The USGA is making it an even bigger deal -- and a bigger financial windfall -- to win their biggest championships, including the US Open, US Women's Open and US Senior Open.
Starting with the 2024 US Women's Open, the United States Golf Association will now offer 20 percent of the total purse to the winner of their biggest championships in which professionals compete. At Lancaster Country Club, that meant Yuka Saso won $2.4 million from the $12 million purse. While the purse for the 2024 US Open has not been finalized, it could be in the range of $20 million. That would mean the 2024 US Open champion takes home $4 million and the trophy from Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina.
The US Senior Open purse has consistently been $4 million for several years, implying the 2024 US Senior Open winner's share would be $800,000.
USGA CEO Mike Whan, formerly the LPGA Tour commissioner, said he turned to the PGA Tour for the inspiration behind the change.
"We saw that in some elevated events on the PGA Tour and kind of looked at that ourselves from a standpoint of how that looked, and we liked it," he said.
In select Signature events on the PGA Tour schedule in 2024, there is a cut to the top 50 players and ties after 36 holes. Any player within 10 shots of the lead at the halfway mark also makes the cut. However, with that small cut, there's reason to bump up the prize money at the top to 20 percent of the purse. At this week's Memorial Tournament in Ohio, as well as at The Genesis Invitational and Arnold Palmer Invitational, the winner takes home $4 million from the $20 million purse.
In each of the USGA's professional championships, the 156-player field is cut to the top 60 players and ties after the weekend -- not too different from that PGA Tour Signature cut rule.
Whan believes that two-percent change isn't that substantial all the way through the weekend professional field but does add a pop at the top of the leaderboard.
"When you start talking about the kind of money we're talking about in 12 million and more, it has very little effect kind of all the way down the line," he said, "but even makes the win even more significant."
