The 2022 U.S. Women’s Open at Pine Needles was highlighted by a historic payout. In January, the USGA announced its partnership with ProMedica as presenting sponsor, and the purse would be $10 million. It’s the largest purse ever in a women’s professional golf tournament. The winner, Minjee Lee, received $1.8 million, and she wasn’t the only player in the field to cash the largest check of her career. Here are six standout LPGA Tour players who earned the biggest payday of their career at Pine Needles.
The $1.8 million winner’s check is the largest ever in women’s golf. Lee’s next-highest payday came at the 2021 Amundi Evian Championship which she won, banking $675,000. With the record prize money payout, Lee jumped from 28th to 18th on the career money list, streak past the $10 million mark all the way to $11.02 million.
Finishing in solo second at the U.S. Women’s Open, Harigae also earned more than $1 million. She took home $1.08 million, a significant number for the 32-year old who said at one point she only had $2,000 in her bank account.
Law won the 2019 Pure Silk Championship, earning $195,000. Even though she didn’t finish in the top five at Pine Needles, she was able to beat that number, by a lot. At the U.S. Women’s Open, she finished T-6 and earned $337,198. It’s the biggest check of the Englishwoman’s six-year LPGA career.
Maguire has won on tour and finished in the top-10 in a major, but her T-8 finish at the U.S. Women’s Open is still the biggest check the European Solheim Cup star has earned in her pro career thus far: $261,195.
The biggest paydays of Khang’s career have happened at the U.S. Women’s Open. In 2022, she finished T-8 and earned $261,195. At the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open, she finished T-4, earning $245,394. She finished fifth at the 2020 U.S. Women’s Open, earning $222,201.
At Pine Needles, Lee finished T-15, banking $151,731. The next-highest payday she’s earned was at the 2020 AIG Women’s Open, where she finished T-7 and a $105,426 check. Those are the only two six-figure paydays of her career so far.
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