It’s no secret that professional golfers can earn a ton of cash. But did you know that every time a tour pro cracks a drive down the middle of the fairway they could be banking over $1,000?
We sifted through 20+ years of PGA tour data, to work out how much each of the world’s top 10 male golfers have earned, per shot, throughout their career. In a moment we’re going to break it down in detail, player by player. But let’s start with an overview of the top 10.
World #2 Jordan Spieth currently tops the list of earners per shot (top 10 golfers) — earning an average of $1,104 per swing.
Now let’s take a look at the yearly data for each of the above players.
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#1 Dustin Johnson: $859 per shot
Known for his booming drives, Dustin Johnson took over the world number 1 spot earlier this year. Since turning pro in 2007 he has won an impressive 16 times on the PGA tour (including the 2016 US open) and has earned almost $50million. Here’s a breakdown of his average earnings per shot each year from 2007 – 2017.
As you can see, this year has been Dustin’s best for average earnings at $1,696 per shot, while his career average is $859.
#2 Jordan Spieth: $1,104 per shot
American Jordan Spieth is the highest earner per shot in the world top 10 — netting a whopping $1,104 per shot throughout his career. His best year for average earnings was 2015, when he banked $1,897 for every strike of the golf ball.
#3 Justin Thomas: $749 per shot
Justin Thomas had a great 2017, winning both the PGA Championship and the Fedex cup. This was reflected in both his world ranking (now 3) and his average earnings per shot — a huge $1,669 for the season. Justin’s career average is now $749 per shot.
Read next: our guide to the best golf GPS watches in 2019.
#4 Hideki Matsuyama: $775 per shot
Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama has 5 tour wins under his belt, and earlier this year reached #2 in the world rankings (now #4) after finishing second at the U.S. Open. Again, an excellent 2017 has seen his career average earnings per shot shoot up.
#5 Jon Rahm: $875 per shot
Since turning pro last year, Jon Rahm’s consistent performances have seen him rocket up the world rankings. He made the top 10 in almost half of the tournaments he entered this year (11/23), and also bagged his first PGA win at the Farmers Inurance Open.
#6 Justin Rose: $538 per shot
Justin Rose has been a pro for almost 20 years and has 7 PGA wins to his name, including 2013’s U.S. Open. He also narrowly missed out on the green jacket at this year’s Masters, after a thrilling playoff with Sergio Garcia. Each of Justin’s 76,173 shots over his long career have earned him an average of $538.
#7 Rickie Fowler: $584 per shot
A former world amateur #1, American Rickie Fowler has 4 PGA wins to date, and has already earned almost $30million on the tour. Rickie is currently ranked #7 in the world and earns an average of $584 per shot.
#8 Rory McIlroy: $1,073 per shot
Rory McIlroy’s 4 wins in 2012 included the US PGA and helped him to earn an average of $2,140 per shot for the year — the highest yearly average in the top 10. He is one of only two players in the top 10 to maintain a career average of over $1k per shot.
#9 Henrik Stenson: $631 per shot
Henrik Stenson became the first Swedish male to win a major, when he triumphed at 2016’s British Open Championship. He has earned an average of $631 for every swing of the golf club since turning pro in 2001.
#10 Brooks Koepka: $629 per shot
World number 10 Brooks Koepka claimed his first major title at this year’s U.S. Open. His score of 16 under for the tournament was the joint lowest ever, equalling Rory McIlroy’s 2011 performance.
Bonus: Tiger Woods – $1,282 per shot
Tiger Woods is not currently ranked in the world top 1000, having missed most of the last 2 seasons with injury. But with Tiger set to return to competitive golf at the end of November, and with him being comfortably the highest earning golfer of all time, we thought we would find out how much each of his 85,839 shots has earned him.
So as you can see, as well as having made the most money out of the game, Tiger is comfortably the highest earner per shot — both overall and in a single season. In fact, his 4 wins from 6 official tournaments in 2008 meant that he banked an incredible $4,191 every time he struck the golf ball.
What’s Next?
That wraps it up for our look at the earnings per shot of the world’s top 10 golfers.
Are you surprised at just how much the top golfers make every time they hit that little white ball? Let us know in the comments.
Fancy your chances of being the next Tiger or Rory, or are just getting started in the game, then check out our guide to cheap golf simulators you can use at home. Or if you’re looking to upgrade your gear for the new season, then take a look at our guide to irons for mid handicap golfers here.
And for even more golf related content, head over to our sister site Golfer Logic.
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