The Loop

Baby, You're a Rich Man: What Winning Another Major Means for Rory's Finances

July 22, 2014

__By [Peter Finch

](http://www.golfdigest.com/contributors/peter-finch)__

What does a golfer get for winning a major championship, beyond the prize money?

Even more money.

Rory McIlroy's win at Hoylake earned him nearly £1 million, or $1.7 million. But paydays like those pale next to what he makes off the course. His contract with Nike is worth an estimated $10 million to $12 million a year. And that's just one in a package of endorsements that placed him at No. 5 on Golf Digest's most recent ranking of the game's 50 biggest earners.

You can safely assume McIlroy will be even higher on our list next time. While Nike declines to comment on specifics of its endorsement deals, it's common for golfers to have incentive clauses that reward them with bonuses for wins and major championships.

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Sirak continued: "According to one agent who spoke on the condition of anonymity, [Justin] Rose's $1.2 million TaylorMade deal doubled in value after his Open victory. The same agent says [Phil] Mickelson got a $1 million bonus from Callaway for winning the British Open. A second agent says Rose and Masters winner Adam Scott will earn an extra $3 million to $5 million annually for winning a major."

McIlroy's other sponsors include Bose speakers, the Spanish bank Santander and Omega watches.

On top of all that, McIlroy's appearance fees are likely to climb too. At the moment, he collects $1 million per appearance in South Korea and China, according to the Irish Times. He is said to have asked for $2 million to appear in the Australian Open two years ago -- an amount equal to Tiger Woods' fee -- but was turned down, Australian Golf Digest reported. Next time he asks for $2 million, he might well get it.

Photo: Getty Images