a quick look at top 125 USPGA...

[Mr_T]

A couple of weeks back a guy playing with Tiger in the frys.com open had made 12 million dollars from golf and never won a tournament, now that is ridiculous... thing is though the lower are such a massive step down so there is still a big incentive, Luke Donald is leading the european tour moneylist on something like 3.4 million, the leading moneylist player on the europro tour is 20,000 euros... talk about a huge gap

 

[JT77]

With all due respect to these boys, I worked away from home and family for 4 years, and there are boys that do it a lot longer than that for a mediocre amount in comparison to these fellas. I have huge respect for their talent, and enjoy watching, but at no point am I going to feel sorry for a bloke that earns ten times + what I do for playing a game we all love.
The boys on the euro pro, have it hard for sure, but who wouldn't love their talent and the chance for a crack at the big time?

 

[palindromicbob]

It's a lot of money but I don't think they don't deserve it. It's all coming from private sources etc. They'll all pay tax on it (although probably less than they should thanks to some clever accounting). It's like any professional sport. Even the average salary for a player in League 2 is above what I get a year as a nurse. If golf was winner takes all sport then this would mean fewer playing it and caddies would be a thing of the past. If you think that the field who make the cut get enough to make you green, imagine if the prize fund for a major competition all went to one player,

 

[Tiger]

Gibbo what do you do for a living? I reckon a city high flyer earns 4 x what most of us earn in a year...from their bonus. I always find these discussions interesting as people don't begrudge a top doctor from earning bucket loads because they've been to medical school and save lives. It's a skilled profession with 'merit'. But the entertainment industry always gets lambasted. But let me put it like this. A significant proportion if people that play golf for leisure are wealthy. These individuals with high net worth buy premium products. These premium products want to appeal to that market and also schmooze business partners (who tend to be wealthy). So they sponsor events to

a) provide opportunities for corporate hospitality
b) associate their brand with high profile golf tournaments

Event organisers want to attract the best golfers so they offer a big prize fund. As a result Market forces drive up the price of sponsorship. I'm also convinced that a lot of companies don't profit from sponsorship but senior executives like the jollies. But that's the world we live in.

The guy who finished 500th on the world money list is, based solely on this year's play and using money as criteria, ranked 500 in the world. I couldn't come close toeing ranked in the top 500 in the world for anything. I don't spend weeks or even months away from my family. So you know what, I think he's earned it.

 

[bobmac]

I don't begrudge Luke one penny of what he's earned.
He turns up, he plays and often wins, and goes home with the spoils.
What does annoy me is why the tournament organisers keep increasing the prize money.
Do the rich really need to get much richer?
Will Luke, Tiger, Lee, Rory etc ever run out of money?

The guys playing on the US tour are regularily playing for $1m first prize

What I'd like to see is more money being spent on helping the people who help create these great golfers.
The coaches / club pros.
The guys and girls who spend hours often for no money helping the kids get into golf.
Free junior clinics, little comps during holidays, mentoring etc. This is where the spare cash should be going.
I know lots is spent on charities and expanding the game throughout the world but lets not forget the humble club pro.

It just saddens me to see so many club pros struggle to make ends meet when the powers that be throw even more money at those who don't need any more.

Interesting fact...
In 1991 Corey Pavin won the money list winning $979,430 for that year.
Luke Donald just won $846,000 in one week.

 

[Mike_j_golf]

I'm sure there was a artical in the Mag at some stage and the cost of breaking even on the European tour for the year was almost 200,000, it is probably similar in the states so the guys at the bottom are making good money but if they loose there card or are playing on the next tour down they are just breaking even or loosing money trying to get back to the big time.
Mike

 

[Aztecs27]

try telling that to the guy who's just lost his card by $364

Beat me to it.

 

[Dodger]

Top 115 in Europe will make around £200k.

Take out of that the £80k ish that is total costs (caddy,entry,flights,accommo etc) toward playing (according to a Pro who frequently bobs around the 115 mark) and then add on any sponsor money then I fail to see how anyone can feel they have a tough life even after taxation!!

 

[Ethan]

jeez, the lowest has earned $680,000

Ridiculous that that chopper earned almost half of what timgolfy earns.