The top fifty or so players on the money list do very, very well. They probably double their on-course earnings off the course with endorsements, appearance fees and such. Win a major and it's practically a license to print money. But even the 'working stiffs' further down the money list are still pulling in over $1M annually, just on the course.
I was watching a documentary about Arnold Palmer last week. When he joined the tour in the mid-fifties, the money was paid only to the Top 30 finishers in a tournament, and last place might only be $20. Contrast that with today where making the cut means thousands of dollars.
The 2019 PGA Tour Money List:
I had to giggle at your 2019 tour list you provided. The save-harmless was at the bottom of the graph:
“The total official money a player has earned year-to-date.”
We know millions of dollars are tossed around on Monday from side bets alone. The PGA has even set up a number or amount of bets they can catch. The side bets in the Woods Mickelson match a couple of years ago was monitored. The side-bet challenges made by Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson added another dimension to The Match, but apparently they were only allowed to do so many.
Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard, citing sources, said the PGA Tour limited the number of challenges between Mickelson and Woods.
Tour policy prohibits players from gambling at the site of a Tour co-sponsored event, but a Tour spokesperson told Golf Channel that Woods and Mickelson did not violate any rules since the side bets went to charity.
Big brother is out there but how much was bet before they got to the course is not covered under the rule as it is not on site. And isn’t charity a tax write off?
These guys play monopoly with real buildings. They’ve got to protect it somehow.
rwood