What does The Open champion win? Open prize money, ranking points and more!
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What is the prize money on offer at the 2023 Open? And what else will the winner receive?
Today’s Golfer’s 2023 Major coverage is brought to you in association with TaylorMade.
Prize pots are booming in golf at the moment, and The Open is no exception. Golf’s oldest major has seen its total prize fund boosted to $16.5 million for 2023, an 18% increased on the $14m that was on offer at the 150th Open at St Andrews in 2022.
The victor will take home a record winner’s cheque of $3m, a $500,000 increase on Cameron Smith’s prize last year, which was already a record figure.
Martin Slumbers, CEO of The R&A, said: “Our aim is to ensure The Open remains at the pinnacle of world golf and we have almost doubled the prize fund since 2016.
“While we are seeing substantial increases in prize money across the men’s professional game, we are fulfilling our wider obligation to the sport by elevating the AIG Women’s Open, strengthening pathways in the elite amateur game and encouraging more people around the world to play golf.
“We believe that getting this balance right is vital to the long-term future of the sport.”
Despite the significant increase in prize money, The Open still remains the least lucrative major in men’s professional golf.
The USGA raised the US Open prize fund to $20m this year, while the Masters increased its total to $18.5m, and the PGA Championship shared out $17.5m.
The Open 2023: Prize money breakdown
1 $3,000,000
2 $1,708,000
3 $1,095,000
4 $851,000
5 $684,500
6 $593,000
7 $509,500
8 $429,700
9 $377,000
10 $340,500
11 $310,000
12 $274,700
13 $258,300
14 $241,800
15 $224,800
16 $206,600
17 $196,600
18 $187,500
19 $179,600
20 $171,100
21 $163,100
22 $155,000
23 $146,700
24 $138,500
25 $133,800
26 $128,000
27 $123,300
28 $119,100
29 $113,900
30 $108,000
31 $104,500
32 $99,200
33 $95,700
34 $93,000
35 $89,800
36 $86,200
37 $82,200
38 $78,000
39 $75,200
40 $72,800
41 $69,800
42 $66,400
43 $63,400
44 $59,800
45 $56,400
46 $53,400
47 $51,300
48 $49,300
49 $47,000
50 $45,900
51 $44,900
52 $44,100
53 $43,400
54 $42,800
55 $42,100
56 $41,500
57 $41,100
58 $40,800
59 $40,500
60 $40,200
61 $40,000
62 $39,800
63 $39,600
64 $39,400
65 $39,200
66 $38,900
67 $38,600
68 $38,300
69 $38,000
70 $37,800
But with The Open being played in Britain, why is the prize money listed in dollars? Up until 2016 it was always listed in pounds sterling but this changed to US dollars in 2017 because it’s the most widely adopted prize currency in golf.
What else does The Open winner get?
The Open champion receives a lot more than just a very large cheque.
First and foremost the winner becomes a Major (or multiple Major) champion and the winner of the oldest Major Championship in golf, receiving the famous Claret Jug, which he gets to keep until the next year’s tournament. Once they return the original trophy, the winner will be given a replica to keep.
The Open originally awarded its winner with the Challenge Belt (1860-1870), but this was permanently given to Young Tom Morris after he won three consecutive tournaments.
It was replaced by the Gold Medal from 1872, which winners still receive, with the Claret Jug first introduced in 1873.
Victory also guarantees entry to Open Championships until the age of 60, and entry to the next ten Opens, even if over the age of 60. The winners also gains entry to the next five Masters, US PGA and US Open tournaments along with five-year membership to both the DP World Tour and PGA Tour.
Victory also comes with a place in the next playing of the WGC Invitational, and WGC-HSBC Champions, the next five years of The Players Championship, and the five invitational tournaments (Genesis Invitational, Fort Worth Invitational, Arnold Palmer Invitational, RBC Heritage, and Memorial Tournament) on the PGA Tour.
