Patrick Cantlay set the opening round lead at the Genesis Invitational on Thursday, but one fellow professional was left unimpressed by his lack of ‘fore’ shouts towards the end of play.
Former Presidents Cup vice-captain Tony Johnstone believes Patrick Cantlay should be handed a “huge fine” after failing to shout “fore” during the opening round of the Genesis Invitational.
Cantlay impressed on day one at Riviera Country Club, setting the opening round lead thanks to a seven-under-par 64. Six-time European winner, Johnstone however was left unimpressed with the American’s etiquette as he broke one of golf’s unwritten rules after two miss-fired shots on the final hole.
The former FedEx Cup champion hit a wayward tee shot on the par-four 18th, pulling his drive left which went hit one of the course ball-spotter’s. He then followed this up with another off-target attempt, as his second flew towards the green-side crowd.
Cantlay failed to call “fore” on the back of his errant tee shot, and appeared to do the same with his second attempt too, before a late call came from a member of his group. Johnstone was not impressed, taking to X (formerly Twitter) to criticise the tournament leader. “Back to back shots and Cantlay hits a ball-spotter and then spectators around the green.
“Would a shout of ‘fore’ be out of the question?” He then added in a follow-up: “[He] should be nailed with a huge fine.” Cantlay is a man who has not been far from controversy in recent months, having taken on the role of pantomime villain at last Autumn’s Ryder Cup.
Reports suggested the 38-year-old had caused a split within the Team USA locker room in Rome, having reportedly been left unhappy over not being paid to represent his country. Just weeks later, Cantlay’s name was embroiled in controversy again, after it was claimed he was trying to ‘take over’ the PGA Tour’s Policy Board.
At present, the professional ranked fifth globally serves as an involved Player Director within the organization’s board.
This occurs during a crucial period for the PGA Tour as they continue to negotiate with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF) in order to resolve their longstanding dispute with LIV Golf. Cantlay personally commented on these allegations towards the end of 2023, downplaying any involvement he may have had.
Last December, he expressed his skepticism towards the reliability of information found on the internet, stating that complete trust should not be placed in everything read online.
According to him, considering the available facts, it seems highly unlikely that any individual player could exert complete control over a situation.
In fact, he believes that even if all the players were to join forces, achieving this level of control would still be impossible. “We possess only 50% of the seats on the board, and obtaining a two-thirds majority is necessary for any significant decision pertaining to the subjects we have been discussing. Furthermore, it is worth mentioning that the Tour has engaged the services of Allen and Co., a prominent investment bank.
Considering the fact that the Tour has been leading the discussions even prior to the announcement of the framework agreement, it is inconceivable for that scenario to be true.”