Ryder Cup caddy payments explained after Scottie | Golf News

The Ryder Cup hasn’t formally kicked off, but it is already sparking fiery debates over participant compensation. Last 12 months, it was announced that Team USA gamers could be the first to obtain direct fee for their participation in the event, pocketing $200,000 on top of the customary $300,000 charity donation.

This transfer to pay U.S. gamers has stirred up combined reactions. Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele have pledged to donate their $200,000 stipend to charitable organizations. European captain Luke Donald could not resist a dig at the state of affairs when he spoke at the opening ceremony.

On the other hand, Colin Morikawa plans to use a portion of his Ryder Cup earnings to better compensate his coaches and group members. The caddies are also set to rake in various quantities, with a vital hole between the payouts supplied by Team USA and Team Europe.

According to The Telegraph, Team Europe’s caddies will get around $4,000, plus journey and lodging bills. Reports recommend that Team USA’s caddies will earn roughly 5 instances more than their European counterparts. Moreover, Patrick Cantlay’s caddie Joe LaCava is rumored to be taking home 10% of Cantlay’s payout.

European gamers sometimes obtain an engraved Rolex before the Ryder Cup, but group captain Donald has prolonged this custom to embody the gamers’ companions and respective caddies.

Scottie Scheffler’s caddie, Ted Scott, is set to pocket an estimated $20,000 from Team USA’s Ryder Cup earnings, including to the substantial sums he is made in current years. Scott has been on Scheffler’s bag since 2021 and has been instrumental in his current success, including earlier stints with Bubba Watson.

Scheffler has had a stellar 12 months in 2025, clinching six event victories, including the PGA Championship and the Open. Caddies sometimes earn about 10% of a successful purse, 7% for a top-10 end, and 5% for any other efficiency.

The world No. 1 has raked in $27.6 million on the PGA Tour this 12 months. His six event wins have netted him $16M, probably incomes his caddie Scott a cool $1.6M. However, Scheffler admitted that he does not deal with the fee of his caddie himself.

“We have a girl that helps us pay bills basically because I’m a child and I can’t keep track of all that stuff,” Scheffler confessed on the Pardon My Take podcast in 2024. “She quickly took over that job and texts me at the end of each week, saying, ‘Hey, this is how much we’re paying Ted.’ I’m like, ‘That’s great’.”

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During Wednesday’s Ryder Cup opening ceremony, Team Europe captain Luke Donald made two pointed remarks about the fee dispute within the opposition camp. “The Ryder Cup means so much to each and every one of us. It is unlike anything else in our sport,” Donald said during his opening ceremony speech.

“It is not about prize money or world ranking points. It’s about pride. It’s about representing your flag, your shirts, and the legacy you leave behind. We play for our families, our teammates, our countries, our continent, and for the generations before us who made this event what it is today.”

Donald emphasised that the event is not pushed by financial gain when addressing the challenges of securing victory on American territory. “We are fueled by something money cannot buy: Purpose, brotherhood, and a responsibility to honor those who came before us, while inspiring those whose time is yet to come,” he said.

Nevertheless, Team USA skipper Keegan Bradley has stood by the new compensation construction for the rivals. He maintained that the $300,000 charitable contribution had stayed unchanged since 1999, and the extra funds had been seen as a methodology to convey Ryder Cup payments into the fashionable period.