PGA star reveals how much a player really takes home when they win $5 million on Tour

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It’s common knowledge that the top 50 players on the PGA Tour do not want for anything.

Being a PGA Tour pro is one of the most lucrative professions in the world.

Since Tiger Woods burst onto the scene in 1996, tournament purses have increased exponentially, and with the emergence of LIV Golf three years ago, those prize funds have grown even more so.

An example of just how lucrative professional golf is these is days is the fact that Scottie Scheffler has averaged just over $608,000 from all 142 PGA Tour events he has played.

As golf continues to boom in general as a sport, so will the finances involved with the professional game.

There is no doubt that golf has never been as popular as it is right now, and there is seemingly no end in sight when it comes to the riches being made available to the best players in the world.

Michael Kim reveals how much a PGA Tour player takes home from $5 million winnings

Over the past few years, Michael Kim has made a real name for himself due to his extremely active social media presence.

Earlier this week, Kim complained about being kept in the dark by the R&A regarding his chances of playing in The Open at Royal Portush.

However, he is most famous for lifting the lid on PGA Tour secrets, without naming names.

Kim often shares the inside scoop on what goes on in and around the PGA Tour behind the scenes.

And now he has posted what is perhaps his most interested message yet on social media.

Kim took to X to share exactly how much money players take home after paying taxes, travel expenses and providing salaries for their caddies.

“The average on course earnings for a top 50 player on the PGA Tour are about $5 million. But what’s our actual take home amount?

“Taxes and costs eat into tournament winnings. Here’s a breakdown of how far these costs might go: Caddie (differs for each player/caddie): ~8% of earnings + ~$2,000 base x 25 tournaments = $450k – Travel, Hotel and Food: ~$5,000 per week x 25 tournaments = $125k (Can be much more if you fly private) – Coach/Trainer/Physio: ~6% of earnings + salary = $400k Total tax deductible costs: ~1m

“Taxes after deductions: ~$1.5 million federal (at a 37% rate) + ~$160k state (at 4% average rate, varies by state) = $1.6 million to the IRS We pay state income tax based on the state we earned money in. For ex. The difference between winning the ATT pebble beach and Arnold Palmer Bay hill is 478k (without deductions) There are other possible tax complications but let’s keep it somewhat simple – Net Earnings: ~$3.4 million This is obviously without endorsement deals which can vary greatly between players.“

Kim then corrected his mistake:

“Net Earnings is 2.4m not 3.4m Sorry!“

Michael Kim’s career earnings on the PGA Tour

Kim is definitely not one of the bigger earners on the PGA Tour, but his take-home pay from the past decade is still mightily impressive.

So judging by Kim’s calculations, he has taken home around $5,090,000 throughout his career to date.

That’s a pretty good take home pay for 10 years’ work, but perhaps not quite as lucrative as some might have imagined.

The top 10 or 15 players on the PGA Tour will be in another stratosphere when it comes to money earned.

For example, this year alone, Scottie Scheffler has earned just over $15 million on the golf course whilst 15th placed Harris English has racked up just under $5.9 million in tournament winnings.

Good work if you can get it!