LOS ANGELES – The US Open has raised its prize money to $20 million and is now leading the major tournaments and on the same level as the PGA Tour’s high-profile events.
That’s $2.5 million more than last year, and double what it was in 2016 when Dustin Johnson won at Oakmont.
The winner of Sunday’s Los Angeles Country Club will take home $3.6 million, up from $3.15 million earned by Matt Fitzpatrick a year ago at The Country Club in Brooklyn, Massachusetts.
Prize money has become a focal point in recent years, even before the arrival of Saudi-funded LIV Golf with its $25 million portfolio ($20 million for the 54-hole individual competitions). The PGA Tour responded with $20 million across 10 tournaments, with $25 million for the Players Championship.
The Masters has raised its purse to $18 million this year, while the PGA Championship has raised its prize money to $17.5 million.
The British Open has yet to announce its prize money. It was $14 million last year.
“Overall for us, we want this to be big,” said USGA CEO Mike Wan. “We have to find the right balance of scale in terms of where we play it, how we televise it, how many people we’re letting on this golf course. I think the bag is part of that.”
Wan said the USGA decided in November that $20 million would be the correct number.
He also acknowledged that the USGA has other projects, including its 14 other tournaments (US Open, US Amateur) and sustainability studies.
He also said the USGA would not enter into a financial run-in with the PGA Tour, which operates a full schedule year-round with local organizations in charge of various tournaments and different sponsors for each.
“We understand that portfolios can be relative, and to be great we have to understand what’s going on in the world, and we do,” he said. “We’re not on the hunt to be the biggest paycheck, but we want to make sure that the money and the opportunity here, whether it’s tour players, college players, amateurs, how they got here, that’s still part of how big it is, and we think it is.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.