Lifting the Claret Jug also ensures an automatic invitation to three of the five senior majors once the winner turns 50, with a one-year invitation to the US Senior Open and a lifetime invitation to the Senior PGA Championship and Senior Open Championship.
Then there are the 100 Official World Golf Ranking points and the 600 FedEx Cup points. What do points make? Well, in this case, the chance to get a headstart at the big-money Tour Championship and FedEx Cup finale and a lot of clout when it comes to renegotiating contracts with sponsors.
But it’s not just the winner who benefits at The Open.
The runner-up receives a silver salver and $$1,708,000 in prize money. The top four players, including ties, all guarantee themselves a place in the field at next year’s Masters, while the top 10 players will be in the field for The Open again next year.
While amateurs playing The Open cannot receive prize money, there’s still plenty to play for. Since 1949 the leading amateur golfer after the final round has received the Silver Medal and, since 1972, any other amateur who competes in the final round receives the Bronze Medal.
The Professional Golfers’ Association (of Great Britain and Ireland) also marks the achievements of its own members in The Open with the Ryle Memorial Medal awarded to the winner if he is a PGA member.
Since 1966 the Braid Taylor Memorial Medal has been given to the highest finishing PGA member and, since 1924, the Tooting Bec Cup has been given to the PGA member with the lowest round in the tournament.
Who is playing in The Open and how did they qualify?
How has The Open’s prize money changed over the years?
1860-1862: No prize money
Willie Park Snr in 1860 and Old Tom Morris’ wins in 1861 and 1862 were rewarded only with the Challenge Belt.
1863: Total purse – £10
A single tenner was shared equally among eight players in the 14-man field.
1864: Total purse – £15
Old Tom Morris earned £6 with his victory; 40% of the £15 total fund.
1893: Total purse – £100
The prize fund fluctuated throughout the 1870s and 1880s, but hit £100 for seven Opens from 1893. A total of £125 was then available at every Open in the following decade, with £50 going to the Champion each year at the start of the 20th century.
1931: Total purse – £500
As Champion at Carnoustie in 1931, Tommy Armour bagged a fifth of the prize fund. This would remain the case at every Open up to and including 1939, when WWII intervened.
1946: Total purse – £1,000
The first Open after WWII was won by Sam Snead and doubled the amount that was on offer in each of the nine previous events.
1965: Total purse – £10,000
The appearance of Arnold Palmer saw the purse increase quickly. Peter Thomson bagged £1,750 for his fifth win, in 1965, more than twice as much as he earned for his first in 1954.
1977: Total purse – £100,000
The first Open to offer a six-figure purse, with Tom Watson winning £10,000 after the ‘Duel in the Sun’.
1993: Total purse – £1,000,000
By the time Greg Norman won his second Open at Royal St George’s, the pot had hit a million. Norman’s share was £100,000.
2011: Total purse – £5,000,000
Though the purse had gone up five-fold by 2011, the winner’s cheque rose by nine; Darren Clarke walked away with £900,000.
2017: Total purse – $10,250,000
Jordan Spieth received his winner’s cash in US dollars rather than sterling for the first time, bringing it into line with the other Majors. The £7.8m was a substantial increase on the previous year.
2021: Total purse – $11,500,000
Four years later, another sizeable spike: Champion Collin Morikawa became the first winner to take home more than $2m in winnings.
2022: Total – $14,000,000
The purse increases by a whopping 22% for the 150th Open at St Andrews with the winner receiving $2.5m, almost $500,000 more than Morikawa received for his win at Royal St George’s.
2023: Total – $16,500,000
A further 16% increase on last year’s record pot means the total fund has almost doubled since 2016. The winner gets $3m, a $500,000 increase on the previous year.
MORE FROM THE OPEN:
Everything you need to know about The Open
Where The Open courses rank among Britain and Ireland’s links
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What does The Open Champion win.
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Whose name will be atop the famous yellow leaderboard come Sunday, July 17 at St Andrews.
