‘PIP Top Spot’: $36M Richer Scottie Scheffler Baffles Fans as Golf’s Money Game Yields Before World No.1
The world’s No. 1 male golfer continues to shatter glass ceilings. Scottie Scheffler has already earned $28,148,691 million this season. $8 million of that came from two victories: the Arnold Palmer Invitational and the Memorial. Per the new rules, the player-hosted Signature events offered 20% of the total purse ($20 million) to the winner.
In the other signature events that he won—the RBC Heritage and the Travelers—the World No. 1 nabbed $3.6 million each, the same as the Masters. Whereas, the TPC Sawgrass triumph put $4.5 million in his pocket.
There are at least two regular events that he would play this year before the season-ending Tour Championship. Last year, Lucas Glover and Viktor Hovland pocketed $3.6 million each for the FedEx St. Jude Championship and the BMW Championship triumphs, respectively. The Tour Championship will offer $18 million or more to the winner.
The $28 million he earned this season has already shattered the previous record of $21 million he made last year. On top of it, the 28-year-old is also the ComCast Business Top-10 leader. As Dan Rapaport of Barstool Sports noted, that translates to another $8 million in his bank account.
Furthermore, he will also receive a FedEx Cup bonus. Not to mention the $38K the USA offered him for bringing home a gold medal from Paris. There is also the undeclared endorsement money he receives from TaylorMade. All in all, it’s an eye-popping season for Scottie Scheffler, and fans have various thoughts on this.
Netizens go bonkers over what Scottie Scheffler (and his caddie) have done
Actually, it’s not just Scottie Scheffler. His caddie, Ted Scott, has made more money than some of the PGA Tour pros. Generally, loopers receive a share of 10% of the winner’s share. Per estimates, the veteran bagman has pocketed $2.6 million from his employer’s six PGA Tour titles and eight further top-tens.
One user joked, “Is Ted Scott the #2 money leader?” That honor still belongs to Xander Schauffele ($15,867,160). But Scott has likely earned more than some pros, like Min Woo Lee, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, and the like.
So, one user was right when they said, “His caddie is going to beat some of the pros on the money list this year.” Scott’s earnings are expected to go north of $3 million by September. That will put him in the top 50 on the PGA Tour money list, hypothetically.
Notably, Scottie Scheffler can hope for a sizeable sum through the Player Impact Program. So far, the PIP has been a stronghold for Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy. This year, it’s highly likely that Scheffler might break inside the top three, if not usurp McIlroy from the spot.
Other than his on-course dominance, Scheffler was slingshot into ‘fame’ after getting arrested during the PGA Championship. One user quipped, “Should easily have that PIP top spot locked up after his Friday morning in Louisville.”
They are not wrong. As another noted, “I mean he has to get the PiP just from the mugshot alone.” By the time Scheffler was released a few hours later, a group of spectators had already printed that mugshot on their t-shirts. They were up for sale as well. His arrest became a pan-American phenomenon somewhat comparable to Shohei Ohtani’s gambling scandal.
