The PGA Championship may be considered the least prestigious men’s major, but it’s as competitive as any when it comes to cash. The PGA is actually the major that started the recent arms race among the majors, as each bumps its purse higher and higher every year in a constant bid to outdo the other.
PGA Championship 2018 purse: Winner’s payout is just shy of $2M in prize money
Brooks Koepka’s 3rd major earned him $1.98 million in prize money.
John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
Back in the fall of 2013, the PGA of America, in conjunction with the PGA Tour, made the announcement in a public press conference that they were moving their purses to the $10 million mark. It was a new frontier and one that evidently demanded the public show, as Ted Bishop and Tim Finchem strutted out the news that the PGA Championship and Players Championship, each organization’s premier event, were taking things to the next level.
Since then, each major has joined and zoomed past that $10 million mark. The U.S. Open made the biggest move last year, making a ridiculous $2 million jump in one fell swoop. Their purse has now been $12 million for the last two years. The winner clears more than $2.1 million, which would be an unimaginable amount just five years ago. The Masters purse jumped to $11 million this year while The Open, which got hammered by Brexit, switched from pounds to USD last year and jumped to $10.5 million this year.
For the 100th edition, the PGA has bumped their purse by another $500k increment and now settles at an even $11 million. It’s not to the U.S. Open level, but to steal an old and bad PGA slogan, this is major. When the runner-up is well into seven figures, it’s an enormous purse. The winner will take home just shy of $2 million.
Brooks Koepka held held his 54-hole lead to win his third major, beating Tiger Woods by two strokes. Koepka’s already got $23,975,873 in career earnings, including more than $4 million in just his two major wins this season. That is getting some good return.
It was a loaded leaderboard full of established stars that aren’t exactly hurting for money. The cash is nice, but not life-changing for this set. It’s adding another major to the resume that is the game-changer. Here are your payout totals for the 100th PGA Championship:
Winner: Brooks Koepka, $1.980 million
2. Tiger Woods, $1.188 million
3. Adam Scott, $748,000
t-4. Stewart Cink, $489,250
t-4. Jon Rahm, $489,250
t-6. Thomas Pieters, $334,712.50
t-6. Justin Thomas, $334,712.50
t-6. Francesco Molinari, $334,712.50
t-6. Gary Woodland, $334,712.50
t-10. Rafa Cabrera Bello, $261,985
t-10. Tyrrell Hatton, $261,985
t-12. Jordan Spieth, $187,747.14
t-12. Chez Reavie, $187,747.14
t-12. Brandon Stone, $187,747.14
t-12. Dan Berger, $187,747.14
t-12. Kevin Kisner, $187,747.14
t-12. Shane Lowry, $187,747.14
t-12. Rickie Fowler, $187,747.14
t-19. Zach Johnson, $113,125
t-19. Kevin Na, $113,125
t-19. Jason Kokrak, $113,125
t-19. Justin Rose, $113,125
t-19. Matt Wallace, $113,125
t-19. Webb Simpson, $113,125
t-19. Julian Suri, $113,125
t-19. Jason Day, $113,125
t-27. Ryan Fox, $76,000
t-27. Branden Grace, $76,000
t-27. Dustin Johnson, $76,000
t-27. Patrick Cantlay, $76,000
t-31. Dylan Frittelli, $63,500
t-31. Chris Kirk, $63,500
t-31. Emiliano Grillo, $63,500
t-31. Ian Poulter, $63,500
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