Surprise Name Tops List Of Highest Earners Per Shot At The Masters
New research undertaken reveals who has made the most money per shot at the first men's major of the year


A new study has revealed who has earned the most money per shot at The Masters since its inception - and the golfer who tops the list might not be who you expect.
Using historical data provided by ESPN and Augusta.com, Bookmakers.com has analysed the results and earnings of every competitor from 1934 to 2021, and while most are household names, there are more than a few surprise rankings.
In fact, three of the top five have never actually managed to get their hands on a Green Jacket, with many recent champions not even featuring. But topping the pile after a magnificent debut in 2021 is Will Zalatoris.
The 25-year-old, making his first appearance at Augusta National, produced a display that belied his years and lack of experience to finish solo second, one shot behind eventual winner Hideki Matsuyama.
According to the research, Zalatoris earned $4,608.75 for every shot he hit last year on one of golf's most famous layouts, which is nearly $2,000 more than his nearest challenger. Not a bad week's work.
Elsewhere, Masters specialist Jordan Spieth features in third with $2,842.44 and five-time winner Tiger Woods rounds out the top five with $2,545.63. Inflation was accounted for before arriving at the final standings, but that still leaves the likes of six-time champion Jack Nicklaus and four-time champion Arnold Palmer absent from the list.
Here is a full rundown of the top-20 earners per stroke in Masters history:
- Will Zalatoris, $4,608.75
- Len Mattiace, $2,899.68
- Jordan Spieth, $2,842.44
- Sungjae Im, $2,546.65
- Tiger Woods, $2,545.63
- Jonas Blixt, $1,986.01
- Phil Mickelson, $1,793.35
- Dustin Johnson, $1,698.75
- Danny Willett, $1,656.80
- Xander Schauffele, $1.645.76
- Patrick Reed, $1,579.19
- Tommy Tolles, $1,544.34
- Bubba Watson, $1,490.88
- Chris DiMarco, $1,474.88
- Hideki Matsuyama, $1,403.65
- Retief Goosen, $1,364.55
- Thomas Pieters, $1,352.91
- Jon Rahm, $1,337.58
- Cameron Smith, $1,327.84
- David Duval, $1,296.99
In addition, the research also covers the top-10 champions' earnings per stroke, with Charl Schwartzel and Angel Cabrera joining the eight Green Jacket winners from the list above.
This year's Masters gets underway on April 7 and you can follow all the action as it happens through Golf Monthly's dedicated live text coverage.
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A lifelong golf fan, Andy graduated in 2019 with a degree in Sports Journalism and got his first role in the industry as the Instruction Editor for National Club Golfer. From there, he went on to enjoy a spell freelancing for Stats Perform producing football reports, and then for RacingNews365 covering Formula 1. However, he couldn't turn down the opportunity to get back into the sport he grew up watching and playing and now covers a mixture of equipment, instruction and news for Golf Monthly's website and print title.
Andy took up the game at the age of seven and even harboured ambitions of a career in the professional ranks for a spell. That didn’t pan out, but he still enjoys his weekend golf at Royal Troon and holds a scratch handicap. As a side note, he's made five holes-in-one and could quite possibly be Retief Goosen’s biggest fan.
As well as the above, some of Andy's work has featured on websites such as goal.com, dailyrecord.co.uk, and theopen.com.
What's in Andy's bag?
Driver: Callaway Mavrik Sub-Zero (9°)
3-wood: TaylorMade Stealth 2 Plus (15°)
Driving iron: Titleist U500 (17°)
Irons: Callaway Apex Pro '19 (4-PW)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey SM9 (50°, 54° and 58°)
Putter: TaylorMade Spider X
Ball: TaylorMade TP5x
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