ATLANTA (AP) – The best three players in golf have combined to win 12 tournaments and over $25 million this year, so the appeal of a $10 million bonus for capturing the FedEx Cup might not be as great as simply winning the final showdown of the season.
But there was a time when money mattered for Jason Day, Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth.
McIlroy was an 18-year-old rookie in 2007 playing his second tournament as a pro when he finished third at the Dunhill Links Championship. That not only wrapped up his European Tour card, it paid just over $300,000 (211,332 pounds).
“I remember I wanted this watch,” McIlroy said Wednesday. “And I remember it was the week after the Dunhill Links in 2007, and it was one of the bigger prize funds on the European Tour. At this stage, the money from the European Tour was just going into my debit account, whatever bank I was using in Ireland. And I went to get money out of the ATM the week after and the check had obviously been put in.
“And I wanted to check my balance and it was like 220,000 pounds, and I was like … I mean, I went straight to the store and bought the watch.”