Patrick Cantlay gives the ‘perfect answer’ on becoming a smarter player - “I've been working with a stats team”

Patrick Cantlay provided an interesting answer on his journey towards becoming a smarter player during his recent pre-tournament press conference at The Players Championship. The American professional golfer revealed his dependence on a dedicated statistics team and how he uses data to shape his strategy for each event.

When the moderator inquired about his approach to becoming a smarter player, Cantlay disclosed that while it's uncertain if it's the smartest method, utilizing databases for decision-making has provided him with the greatest chances for success in recent years.

Patrick Cantlay said:

“I'm not sure I have the perfect answer. But I've been working with a stats team for a number of years, and so the way I think about it, the more decisions I can make that are reinforced by the stats, as long as I feel comfortable with the shot, I'm just gaining incrementally every time I make those decisions.”

He further elaborated:

“I'm not sure if that's the smart way to go about it or not all the time, but trying to make the most data-based decisions over and over and over again to give myself the best opportunity to succeed, that's really how I think about it.”

Moreover, the eight-time PGA Tour champion also admitted that sometimes diverging from his plans becomes the core of his weekly game strategy. For the uninitiated, Patrick Cantlay is currently at the TPC Sawgrass for the upcoming Players Championship, scheduled to take place from March 14 to 17.

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Which golfers are participating in the Players Championship other than Patrick Cantlay?

This year, The Players Championship boasts a formidable lineup with some of the most prominent names in the field including Patrick Cantlay. Notably, World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and World No. 2 Rory McIlroy are set to compete in the tournament.

Additionally, an impressive contingent of 46 players from the top 50 in the world rankings will be among the 144-player field.

Here are the names of golfers participating in the upcoming Players Championship:

• Ludvig Åberg
• Tyson Alexander
• Byeong Hun An
• Aaron Baddeley
• Christiaan Bezuidenhout
• Akshay Bhatia
• Alexander Björk
• Zac Blair
• Keegan Bradley
• Joseph Bramlett
• Hayden Buckley
• Sam Burns
• Patrick Cantlay
• Wyndham Clark
• Eric Cole
• Corey Conners
• Joel Dahmen
• Cam Davis
• Jason Day
• Thomas Detry
• Tyler Duncan
• Nick Dunlap
• Nico Echavarria
• Austin Eckroat
• Harris English
• Tony Finau
• Matt Fitzpatrick
• Tommy Fleetwood
• Rickie Fowler
• Ryan Fox
• Doug Ghim
• Lucas Glover
• Ben Griffin
• Emiliano Grillo
• Chesson Hadley
• Adam Hadwin
• Harry Hall
• Nick Hardy
• Brian Harman
• Russell Henley
• Garrick Higgo
• Ryo Hisatsune
• Lee Hodges
• Charley Hoffman
• Tom Hoge
• Nicolai Højgaard
• Max Homa
• Billy Horschel
• Beau Hossler
• Viktor Hovland
• Mark Hubbard
• Mackenzie Hughes
• Sungjae Im
• Stephan Jaeger
• Chan Kim
• Michael Kim
• S.H. Kim
• Si Woo Kim
• Tom Kim
• Chris Kirk
• Kurt Kitayama
• Jake Knapp
• Ben Kohles
• Matt Kuchar
• Martin Laird
• Nate Lashley
• K.H. Lee
• Min Woo Lee
• David Lipsky
• Luke List
• Justin Lower
• Shane Lowry
• Robert MacIntyre
• Peter Malnati
• Ben Martin
• Hideki Matsuyama
• Denny McCarthy
• Rory McIlroy
• Maverick McNealy
• Troy Merritt
• Keith Mitchell
• Francesco Molinari
• Taylor Montgomery
• Ryan Moore
• Taylor Moore
• Collin Morikawa
• Grayson Murray
• Matt NeSmith
• Alex Noren
• Vincent Norrman
• Andrew Novak
• C.T. Pan
• Matthieu Pavon
• Taylor Pendrith
• J.T. Poston
• Seamus Power
• Andrew Putnam
• Aaron Rai
• Chad Ramey
• Chez Reavie
• Davis Riley
• Patrick Rodgers
• Justin Rose
• Sam Ryder
• Xander Schauffele
• Scottie Scheffler
• Adam Schenk
• Matti Schmid
• Adam Scott
• Robby Shelton
• Greyson Sigg
• Ben Silverman
• Webb Simpson
• David Skinns
• Alex Smalley
• J.J. Spaun
• Jordan Spieth
• Scott Stallings
• Jimmy Stanger
• Sam Stevens
• Sepp Straka
• Kevin Streelman
• Steve Stricker
• Justin Suh
• Adam Svensson
• Callum Tarren
• Ben Taylor
• Nick Taylor
• Sahith Theegala
• Justin Thomas
• Davis Thompson
• Brendon Todd
• Sami Valimaki
• Erik van Rooyen
• Camilo Villegas
• Matt Wallace
• Gary Woodland
• Brandon Wu
• Dylan Wu
• Cameron Young
• Carson Young
• Kevin Yu
• Carl Yuan
• Will Zalatoris