Here’s How Much Money Scottie Scheffler Earned in the British Open
Scottie Scheffler walked into Royal Portrush already carrying the weight of a spectacular season. He walked out carrying the Claret Jug and a fresh $3.1 million in earnings. That kind of weekend changes your bank account, even if you’re already the top-ranked golfer on the planet.
He shot a final-round 68 to finish 17-under par, four strokes ahead of Harris English and six clear of Chris Gotterup. For context, Royal Portrush isn’t a course that hands out low numbers without some resistance. But Scottie made it look manageable. He birdied three of the first five holes and never gave anyone much of a chance after that. Naturally, that kind of performance comes with a huge payout. Here’s exactly how much he made.
Prize Money Breakdown
Image via Unsplash/Ibrahim Boran
The British Open stuck with its $17 million purse again this year. That matches the 2024 total, and while it’s the largest payout in Open history, it’s still the smallest among golf’s four majors. The U.S. Open led the pack with $21.5 million, followed by the Masters at $21 million and the PGA Championship at $19 million. Even so, a $3.1 million top prize is tough to complain about, and Scottie’s name is now next to it.
The rest of the top finishers didn’t walk away empty-handed. Harris English earned $1.76 million for finishing second. Chris Gotterup, who got into the field thanks to a win at the Scottish Open the week before, pulled in $1.13 million. A three-way tie for fourth meant Wyndham Clark, Matt Fitzpatrick, and Haotong Li each banked $730,667. You don’t need to win to earn something solid, but the drop-off is steep once you get outside the top ten.
Players who landed in the middle of the board still made good money, at least on paper. Everyone in the top 32 brought home six figures, with 32nd place worth $102,100. It goes down quickly from there. By the time you hit 50th place, it’s $47,200. Seventieth place? $38,900. Those amounts are fine if you’re only counting winnings, but golfers are also covering their own travel, lodging, coaches, and caddies. It’s not hard to see how the bottom half might not leave much ahead.
Getting Paid at the Top, Losing Below It
The top 10 finishers at Royal Portrush split nearly $10 million between them. That’s 58% of the total purse. For comparison, players who missed the cut earned nothing. Players who barely made it to Saturday might’ve gone home with a paycheck that didn’t fully cover their week.
LIV Golf’s Bryson DeChambeau said something similar not long ago. Anyone outside the top 165 in earnings, he claimed, is losing money by season’s end. Between coaching, taxes, and everything else that comes with the job, it’s not a guaranteed payday unless you’re near the top. Golf only pays when you perform. And sometimes that performance comes with a plane ticket home and a loss.
Scottie isn’t in that category. After this win, his 2025 PGA Tour earnings hit $11 million. That’s a strong number, but it trails behind the $29.2 million he made the year before. Still, add the British Open to his list of wins this season in the Byron Nelson, PGA Championship, and Memorial, and it’s clear he’s in full command.
A Performance Built on Focus
After the win, Scottie was pretty matter-of-fact about how it happened. He credited patience, focus, and staying committed through all four rounds. He talked about the mental work, the challenge of locking in over 72 holes, and keeping double bogeys off the card—something he almost entirely managed.
What’s also interesting is how much that check hasn’t changed year over year. Xander Schauffele earned the same amount for winning in 2024. Brian Harman’s win in 2023 came with $500,000 less. Go back to 2019, and Shane Lowry got $1.935 million for his win. The money is trending up, but it’s moving slowly. This year matched last year, and there’s no word yet on whether 2026 will raise the bar.
A Big Win, A Bigger Year
Image via Wikipedia/Titleist
Scottie’s win at Royal Portrush is his fourth major title and his first Open Championship. That puts him three-fourths of the way to a career Grand Slam, with only the U.S. Open left on his list. It also keeps him ahead in the FedEx Cup standings, where he’s set up well for another deep postseason run.
He’s not chasing comparisons, though. When asked about being linked to Tiger Woods, Scottie brushed it off. Four majors compared to Tiger’s fifteen is not even close, according to him. But he acknowledged the influence and inspiration. He grew up watching Tiger and knows what it meant to play that consistently. For now, Scottie’s just stacking wins his own way, one $3.1 million step at a time.