Xander Schauffele criticized the leadership of PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan, saying he has “never” stood up for his players.
The world number two said he felt betrayed by Monahan's behavior during his time on the PGA Tour. Life Golf and DP World Tour Last summer, he said he had lost the trust of his players.
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Although Monaghan has secured billions of dollars in funding from Strategic Sports Group (SSG) to temporarily secure the PGA’s future, this did not stop two PGA board members from resigning over the lack of meaningful negotiations with PIF over the proposed merger.
So when asked about golf’s current civil war, Schauffele unabashedly defended his fellow pros.
In an interview with The Times before the Memorial Tournament, Schauffele said: “I would say that what probably bothers me the most in this turmoil – and it bothers me now more than ever – is that we need someone to lead us, we need a leader. My job is to do what I did. [at Valhalla] Play golf well, be an entertainer, show people how exciting golf can be.
“I’ve been critical of Jay in the past, but the fact is, our commander-in-chief has never stood up for all of us players and said, ‘This is what’s going on, this is where we’re going,’ and basically protected us.
“He didn't step up when someone left, didn't publicly admit mistakes, nothing. Obviously there are reasons for that, but historically in tough situations you need a strong leader who can make the big waves smaller and make us feel better about what we did. Right now, we don't have that guy.
“It doesn't matter whether I trust him or not. There are about 250 players on the tour. It's difficult to meet the demands of so many people. But I know that no matter which direction we go, we need someone to stand in front of everyone, lead the way and take the responsibility so that the players don't have to bear the responsibility and take control of a divisive and sensitive situation.”
This is not the first time Zanotti has criticised Monahan, as earlier this year he said he had “a long way to go” to regain the trust of his players.
But no matter what happens, Schauffele would like to see golf return at some point so fans can watch him battle it out against Bryson DeChambeau at the recent PGA Championship.
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He added: “Bryson got people to turn on the TV and there were a couple of players in LIV that kept us from giving a full service to golf fans, so it had to come back at some point.”
