Need to knowThe Masters winner is guaranteed a staggering payout
The Masters is nearing a conclusion at Augusta National(Image: Getty Images)
Masters prize money breakdown and purse details:Record purse: The total purse for the 2026 tournament exceeds the record-breaking £15.6million ($21m) set in the previous year. This year, there’s a total prize fund of $22.5million on offer, which equates to roughly £16.7m. This massive sum is split in increasing amounts going up the leaderboard, with a significant portion reserved for the top finishers at Augusta National.Winner’s share: The 2026 champion is slated to take home a staggering £3.3m ($4.5m) for their victory. This figure represents a 20% share of the total purse, a percentage that was increased in 2025 to keep the tournament competitive with other high-stakes golf events.Huge winning rise: Historically, the winner’s share was set at 18% of the total purse for many years before the recent adjustment. This shift to 20% resulted in a substantial jump in the winner’s earnings, even when the total purse only increased by a smaller margin.Famous milestone: Prize money has seen an astronomical rise since the inaugural tournament in 1934 when Horton Smith won just £1.1k ($1,5k). It took until 2001 for the winner’s check to cross the £745k ($1m) threshold, a milestone famously reached by Tiger Woods.Rising purse: The growth of the purse has accelerated rapidly in the 2020s to combat the rising prize funds in rival golf leagues. For comparison, the winner’s prize was £2.3m ($2.07m) in 2019, meaning the payout has more than doubled in just seven years.Runner-up earnings: Even those who do not win the tournament walk away with life-changing sums of money for high finishes. The runner-up in 2026 is expected to earn approximately £1.7m ($2.4m), while the third-place finisher will likely receive over £1.1m ($1.5m).Pay for missed cuts: Augusta National ensures that every professional in the field is compensated, including those who fail to play the weekend. Players who miss the 36-hole cut now receive £21k ($25k), a significant increase from the £8.7k ($10k) stipend offered in previous decades.The amateur field: Amateur golfers competing in the Masters are a notable exception to these payouts as they are ineligible to accept prize money. If an amateur were to win or place highly, the cash associated with that position is redistributed among the professional field.READ THE FULL STORY ON A MASTERS CHAMPION’S PAST MONEY ISSUES: ‘I won the Masters twice but was once too poor to pay for a golf club membership’Masters Prize Money Breakdown in Full
1st — £3,344,481 ($4,500,000)2nd — £1,806,020 ($2,430,000)3rd — £1,137,124 ($1,530,000)4th — £802,676 ($1,080,000)5th — £668,896 ($900,000)6th — £602,006 ($810,000)7th — £559,499 ($753,750)8th — £518,897 ($697,500)9th — £485,950 ($652,500)10th — £451,703 ($607,500)11th — £418,060 ($562,500)12th — £384,417 ($517,500)13th — £350,774 ($472,500)14th — £317,131 ($427,500)15th — £301,003 ($405,000)16th — £284,875 ($382,500)17th — £267,559 ($360,000)18th — £250,243 ($337,500)19th — £232,927 ($315,000)20th — £215,611 ($292,500)21st — £200,669 ($270,000)22nd — £187,291 ($252,000)23rd — £173,913 ($234,000)24th — £160,535 ($216,000)25th — £147,157 ($198,000)26th — £133,779 ($180,000)27th — £128,803 ($173,250)28th — £123,828 ($166,500)29th — £118,852 ($159,750)30th — £113,876 ($153,000)31st — £108,901 ($146,250)32nd — £103,925 ($139,500)33rd — £98,949 ($132,750)34th — £94,796 ($127,125)35th — £90,643 ($121,500)36th — £86,490 ($115,875)37th — £82,337 ($110,250)38th — £78,992 ($105,750)39th — £75,647 ($101,250)40th — £72,302 ($96,750)41st — £68,957 ($92,250)42nd — £65,612 ($87,750)43rd — £62,267 ($83,250)44th — £58,922 ($78,750)45th — £55,577 ($74,250)46th — £52,232 ($69,750)47th — £48,887 ($65,250)48th — £45,833 ($61,650)49th — £43,487 ($58,500)50th — £42,141 ($56,700)
Watch The Masters with Sky’s Ultimate TV bundle
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Coverage of The Masters gets underway on April 6 and golf fans can watch it live with Sky’s Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundle. This includes 135 channels, nine from Sky Sports, plus HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+, discovery+ and Hayu.
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