HOYLAKE (England) — The major golf championships are run by organizations with a shared mission. For some, it is a foundational one, while for others, it has been adopted only recently. They all share the same goal: to preserve and grow the sport, without compromising its values. The shared mission of these bodies sets them apart from professional tours that use similar platitudes to mask their real objectives, which are to reward members and executives.
The PGA Tour exceeded expectations and maybe even good taste in achieving this goal. The World No. Scottie Scheffler, the world’s No. 1 golfer, has played 19 tournaments this season. He won twice and averaged more than $1 million per event. The FedEx Cup playoffs are still ahead of him. Scheffler’s consistent high finishes in this campaign are a testament to the Tour’s new economic policies, which have less of a trickle-down effect than a tsunami. Patrick Cantlay may not have won this year, but his prize money up to July 20 is more than Brooks Koepka had in 2019, which included three majors. The average earnings from the PGA Tour are currently $1.8 million. This is after seven events, bonuses and other factors. Why? Why? The API purse in 2021 was $9,3 million. In 2021, the API’s purse was $9.3 million. This year? $20 million.
The PGA Tour, in an attempt to keep up with the PIF and the PIF’s financial gains, is delivering windfalls that have not been seen since Bernie Madoff became the toast of Wall Street.
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Major championships are also on the rise. In two years, the average prize money at a major event was $11.875million. In 2022 it will be $15.375 millions. It is now $18 million. The purse for the Open Championship at Royal Liverpool, the 151st, is $16.5m. This is a generous amount, but it’s the least among the four major golf organizations. It reflects the R&A as the weakest body in the sport. Martin Slumbers – the chief executive of the R&A – probably bemoaned this money arms race at Royal Liverpool on Wednesday.
The significant increase in prize money for men’s golf has led to a long-term review of the professional golf business model. Slumbers stated that as custodians, we must balance the prize money at The Open while ensuring appropriate investment in grass roots and new golf initiatives. We also need to ensure pathways from elite amateur golf into the professional game and promote women’s and girls’ golf both amateur and pro. There’s no doubt our ability to accomplish this was impacted by a much faster acceleration of men’s professional prizes money than we anticipated or planned for.
The debate on sustainability in golf has moved from environmental green to a different kind of green.
Slumbers had just lamented that there was a money-race when he put on his skates to try and get ahead of the pack. When asked if R&A would accept generous donations from Saudi Arabia, he replied: “We work with a number large corporations that make it possible.” I believe the world has changed over the past year. Not just golf. Football is a good example. You can see it in F1. You can see it in cricket. Tennis will be right behind it.”
He did not mention sports by chance in which Saudi sportswashing is currently active or established.
Slumbers added, with the air of an aged Harry Potter, that “the world of sport has dramatically changed in the last year, and it’s not feasible for R&A or Golf to ignore what is a social change on a worldwide basis.” “We’ll be looking at all options within the parameters of the R&A and golf.”
It’s unacceptable that, in the case of Translating Slumbers, the R&A allows others to burrow down into the Saudi trough while not wearing a napkin. It should be shocking to hear a leader in an industry talk about women’s rights and then blatantly accept a payment from a misogynistic government to fund that mission. Adlai Stevenson said that it was the equivalent to cutting down a redwood, then standing on the stump and delivering a conservation message.
The R&A, like the Masters and PGA of America can support the noble cause without putting a monetary value on the values they hold dear.
The divide between legacy, lucre and PGA Tour policy has never been more pronounced. This gap will only grow, as more money is poured in by either the Saudi Public Investment Fund, or private equity, depending which faction of the PGA Tour Policy Board wins. Money-obsession diminishes both players and platforms where they compete. But it elevates majors as events that build legacies. The majors shouldn’t try to compete in the cash race, but should instead abstain.
Make the prize money zero. Not a dime.
Majors should not be just another way for players to make money, but an opportunity to give back to the game which is bringing them so much joy. The $72 million that was paid out in majors last year could be used to grow the game. Every organization is passionate about this cause. The size of the prize money has never mattered, and the lack of a check would not diminish the importance of winning a major.
Some players may choose to stay at home in April every year because the Masters say no more. But not many. The long-term value of winning a major title in the sport is far greater than the money earned that day. Professional golfers never had more rewards or opportunities. The present is good enough. Let the majors serve as a way to invest in the future of golf.
