Golf
How Much Do Professional Golfers Earn in a Single Tournament?
Professional golf is among the most profitable sports. Tournament prize money varies, with The Players Championship offering the highest Purse at $4.5 million. Yet, even smaller tournaments can be highly rewarding, especially for top players.
Scottie Scheffler//Getty Images
Prize Money for Professional Golf Tournaments
Professional men’s golfers can earn millions of dollars from a single tournament, especially at The Players Championship and the US Open. The biggest pay-out comes from The Players Championship, which earns the winner $4.5 million. The four majors feature near the top in terms of prize money share for winners, but they are not the only tournaments for which players can earn big in terms of prize money.
Beyond tournament earnings, sponsorship plays a critical role in their income. Sponsorship deals can often double or triple a golfer's total annual income, making professional golf one of the most financially rewarding careers in sports.
Men’s Golf Tournaments With the Highest Prize Money For Winners
After The Players Championship, the next most lucrative event is the US Open, for which the winner collects $4.3 million.
The US Open is the highest-paying major tournament, but all four majors – the others being The Masters, the PGA Championship and The British Open – are among the top 15 in terms of prize money for the winner.
| Tournament | Prize Money For Winner | Total purse |
| The Players Championship | $4.5 million | $25 million |
| US Open | $4.3 million | $21.5 million |
| Genesis Invitational | $4 million | $20 million |
| Arnold Palmer Invitational | $4 million | $20 million |
| The Memorial | $4 million | $20 million |
| Masters | $3.6 million | $20 million |
| The Sentry | $3.6 million | $20 million |
| AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am | $3.6 million | $20 million |
| RBC Heritage | $3.6 million | $20 million |
| Wells Fargo Championship | $3.6 million | $20 million |
| The Travelers Championship | $3.6 million | $20 million |
| FedEx St. Jude Championship | $3.6 million | $20 million |
| BMW Championship | $3.6 million | $20 million |
| PGA Championship | $3.3 million | $18.5 million |
| British Open | $3.1 million | $17 million |
Is There Equal Prize Money for Men and Women In Golf?
Men’s golf pays its winners significantly more in prize money than women’s golf. In June 2024, US Women’s Open champion Yuka Saso earned $2.4 million for winning a tournament that had a record total prize pot of $12 million.
By comparison, there was a total prize pot of $21.5 million on offer during the 2024 US Open for men, with Bryson DeChambeau walking away with the $4.3 million winners’ prize.
However, at the season-ending 2024 CME Group Tour Championship, the winner will earn $4 million as the LPGA Tour slowly begins to achieve gender parity with men’s golf.
With $29,228,358 in earnings during the 2024 season, Scottie Scheffler has set the all-time record for prize money in a single season.
How Much Prize Money Do Golfers Earn in Their Careers?
Tiger Woods is the highest earner in the history of golf in terms of career prize money. He has earned $120,999,166 as of 10 November 2024 purely in prize money at the time of writing.
With prize money for various tournaments steadily increasing, it is likely that Woods’ record will eventually fall.
See below the all-time top five for career earnings in prize money as per the PGA Tour’s official website.
| Player | Career earnings |
| Tiger Woods | $120,999,166 |
| Rory McIlroy | $90,989,348 |
| Scottie Scheffler | $71,793,586 |
| Jim Furyk | $71,507,269 |
| Vijay Singh | $71,281,216 |
How Much Do Golfers Earn From Sponsors?
Beyond tournament earnings, sponsorship plays a critical role in the income of top golfers. Sponsorship deals can often double or triple a golfer's total annual income, making professional golf one of the most financially rewarding careers in sports.
Arnold Palmer revolutionised the way golfers brought in money from sponsorships. Despite having retired in 2006, he still earned $40m in 2015 as per Forbes. He earned $3.6 million in prize money but his career earnings were reported by Forbes to be $875 million.
Arnold Palmer Teeing Off//Getty Images
Palmer built his business empire gradually over time and it would be wrong to attribute his success solely to his endorsements as a player, but it formed an important part of the backbone of his wealth.
To give some idea on how much players can make from endorsements alone: in 2023, Jon Rahm reportedly made $25 million off the course, topping the NFL’s star quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ $20 million in endorsements.
Tiger Woods was one of the most marketable athletes of all time in his prime, earning over $20 million annually according to Forbes.
Leonard Solms is a freelance journalist who has been covering local and international sport from South Africa since 2015. Best known for his work for ESPN, he has also written for Al Jazeera, The Continent, New Frame, Planet Rugby and GiveMeSport among several other publications.