Wheelin’ & Dealin’

PATRICK CANTLAY BRINGS HIS COMPETITIVE FIRE TO THE CARD TABLE

When patrick cantlay isn’t swinging a golf club, you can usually find him turning the pages of a book or dealing out a game of gin rummy. Reading and card games are two activities he credits with sharpening his mind when he’s away from the course. But if you’re looking for a book suggestion from Cantlay, 28, don’t expect a breezy read. The books on Cantlay’s shelf resemble textbooks in length and topic. And if you’re hoping for a leisurely game of cards, keep walking. Cantlay is a fierce competitor. Hoping to join his book club, we caught up with Cantlay to hear what he’s reading and who he’s playing cards with these days.

by brittany romano

what are you reading?

▶ Principles by Ray Dalio. I haven’t gotten into the meat of the book yet, but so far, it’s about how he devised his plan on investing from a systematic approach—which I can kind of relate to. It’s thinking about how he can build the best system for making decisions for investing with a priority on brutal honesty between people on his team.

did someone suggest this book?

▶ I can’t remember. I’m sure someone did. I try to get suggestions for books from people who I think are particularly smart or smarter than I am so I can learn something. Growing up, I used to read more fiction, and lately I’ve been trending to more nonfiction stuff, something that I can apply for the rest of my life.

what are your three favourite books?

▶ Growing up, The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien was my favourite. There is so much in there, it feels like it’s easy to get lost in that world. It was the first time I started getting excited about reading.

Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman was a book that I really enjoyed. It’s easy to take little nuggets of knowledge and apply them to your life. I got a lot out of that book. I also really liked A Random Walk Down Wall Street by Burton G. Malkiel. It was the first investing book I read. As I’ve gotten a little older and been fortunate enough to make a little money, investing has become a tiny part of my life, so being educated about it has been important.

do you always have a book with you at the golf course or when you travel?

▶ No, I don’t usually bring one to the course. Once I get to the course, I don’t waste much time. I’ll read a little bit during the week [at a tournament], depending on what I have going on. I wouldn’t say I read a crazy amount of the time. I’m just always reading something. I don’t get through a large number of books, but I always have one or two going at a time.

we heard you’re a big card player. how did that start?

▶ I play gin rummy a fair amount, and that kind of started when I was hurt, and I played with the guys at Virginia Country Club [in Long Beach, Calif.], where I grew up. I really enjoy finding things that aren’t golf that you can be competitive at with people. That’s fun for me just because I’m so competitive.

you played with a lot of older members at virginia country club. what was that like?

▶ One of the cool things about starting to play cards was that I met a lot of people who had a lot more life experience and were a lot smarter than I was. Just by spending time around intellectual people like that, asking questions and hearing what they have to say, that has helped me a lot in my life and provided some friendships for me that have been really enjoyable and beneficial. I don’t think I would have made those connections without being able to play cards and spend time with some of the guys.

how often do you play cards now that you’re not living in california?

▶ I don’t play as much as when I was hurt. When I was hurt, I probably played twice a week. You know, just trying to keep sane. Just having things to do while I wasn’t doing anything. I’m still looking for a game in Florida, but sometimes I’ll play on the road. I’ll play with Xander Schauffele. Jordan Spieth is a good player, too.

do you usually win?

▶ No, we have some good battles. They’re both really smart guys, and we enjoy playing.

what kind of qualities are you looking for in players at a regular game?

▶ It’s always fun to play with people who are competitive, right? Because you know they want to win and are trying as hard as they can. That investment makes winning or losing more fun because you know they’re giving you everything they have.

do you hope to someday help someone like yourself get through hard times by playing cards?

▶ Someday, I’ll be at a point where I’ve lived the majority of my life and made my successes and failures, and it’ll be time to kind of help or advise somebody younger that still has mistakes to be made and successes to be had.