Dubai: The European PGA Tour has given its players the biggest prize-money boost in golfing history by offering a record $3 million (Dh11 million) to the winner of the season-ending DP World Tour Championship in Dubai in November.
This represents a whopping increase of 125 per cent from last year’s $1.33 million won by Englishman Danny Willett.
The changes reveal the European PGA Tour’s urgency to attract golf’s biggest male stars in an age of uncommon challenges and increasing sporting competition.
Held at the Jumeirah Golf Estates’s Earth Course, the DP World Tour Championship is the climax of the European Tour Race to Dubai, formerly the Order of Merit, which offers a bonus pool of $5 million.
The DP World Tour Championship, the last leg of the three-tournament Rolex Series, will also feature an exclusive player field of the top 50 players, with the winner set to pocket a cool $2 million.
The changes reveal the European PGA Tour’s urgency to attract golf’s biggest male stars in an age of uncommon challenges and increasing sporting competition.
This news is testament to the success of DP World’s ten-year partnership with the European Tour
Danny Van Otterdijk, Senior VP Communications, DP World put it in perspective and said: “This is excellent news for everyone involved in European Tour golf. It means more entertainment for the fans, more incentive for the players, and an even bigger profile for the sport.
“Most importantly, I am delighted that, as the richest prize in world golf, the DP World Tour Championship will continue to be one of the most sought-after titles in the game.
“This news is testament to the success of DP World’s ten-year partnership with the European Tour, and we are thrilled that our investment has allowed the tournament to continue to grow and maintain its position at the pinnacle of the European Tour,” he added.
“DP World’s investment in golf is about supporting the future of the game — encouraging grass roots development, supporting new innovation in the sport, and promoting global connectivity.
“This news can only have a positive impact on the game, that will allow it to flourish and grow even more over the next ten years.”
The previous biggest purse in golf was offered at the US Open with the winner getting $2.15 million.
In addition to the DP World Tour Championship, the two preceding Rolex Series events — the Turkish Airlines Open from November 7-10 and the Nedbank Golf Challenge presented by Gary Player from November 14-17 — have also seen their first prizes significantly increased.
The winner of the Turkish Airlines Open will now go home with $2 million (up from the $1.16m won by Justin Rose in 2018); while the champion at the Nedbank Golf Challenge will receive a cheque for $2.5 million (up from the $1.25m won by Lee Westwood in 2018).
Keith Pelley, Chief Executive of the European Tour, commented: “The changes we have announced today in terms of enhanced winner’s cheques, Race to Dubai points and Bonus Pool dividend are designed to increase the excitement around the end of the season for our fans, as well as encourage greater top player participation in our final three events.
“We have undertaken significant analysis recently and have found that had these additional Race to Dubai points been available over the past five years; on average between five and 16 players would have come to our final event with a chance of winning the Race to Dubai, in addition to an average of 43 players having the chance to earn Bonus Pool money at the end of the season; both numbers considerably higher than was actually the case in those years.
“With the revised prize money breakdown and the extra Race to Dubai points in place for 2019, this provides a tremendous incentive for our players.”
