How the purse for The Players has evolved over the years:
The early years
First year, 1974: $250,000 purse, $50,000 to the winner.
First Players at TPC Sawgrass, 1982: $500,000 purse, $90,000 to the winner.
Purse rises above $1 million
First million-dollar purse, 1987: $1 million purse, $180,000 to the winner.
Jumping past $2 million, 1993: $2.5 million purse, $450,000 to the winner.
Drive for five, 1999: $5 million purse, $900,000 to the winner.
May Players tops $10 million
First year in May, 2007: $9 million purse, $1.62 million to the winner.
Cracking eight figures, 2014: $10 million purse, $1.8 million to the winner.
Return to March, purse keeps rising
Back to March, 2019: $12.5 million purse, $2.25 million to the winner.
The big 1-5, 2021: $15 million purse, $2.7 million to the winner.
Going after 20, 2022: $20 million purse, $3.6 million to the winner.
Top five can now win $1 million
Five millionaires, 2023: With the increase in purse to $25 million in 2023 ($4.5 million to the winner) the top five players will earn at least $1 million.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Players Championship purses: The PGA Tour’s richest event pays $25 million
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