The PGA Tour has announced that its season-ending Tour Championship will now feature a staggering $40 million purse, marking it as the richest prize in the sport’s history. This year’s winner will take home $10 million, with the entire payout counting toward official career earnings rather than being classified as a bonus — a significant shift from previous FedEx Cup structures.
The changes, which take effect for the 2025 event at East Lake Golf Club, represent a major overhaul of the FedEx Cup playoffs’ finale. Previously, FedEx Cup winnings were treated as bonuses and did not contribute to a player’s official money list or career earnings totals. Now, the $40 million purse integrates directly into official earnings, potentially reshaping all-time money rankings and adding a layer of historical significance to the competition. The winner’s $10 million share alone surpasses many standard PGA Tour event purses, underscoring the Tour Championship’s new status as golf’s ultimate payday.
This revamp aligns closely with longstanding calls for reform, notably echoing suggestions from a 2021 article by Pro Golf Weekly titled “10 Ways To Fix The Current Mess That’s Called the FedEx Cup Race.”
In that piece, the outlet proposed reallocating prize money to make the Tour Championship’s purse official, stating: “For the PGA Tour to cancel the Official Money of the finale, and tuck it away as a “bonus,” in what it markets as the “biggest purse” in golf is nonsensical.” While the 2021 suggestion started with a smaller $15 million pool, the PGA Tour’s 2025 implementation has amplified it to $40 million, fully realizing the vision of elevating the event through official, record-breaking payouts.
Pro Golf Weekly’s article outlined nine other fixes, including rotating the Tour Championship venue to iconic courses like Pebble Beach, reducing playoff qualifiers from 125, and rebranding the event as the “Super Bowl of Golf.” Several of these ideas appear to have influenced recent PGA Tour adjustments, such as points resets and enhanced marketing around the FedEx Cup trophy. However, the purse overhaul stands out as a direct nod to making the finale more meaningful beyond mere bonuses.
The broader FedEx Cup prize pool for 2025 totals $100 million across the playoffs, with the Tour Championship’s $40 million representing the lion’s share. Players like Scottie Scheffler, who led the regular-season standings, have already benefited from bonus distributions, but the official money at East Lake adds incentive for top performers in the 30-player field.
PGA Tour officials have hailed the changes as a way to honor the season-long grind while boosting the event’s appeal to fans and sponsors. “This isn’t just about money—it’s about legacy,” a Tour spokesperson noted in recent statements.
Critics, however, question if the inflated purses address deeper issues like player fatigue or competition from rival leagues like LIV Golf.
As the 2025 Tour Championship approaches, all eyes will be on whether this $40 million official purse truly cements it as golf’s crown jewel, turning PGW’s 2021 wish list into today’s reality.
