How Much Money Do Pro Golfers Actually Earn?

The subject of money is inescapable in today's era of golf, with multi-million dollar prize payouts every week on the PGA Tour, LPGA Tour, LIV and the DP World Tour.

On the PGA Tour, even the smallest prize purses offer a total of $4 million while the biggest - The Players Championship - is currently set at $25 million.

There was more than half a billion dollars in prize money paid out on the historic US circuit across in 2025 and the average PGA Tour pro picked up a little over $2.3 million, per the Official Money list.

Then you have nine Signature Events each putting up $20 million each time and two of the four Major championships offering in excess of that.

LIV Golf is expected to offer just over $20 million prize purses in each of its 13 events this term while the LPGA Tour and DP World Tour's full-season schedule largely ranges between $2 million and $10 million.

However, it is true that almost every number you will ever see in articles relating to prize money and earnings is the figure which is initially given to players. It is far from the figure they end up keeping for themselves and their family.

For starters, most players share between 5-10% with their caddie each time they make the cut, depending on the initial agreement between the pair and then potentially where on the leaderboard they end up.

In some cases, if a player wins a tournament, their caddie sees 10% while a top-10 might earn the looper 7-8%. A made cut outside of the top-10 could result in a 5% bonus being passed on. For others, there may be a flat fee of 7-8% every time they make a cut. As I said, it's between player and caddie to decide.

It's a similar story for the various coaches involved. Some players have a permanent swing coach, a mental coach and a putting coach while others might only employ a regular swing coach and speak to a putting coach or psychologist as and when they feel it's necessary.

One-off payments are their own thing, but someone who is a contracted member of a pro's team might expect between 1-3% each time a player earns prize money.

In addition, golfers are also often shelling out thousands of dollars a week on flights, accommodation and groceries as part of their usual expenses.

Korn Ferry Tour pro James Nicholas shared his total spend and earnings in 2025, with over $150,000 going out but a strong year ensuring he was over $100,000 up in the end.

The video below shows the complete breakdown of Nicholas' spendings through the season but does not mention one of the most crucial factors relating to how much a golfer truly makes. Tax.

The reason a lot of professional golfers choose to live in states such as Florida is because Florida residents do not have to pay individual income tax. The same is true for people who live in Alaska, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and Wyoming or other countries like the United Arab Emirates.

A lot of other players live in Sea Island, Georgia where Georgia residents only have to pay a flat 5.19% in terms of individual income tax. Georgia is one of 15 US states to offer a fixed rate on individual income tax.

On the opposite end of the scale, very few players live in California because the Golden State requires a 13.3% penalty or the United Kingdom because residents will be taxed between 20-45%. Meanwhile, New York is at 10.9% and New Jersey is at 10.75% for 2026.

The biggest takeaway of prize money for US-based pro golfers is Federal Tax, though. Depending on factors like marital status and whether they are filing their taxes with their spouse or alone, that can affect how much tax they pay on their earnings.

Then, obviously, the actual amount of money earned dictates how much tax is required. Either way, Federal tax rates in the US range between 10% and 37% and can turn out to be a huge vacuum for a player's weekly pay check.

Speaking to Market Swings' Josh Baylin in a fascinating two-part YouTube video, four-time PGA Tour winner Kevin Kisner broke down how much money US-based pros tend to see each week.

Kisner said: "I usually call it about 30%. 8% to a caddie, 3% to a [swing] coach, 1% to a putting coach, what's that up to - 12%. Then you've got the state you played in taxes, your South Carolina 7% taxes and your federal taxes - you can do the math pretty quick, right? So only about 30% of that number comes back to me."

Kevin Kisner Reveals the REAL Economics of the PGA Tour | Market Swings with Josh Baylin - YouTube

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As Kisner explained, roughly a third of a pro golfer's earnings might actually hit their bank account, but that doesn't mean they're struggling - far from it.

Scottie Scheffler's earnings in 2025 surpassed $50 million, initially, and that doesn't include his endorsement deals. Therefore, we can reasonably assume the men's World No.1 took in at least $17 million last year.

Similarly, Jon Rahm was named golf's highest earner in 2025 thanks to a grand total of more than $100 million shared across his LIV Golf contract, his yearly winnings and endorsements. That suggests the Spaniard saw somewhere in the region an eye-watering $33 million drop into his account by the time December had rolled around.

Even if we look at a regular player on the PGA Tour, for example, that could mean the average pro welcomed almost $1 million through 2025, and that is without taking any kind of endorsement into the equation.

In terms of the LIV Golf League, the average player's earnings reached almost $4.2 million before tax and other takeaways, leaving a possible $1.4 million for the player after all is said and done.

Finally, the average LPGA Tour player earned a little over $700,000 in 2025, leaving something like a healthy total of $233,000 left over.