Xander Schauffele shares what he’s told Patrick Cantlay he’ll do if they are ever in a playoff to win a PGA Tour event together

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Patrick Cantlay may have gone more than two years without a win on the PGA Tour, but that has not stopped the 32-year-old becoming one of the most important members of the USA team at the Presidents Cup and the Ryder Cup.

Patrick Cantlay was perhaps the main talking point at the 2023 Ryder Cup having decided to not wear a cap for the event. Cantlay denied the reports that he was protesting at players not getting paid to play. But that did not stop the European fans turning Cantlay into the pantomime villain.

Cantlay responded with a stunning performance on Saturday afternoon, holing a long putt on the 18th to beat Rory McIlroy and Matthew Fitzpatrick. If the US team did produce their own miracle at Marco Simone, that win would have been looked back upon as a real turning point.

And if anyone thought that was a fluke, it was Cantlay who holed a putt on 18 to win against Si-woo Kim and Tom Kim at the 2024 Presidents Cup to ensure that USA had an 11-7 lead before the singles at Royal Montreal.

What Xander Schauffele has told Patrick Cantlay about facing each other in a playoff

It was Xander Schauffele who was stood alongside him in Canada, with the pair forming a strong partnership over the years. And speaking to Golf.com, the two-time major champion suggested that he is amazed by the competitor Cantlay becomes in those high-pressure moments.

“Whoever coined that Patty Ice thing is really funny. The kid’s ice. I was telling him if you and I are in a playoff, I am slow-playing you to death. We are playing the next morning. I will not play you in the dark. You and putts or hitting sick shots when the sun’s gone basically, is something I will avoid at all costs if we’re competing to win a tournament. It’s going to happen at some point,” he said.

“Pat’s one of my close friends, and he’s been for a long time now since we’ve been on tour, he just has this innate ability to focus. People like lock in and focus, but truly, if they did a scan on his brain in those spots, whatever they look for in someone’s brain when they’re in the zone, he gets there in these team events. And when he’s in a spot where he’s hunting, he’s dangerous. Very happy that he’s on our side, and everyone looks to him for a very significant point when it matters.”

How Patrick Cantlay has performed in PGA Tour playoffs

It is truly remarkable how some players are able to find a completely different gear in team events. Obviously, Ian Poulter was Europe’s ultimate competitor in the Ryder Cup for a number of years, with the Englishman seemingly capable of facing absolutely anyone and coming out on top.

Cantlay does not appear to be someone who should thrive in the team atmosphere. Anyone who has watched TGL this year would think that he is not a natural entertainer or even a big personality. And yet, he has become the man that USA probably cannot be without at Bethpage later this year, almost regardless of his form.

Interestingly, Cantlay has a losing record in his seven PGA Tour playoffs, emerging victorious on three occasions. Meanwhile, Schauffele has won one of three so far.

So something definitely changes for the pair when they are wearing the colours of their national team.