Scottie Scheffler on Saturday at East Lake Golf Club.
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Scottie Scheffler, the man who made more money than any other PGA Tour player this season, is talking about money.
It's a trending topic in golf, of course, and on Tuesday, before this week's Tour Championship, the Tour's highest-paying event, Scheffler was asked this question by a reporter:
“If the Tour comes to you – you said you will play the way the sponsors want. If sponsors or Strategic Sports Group come in and want to change things completely and make it a play-by-play event or under the lights, how open do you think Tour players would be to deviating from 72-hole play? Obviously not every week, but in something like when they make the play-offs and come out of the box?”
In response, Scheffler called it a “really deep conversation,” and his entire response reflected that.
He said he hoped he would be paid fairly. He said he doesn't care what he will get for winning the Masters.
Here is his full answer:
“Well, a really deep conversation,” Scheffler began. “At the end of the day, with sponsors, I would be playing many of the tournaments I play throughout the year if the purses were much smaller. I could pick and choose a little more, but if it was – if it's the Masters, I'll play the Masters. I want a chance to win a big tournament. I don't care what you pay me for winning the Masters. I really don't know.
“But at the end of the day for a lot of those tournaments, you just want to get paid what you think is going to be fair. And then in terms of what the sponsors want, if you have FedEx putting the kind of money they're putting into this event, people will come out to play.
“It's a business at the end of the day. It's part of the game. This is a product that appeals to many people. Sports are entertainment, but at the end of the day standing by the fence of my golf clubs it will always be my entertainment. If you want to come and see me play golf, that's what we're going to see. If you show up, you'll watch me play golf. I'm not going to go out on the first tee and dance and celebrate like crazy. I will do my best to compete in the golf tournament. Wherever there are high level players competing, I show myself in those tournaments because I love the competition. That's really what I enjoy the most.
“In terms of format, golf is a funny game. You won't always — there is no perfect golf tournament plan that is the most fun product and the product that gets the best player every time. A lot of times in golf, the guy who plays the best might not even fall that week. About the little bounces, game changing. It is a challenging game. I'm open to suggestions. I still think 72 holes of stroke play is the best format for tournament golf, but if a sponsor wants to come and change it up a little bit, I like to compete, and I want to win when we go home and play. Wolf for four hours, and I give 20 lashes to the boy.
“I don't want to give him money at the end of the day or $5 or $500. I don't want to take out my wallet and give him money at the end of the day. That's just not in my blood. I want to win, whether we're playing Ping-Pong or whatever.
“Whatever the format, I will show up and try to do my best. That's all it is.”
With that in mind, here's a complete breakdown of the pay for this week's tour tournament, played at East Lake Golf Club.
How much each player made in the 2024 Tour Championship
1. $25 million
2. $12.5 million
3. $7.5 million
4. $6 million
5. $5 million
6. $3.5 million
7. $2.75 million
8. $2.25 million
9. $2 million
10. $1.75 million
11. $1.075 million
12. $1.025 million
13. $975,000
14. $925,000
15. $885,000
16. $795,000
17. $775,000
18. $755,000
19. $735,000
20. $715,000
21. $670,000
22. $650,000
23. $630,000
24. $615,000
25. $600,000
26. $590,000
27. $580,000
28. $570,000
29. $560,000
30. $550,000
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