By Chris Burns

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The Ryder Cup stands as one of golf’s most iconic events, but for decades, it was recognised as the tournament where competitors received no prize money for victory. Since 1999, the US Team has been awarded cash to donate to a charity of their choosing. However, this year’s Ryder Cup represents the first occasion in the competition’s 98-year history that half of the participants will pocket a substantial amount, with Team USA now receiving additional payment to compete. All 12 members of Keegan Bradley’s squad, including Bradley himself, are earning £370,000, with £220,000 of that sum going towards a charity of their selection. The development has added an extra dimension to the already heated competition. The US team’s fee for participating has sparked considerable controversy surrounding the tournament. Prior to the event at Bethpage Black in Long Island, New York, European captain Luke Donald delivered a sharp dig that many interpreted as aimed at his American rivals. “[The Ryder Cup] is not about prize money or ranking points. It’s about pride, it’s about representing your flag, your shirt and the legacy you leave behind,” Donald declared during Wednesday’s opening ceremony,” he said. “We are fuelled by something money can’t buy – purpose, brotherhood and a responsibility to honour those who came before us, while inspiring those whose time is yet to come.” Golfing legends, including Darren Clarke and Paul McGinley, have voiced their concerns about the payment scheme. However, Colin Morikawa from Team USA expressed his support for the fresh arrangement. He said: “I think the PGA of America is making a lot of money from the Ryder Cup, and on that end, it’s just to give us an opportunity to either pay our respective teams, because the teams behind us don’t get the recognition that we do, but they deserve a lot of it that we get.” American stars Scottie Scheffler, Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele have confirmed they will donate their entire fee to charity. When the Ryder Cup launched in 1927, golfers were initially given modest payments for participating in the tournament, with British competitors receiving travel and equipment expenses. From that point onwards, the players haven’t received wages and typically get presents from their captains. Nevertheless, discussions about compensation for the three-day tournament have been ongoing for quite some time. American icon Tiger Woods previously questioned where the reported £17million profit from the 1999 tournament actually ended up. He said: “I would like to see us receive whatever the amount is – 200, 300, 400, 500,000 dollars, whatever it is – and I think we should be able to keep the money and do whatever we see fit. “Personally, I would donate all of it to charity. But I think it’s up to the other person’s discretion what they would do with it. With all the money that’s being made, I think that we should have a say in where it goes.” The DP World Tour, the governing body for the European side of the event, pockets the money instead of it going to Team Europe’s players. This is said to help fund the tour, which is significantly less financially backed than the PGA Tour.