of America wants to charge $750, and they’re not doing this for free.”

25 year Ryder Cup debate finally boils over

The payment news comes after Patrick Cantlay reportedly protested against the issue during the 2023 edition in Rome.

The saga, however, is nearly 25 years old.

In the lead-up to the 1999 event at Brookline, several US players considered boycotting what would become one of the most iconic Ryder Cups of all time.

It’s a debate which shows no sign of letting up, and three-time USA Ryder Cup player Hunter Mahan says the Europeans will use it to their advantage.

“I think it being one-sided could be a little bit of a storyline. I think the European side and the fans are definitely going to use it, and I think the players will definitely use it when they can, before and even during the event,” he said.

“We’ve already seen Shane and Rory kind of speaking out about it, so I think for a year, it could be a little bit of needling in a way, which I think this event is prone to do is to find something and use it… I know the European media is going to run with it like crazy.”