Nelly Korda enters Sunday at the U.S. Women's Open battling for a chunk of the heftiest purse in women's golf history.
Darren Riehl
It’s not often that the prize money dolled out at an event is cause for newsworthiness alone, but at the U.S. Women’s Open, that’s precisely what’s happening.
Thanks to ProMedica — the Women’s Open’s first title sponsor — the purse at Pine Needles will be the largest in women’s golf history. At $10 million, the payout at the 2022 Women’s Open will nearly double the $5.5 million sum given out at Olympic Club last June. It’s a monumental development for the women’s game, both in terms of dollars-and-cents, and in terms of pay equity, which has lagged as men’s purses have soared in recent years.
The increase means those who made it to the weekend in North Carolina will receive paychecks similar to those handed out weekly in the men’s game, and sets the stage for broader purse increases throughout the sport.
In short, the historic money flowing into the U.S. Women’s Open is a big deal to those in and around the women’s game, particularly those who see their responsibility to the sport in ensuring a fairer, more lucrative future.
“It’s really important that organizations like the USGA buy in and increase the purses,” Michelle Wie-West told GOLF.com earlier this week. “It levels it up for everyone else to have to compete with that and level it up. It’s always really important for that first buy-in to increase the purse. The USGA has done such an amazing job over the years to always be that pioneer.”
Between the purse and a four-hour national broadcast window (3-7 p.m. ET on NBC), Sunday is primed for a historic finish at Pine Needles. Below, find everything you need to know about the monster $10 million purse, including payout information and winner’s share.
U.S. Women’s Open payout information, winner’s share
James Colgan is a news and features editor at GOLF, writing stories for the website and magazine. He manages the Hot Mic, GOLF’s media vertical, and utilizes his on-camera experience across the brand’s platforms. Prior to joining GOLF, James graduated from Syracuse University, during which time he was a caddie scholarship recipient (and astute looper) on Long Island, where he is from. He can be reached at james.colgan@golf.com.