TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

August 25, 2026

Patrick Cantlay

East Lake Golf Club

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: We'd like to welcome 2021 FedExCup champion Patrick Cantlay to the interview room here at the TOUR Championship. Patrick, making your sixth consecutive TOUR Championship appearance and obviously making it here this week in awesome fashion, finishing runner-up last week at the BMW. Your thoughts on being back at East Lake for another year.

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah, happy to be back and good to be playing well heading into the last event of the year. I feel like my game has been trending in the right direction for a little while now. It's been a long season, so I'm looking forward to Thursday getting started and competing.

Q. What sticks out to you when you look back at last week at Bellerive and how well you played and being back in position and getting in contention on TOUR? What momentum do you bring into this week?

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah, I hit the ball really well last week, and I thought I managed all my distances. And even when I got out of position, I managed to control my golf ball. A few more putts fall throughout the week, it's probably a different result. Just staying patient and keep working on the things I'm working on in my swing.

But yeah, everything feels good in my game right now, so it's nice to have another week to play.

Q. This new format, if you were the one solely in charge of what it looked like, is this what it would look like?

PATRICK CANTLAY: You know, I think when it was still like a season-long race, I think the fairest one was the one we had before we went to starting strokes. I thought when you came into this week with -- if you were in the top 5 and you won, you would win. But you still had an advantage if you were starting the week at No. 1. I thought that was probably the best season-long race.

But this tournament has evolved over the years, and I think it'll continue to evolve. It's definitely circled on the calendar for all the players in the field as one of the biggest events of the year, no matter the format.

Q. Regardless of format, as you mentioned, you seem to play your best golf at this time of the year numerous times. What about the playoffs and the BMW specifically, changing courses, what about it kind of suits your game and just your mindset? Is it just a flip-of-the-switch kind of thing, or is it maybe this time of the year in the summer, the ball is flying a little bit? What about it suits your game?

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah, I think a lot of the BMW golf courses suit my eye. They're usually played on grasses that I really like, and I've had success around here I think because you have to drive the ball in the fairway. With the Bermuda rough how it is, how it's set up, you can't score from the rough; but if you do drive the ball in the fairway, you have a lot of chances if you hit good iron shots.

It's just the case of some courses fitting my game.

Q. I believe it was reported that you abstained from voting on the new sweeping changes coming to the TOUR. I was wondering if you could provide some context as to why.

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah, there were just a lot of details that I felt still needed to be cleaned up and finished. So until we sorted out those details, I didn't want to vote on anything.

Q. Are there specific parts of the model that you would adjust or revise based on those details that you're kind of waiting to hear about?

PATRICK CANTLAY: No, I think it all -- every lever kind of pulls on something else. It's really about getting the whole picture right, and I'm confident that the FCC will be able to do that in the coming months.

Q. Patrick, just curious about -- he had touched on you playing well later in the year. If you win this week, does it feel the same as, say, when you won in '21 as far as winning the FedExCup?

PATRICK CANTLAY: Well, from my perspective probably not because that was my third or fourth win that year. Just from that perspective, it would be different if I were to win this week.

But I don't think any -- other than that, I don't think it's that big of a difference.

Q. A win is a win, right?

PATRICK CANTLAY: Definitely.

Q. What would be the meaning? If you were to win this week, how would the meaning of you winning this be different from '21?

PATRICK CANTLAY: I just think with some time in between wins -- I had won at BMW the week before. In this sport we put a big significance on winning, and it's been a while since I've done that, so it would be nice to get back in the winner's circle.

Q. On money, all we talk about is money, it seems like, the last two or three years. How big a part of that should it be for '28? Do you have an opinion on distribution of the first part of the season and the last?

PATRICK CANTLAY: It's definitely a detail to be worked out, but I don't think it's overly significant. I still think for all the guys teeing it up in the field, first and foremost, they want to win and compete, and that's the most important thing.

Q. What do you think Jay Monahan will best be remembered for during his tenure?

PATRICK CANTLAY: I think he's had a long career at the TOUR, and I think he had to deal with more than probably any commissioner has had to deal with. I think it's been -- it would have been a challenge for anyone, and I think the whole LIV situation will probably be the thing he's most remembered for, both the good and the tough parts of it.

Q. I'm not sure I heard much about your feelings on the golf ball rollback and where we stand. Are you encouraged by the sense that there's some new talks again versus where we were headed with pushing it back a couple years?

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah, I'm definitely encouraged. We had a good meeting. There was a PAC meeting earlier this year at Memorial, and the USGA and the R&A were there and talked with a number of players.

I'm not in support of rolling the golf ball back. I think the game is in a really good spot. We have more rounds of golf being played each and every year in this country and more new golfers that are playing golf. I think the guys are hitting it farther because they're trying to hit it farther, and they're training to hit it farther. The guys are bigger and stronger.

I don't think we need to do something massive like change the golf ball. I think that would just -- I don't think the pros outweigh the cons there.

Q. Is there a venue you'd like to see for this TOUR Championship?

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah, I think some of the traditional golf courses, more traditional golf courses maybe in the Northeast or on the West Coast would be great to see. I think it's a lot to ask of a place because there's a lot that goes into hosting a tournament, and not every site has enough space on-site to have a tournament that's this big.

But if you could find the right tournament in the Northeast or maybe out in California, it would be great.

Q. Do you think being on the board these last few years has hindered your play and may be responsible for the fact you haven't won?

PATRICK CANTLAY: I don't think so. I'm pretty good at compartmentalizing my time and dedicating enough time to my golf, and that's still and always has been the number one priority.

I think golf is just a tricky game. I think you can be playing better than your results sometimes, and I definitely feel like this year for me was one of those years where I felt like I was a lot closer all year and never put everything together in one week.

And that can change really fast in golf too. You can get on a run, and I've done it before where golf feels really easy and you make a bunch of putts and you go and win a couple times in a month.

I think being open to that, or at least realizing that you're not as far away as it seems sometimes, is really important in this game.

Q. With the TOUR Championship likely to change courses from year to year, maybe have some longer-term partnerships, but also with Championship Series, Challenger Series, introducing new courses, do you think that'll have any effect on some of the selection or the rota for Presidents Cup or Ryder Cup venues in the future?

PATRICK CANTLAY: I think Ryder Cup venues are set for a number of years, if I'm not mistaken, and I think Presidents Cup as well, especially on the international side. I think even Bellerive is set for 2030.

So I'm not sure exactly how much the new schedule will affect these dates because I think a lot of them are set for a number of years now.

Q. There's been a lot of talk about kind of the tail end of the season from, say, September onward, kind of a sweet spot for Europe. What are your thoughts on that? You seem to be a guy that likes to read a lot of books in the off-season.

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah, I think the season is going to get more condensed, so I think there's going to be a larger amount of big tournaments in a shorter period of time. For me, an off-season is really important, and being able to have time to rest my body and my mind after a season where it feels like we're on the road a lot and playing a lot of golf, that's always been important to me.

I do think the fall is a nice time for Europe to have their biggest events, but for me right now, the off-season is key in feeling fresh and ready to go, especially when I imagine a schedule that's even more golf over a shorter period of time.