Wyndham Clark was embroiled in some controversy at the 2024 Presidents Cup.
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When it comes to Wyndham Clarkcasual golf fans would be forgiven for thinking he has a quiet, soft-spoken pro with a vanilla personality. But he is not.
The past two seasons have shown Clark to be an opinionated, outspoken and hyper-competitive player. In 2023, Clark captured his first victory at the Wells Fargo in May, then broke through for a major win at the US Open at Los Angeles Country Club.
After making his debut with the US team at the 2023 Ryder Cup, Clark was in the heat of battle at last month’s Presidents Cup and he was involved with the most controversial moment of the event.
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During a late Saturday game between Americans Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay and internationals Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim, Tom Kim accused the American players watching from the sidelines of “cursing us.”
Then international team member Ben An called Clark out directly on Twitter and Clark fired back with a joke of his own.
This week, Clark showed his side of the story when he joined There are no extension podcasts and I dove into what has been the most controversial subject in pro golf in recent years: LIV Golf.
One of the main current topics is whether and how LIV players should be allowed to return to the PGA Tour once an agreement between the Tour and the PIF is finalized.
In the interview, Clark told him No Laying Up that he supports some LIV pros returning to their Tour roots, but not all. The main difference between the two groups? Their “pedigree” tour.
“It depends on who it is,” Clark said of No Laying Up. “Guys that have had careers where they should be PGA Tour lifers, they deserve the right to come play on the PGA Tour.”
He continued: “If Dustin Johnson wants to come back and Phil Mickelson and the guys who have won, Brooks, who have won majors and are probably Hall of Famers, they deserve to play wherever the hell they want because they’re that good. .”
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But as for players who aren’t household names and don’t have many glittering trophies in their homes, Clark expressed reluctance to let them return to the Tour.
“The guys that maybe left and didn’t have that pedigree and career,” Clark said, “those are the guys that I struggle with because they made their decision.”
Clark also revealed that if players knew they could “cash in” from LIV and still play PGA Tour events, “we all would have done it.”
This isn’t the first time Clark has commented on LIV Golf since the inaugural league launched in 2022.
After his victory in the shortened AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, where the tournament was called off after 54 holes due to inclement weather, Clark admitted he had seriously considered an offer from LIV but declined to pursue his lifelong goal of win PGA Tour events.
“Eventually I turned down going to LIV because I felt I still have a lot in the tank on the PGA Tour and I wanted to chase records, I wanted to chase world rankings.” Clark said after his win. “My dream is to try to be one of the best players in the world, if not the best player. I just grew up always imagining winning PGA Tour events. So at the end of the day, I chose my legacy over LIV and that’s really what it came down to.”
Then at the Masters, Clark took a subtle jab at LIV Golf and its players. After struggling with a one-over 73 in the opening round, Clark quipped, “You know we’ve got 54 holes (left). At LIV Golf they only play 54 so I like my chances.”
You can listen to Clark’s full interview with the No Laying Up podcast here.
