{"id":372096,"date":"2026-01-15T21:43:16","date_gmt":"2026-01-15T21:43:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/372096\/"},"modified":"2026-01-15T21:43:16","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T21:43:16","slug":"6-golfers-who-made-the-2025-list-of-highest-paid-athletes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/372096\/","title":{"rendered":"6 Golfers Who Made the 2025 List of Highest-Paid Athletes"},"content":{"rendered":"

The money in golf these days isn\u2019t whispered\u2014it\u2019s shouted from leaderboards and billionaire balance sheets. According to Sportico\u2019s annual list of the 100 highest-paid athletes in the world, golf isn\u2019t just holding its own, it\u2019s firmly entrenched. Year after year, a handful of players continue to percolate near the very top.<\/p>\n

Say what you want about the ongoing PGA TOUR vs. LIV tension\u2014both internal and external\u2014but an even split of three TOUR players and three LIV players on Sportico\u2019s 2025 list<\/a> speaks for itself. Especially when you factor in tournaments played per dollar earned.<\/p>\n

RELATED: Brooks Koepka is a PGA TOUR Member Once Again<\/a><\/p>\n

#10 Jon Rahm ($100.7 M)\"GettyImages-2237506364.jpg\"<\/p>\n

With an estimated $100.7 million in total earnings in 2025, Rahm finishes inside the global top 10 for the second straight year, again standing as golf\u2019s highest-paid player. Sportico breaks that down as $84.7M in salary and $16M in endorsements, much of it tied to a reported $300M+ LIV deal and season bonuses<\/a>\u2014despite limited wins.<\/p>\n

For context, Rahm\u2019s PGA TOUR career earnings sit around $52.8M, illustrating the widening gap between guaranteed money and traditional prize checks.<\/p>\n

His 2025 total places him just behind Kevin Durant ($100.8M) and narrowly ahead of Lewis Hamilton ($100M)\u2014rare air for any golfer. <\/p>\n

#14 Rory McIlroy ($91.2M)\"GettyImages-2210126490.jpg\"<\/p>\n

McIlroy\u2019s year wasn\u2019t just culturally significant\u2014it was financially massive. Completing the career Grand Slam helped anchor a $91.2M earnings year, nearly $51M of it coming off-course through endorsements and business ventures.<\/p>\n

After ranking No. 17 in 2024 at $79.8M, McIlroy leapfrogs several peers and remains one of just two golfers ever to surpass $100M in PGA TOUR career earnings, joining Tiger Woods. Longevity, brand equity, and elite play\u2014Rory checks every box.<\/p>\n

#16 Scottie Scheffler ($82.9 M)\"Getty<\/p>\n

Scheffler slipped slightly from last year\u2019s No. 11 ranking, but an $82.9M haul softens the landing. Six wins, a fourth straight Player of the Year trophy, and $32M in endorsement income will do that.<\/p>\n

Already third all-time in PGA TOUR Career Money Leaders<\/a> at $99.5M, Scheffler\u2019s 2025 total edges out Patrick Mahomes\u2019 $80.3M, for perspective. Not bad for a guy who still looks mildly confused every time he wins.<\/p>\n

#23 Bryson DeChambeau ($62.7M)\"bryson-dechambeau-us-open-GettyImages-2219676203.jpg\"<\/p>\n

A major mover. DeChambeau rockets from No. 97 in 2024 ($38.2M) to No. 23 this year, fueled by LIV checks and roughly $20M in endorsements. However polarizing his path, the financial results are undeniable.<\/p>\n

RELATED: Bryson DeChambeau Doesn\u2019t Sound Set on PGA TOUR Return\u2026Yet <\/a><\/p>\n

#41 Tiger Woods ($55M)\"GettyImages-2249555734.jpg\"<\/p>\n

Two starts. $55 million earned.<\/p>\n

Woods\u2019 on-course appearances were limited, but his $54M in off-course income\u2014powered by TGL and a strong year for Sun Day Red<\/a>\u2014keeps him comfortably inside the top 50.<\/p>\n

And just in case you forgot: Tiger still sits No. 1 all-time in PGA TOUR career earnings at roughly $121M. A master class in long-term brand equity.<\/p>\n

#63 Joaquin Niemann ($47.2)\"20250219-rahm-nieman-liv-GettyImages-2199267961.jpg\"<\/p>\n

The sneaky inclusion. Niemann lands nearly the same spot as last year (No. 66, $45.9M), continuing to pair strong LIV earnings with growing off-course value. Numbers like these would\u2019ve sounded fictional ten years ago.<\/p>\n

Notably Absent in 2025<\/p>\n

Xander Schauffele \u2014 $55.8M in 2024 (No. 36)<\/p>\n

Tyrrell Hatton \u2014 $47.1M in 2024 (No. 57)<\/p>\n

Collin Morikawa \u2014 $43.1M in 2024 (No. 78)<\/p>\n

LPGA Players \u2014 No female athletes made the 2026 list of Top 100 Highest-Paid Athletes in 2025. Tennis star Coco Gauff was the top earner in women’s sports at $31 million and the list cut off at $37.9 million. Sportico also publishes a list<\/a> specifically for female athletes\u2014where Jeeno Thitkul and Nelly Korda highlight the top 15.<\/a><\/p>\n

Golfers on the world\u2019s highest-paid athlete lists are no longer anomalies\u2014they\u2019re the norm. What used to be a sport with one financial outlier now regularly produces multiple names shoulder-to-shoulder with global superstars. Legacy sponsorships combined with on-course paydays has projected pro golf in the global money conversation\u2014and it\u2019s not leaving anytime soon.<\/p>\n

RELATED: The Script for the 2026 PGA TOUR Season Leaked. Our Predictions for the PGA TOUR\u2019s 2026 Season.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The money in golf these days isn\u2019t whispered\u2014it\u2019s shouted from leaderboards and billionaire balance sheets. According to Sportico\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":372097,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[5904,101,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-372096","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-golf","8":"tag-golf","9":"tag-sports","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/372096","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=372096"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/372096\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/372097"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=372096"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=372096"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=372096"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}