Plenty has changed in professional golf over the past 25 years, including the enormous payouts at The Masters, which have increased significantly since 2001.
Not surprisingly, especially for the No. 1 tournament in the world:
The season’s first major is, as you may have heard ad nauseam since March Madness, “a tradition unlike any other.”
RELATED: Scottie Scheffler bashes reporter’s ‘terrible question’ after stellar Masters round
Another tradition, like rising gas prices (average price per gallon in pre-9/11 April 2001: $1.50), is the Masters champion prize money and total purse.
Per Golf Digest:
How much is a Masters win worth? A timeline
From $1,500 in 1934 to $4.2M in 2025, the top take-home amount has increased by 2,800x over 91 years.
1934: Horton Smith ($1,500)
2025: Rory McIlroy ($4.2 million)
Biggest single jump: 2021-2022 (+$630K)
Total growth: 2,800× over 91 years
Now, let’s take a look at exactly how much money each Masters winner took home, along with their coveted green jacket and silver trophy, since 2001.
2001: Tiger Woods ($1,008,000)
Total purse: $5,600,000
It was the first year the champion’s take-home pay for the Masters surpassed the $1 million mark, and the second time Tiger took home a green jacket.
2002: Tiger Woods ($1,008,000)
Total purse: $5,600,000
Same purse, same top prize, and same winner — Woods with his third Masters victory.
2003: Mike Weir ($1,080,000)
Total purse: $6,000,000
Historic tournament for two reasons: Weir became the first left-hander to win the green jacket, as well as the first (and still only) Canadian to win the Masters.
2004: Phil Mickelson ($1,117,000)
Total purse: $6,000,000
Lefty finally broke through, earning his first major title and first great jacket.
2005: Tiger Woods ($1,260,000)
Total purse: $7,000,000
This time, Woods got the best of Mickelson to win his fourth green jacket.
2006: Phil Mickelson ($1,260,000)
Total purse: $7,000,000
Mickelson wins his second green jacket in three years.
2007: Zach Johnson ($1,305,000)
Total purse: $7,418,464
Johnson, who would later become the 2023 U.S. Ryder Cup captain, won the first of his two major championships.
2008: Trevor Immelman ($1,350,000)
Total purse: $7,500,000
Before he became a TV analyst for the Masters broadcast, Immelman became only the second golfer from South Africa — after the iconic Gary Player — to win the Masters.
2009: Angel Cabrera ($1,350,000)
Total purse: $7,500,000
Nicknamed El Pato (The Duck), Cabrera walked off with his second major title while becoming the first and only South American to win a green jacket.
2010: Phil Mickelson ($1,350,000)
Total purse: $7,500,000
Mickelson won his third Masters, becoming just the seventh player in golf history to accomplish the three-feat.
2011: Charl Schwartzel ($1,440,000)
Total purse: $8,000,000
We know what you’re thinking: Who? Fair enough, as Schwartzel was basically a one-hit wonder, but what a hit — winning the Masters as the third South African to take home a green jacket.
2012: Bubba Watson ($1,440,000)
Total purse: $8,000,000
Fun fact about Bubba and his win at Augusta: He joined Weir and Mickelson as the only left-handers to win the Masters.
2013: Adam Scott ($1,440,000)
Total purse: $8,000,000
Scott’s victory gave Australia its first and only Masters champion.
2014: Bubba Watson ($1,620,000)
Total purse: $9,000,000
Another Bubba fun fact: His birth name is Gerry Lester Watson Jr., and that’s what’s engraved on the Masters trophy.
2015: Jordan Spieth ($1,800,000)
At 21, Spieth became the second youngest golfer ever (behind Woods) to win a green jacket.
Total purse: $10,000,000
2016: Danny Willett ($1,800,000)
Total purse: $10,000,000
Another out-of-nowhere Masters winner, Willett won his one and only major this year. He joined Nick Faldo as just the second Englishman to claim a green jacket.
2017: Sergio Garcia ($1,980,000)
Total purse: $11,000,000
Garcia finally got the monkey off his back by winning his first major at Augusta National.
2018: Patrick Reed ($1,980,000)
Total purse: $11,000,000
His one and only major victory, though he’s been close in the other three biggies.
2019: Tiger Woods ($2,070,000)
Total purse: $11,500,000
Just as Tiger die-hards were beginning to lose faith that Woods would ever return to form, he delivered an epic, remarkable performance to win his fifth green jacket.
2020: Dustin Johnson ($2,070,000)
Total purse: $11,500,000
Not even COVID-19 could stop the Masters from playing on. Johnson won the delayed tournament (held in November with zero spectators) and set the tournament record with a 20-under-par finish.
2021: Hideki Matsuyama ($2,070,000)
Total purse: $11,500,000
Matsuyama became the first Japanese male golfer to win a major championship, and the first Asian-born golfer to win the Masters.
2022: Scottie Scheffler ($2,700,000)
Total purse: $15,000,000
The number one-ranked player in the world backed it up, winning his first major by three strokes over Rory McIlroy.
2023: Jon Rahm ($3,240,000)
Total purse: $18,000,000
Rahm became the fourth Spaniard to win the Masters with a whopping four-stroke victory.
2024: Scottie Scheffler ($3,600,000)
Adam Cairns-USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Proving again that he’s the greatest golfer on the planet, Scheffler adds another green jacket to his closet.
Total purse: $20,000,000
2025: Rory McIlroy ($4,200,000)
McIlroy finally slipped on the elusive green jacket to complete his career Grand Slam and lift the weight of expectations off his shoulders.
Total purse: $21,000,000
Final thoughts
McIlroy has the chance on Sunday to become the fourth golfer ever to win back-to-back Masters tournaments.
But Scheffler is in contention again to claim his third Masters title, which would put him in rarefied golf air.
Other outstanding players will make it tough on McIlroy, who lost his entire six-stroke lead heading into Saturday. He’s now tied with Cameron Young, seeking his first major victory, for first with plenty of others right behind them.
All of which should make for a fantastic final round.