The USGA prides itself on making the U.S. Women’s Open the biggest championship in women’s golf. The event’s legacy helps establish that tone—this is the 80th edition—and so do the venues that host it. Part of that is also playing for the richest overall purse in the game.
For the second straight year, the USGA is offering at total prize money payout of $12 million. It’s a remarkable number given that four years ago the purse was only $5.5 million.
“If you think about firsts, we like to kind of bring firsts,” said Mike Whan, USGA CEO on Tuesday. “First to get to a $3 million purse, $5 million purse, $10 million purse, $12 million purse.”
The exponential increase is a testament to the powers that be involved in women’s golf recognizing the need to better reward the game’s best players on the game’s biggest stages. The total amount of prize money being played for on the LPGA Tour in 2025 is up to $130 million, compared to $88.9 million in 2022. And the purses in the other four women’s majors have also seen similar growth in recent years. Take a look:
KPMG Women’s PGA Championship: $10.4 million in 2024, $4.5 million in 2021 AIG Women’s Open: $9.5 million in 2024; $4.5 million in 2020 Chevron Championship: $8 million in 2025; $3.1 million in 2021Amundi Evian Championship: $8 million in 2024; $4.5 million in 2021
As for the winner’s payday in the U.S. Women’s Open, the champion on Sunday at Wisconsin’s Erin Hills Golf Club will earn $2.4 million. A year ago, the USGA decided to increase the winner’s payday in relation to the rest of the field, giving the champ 20 percent of the overall payout compared to 18 percent in previous years and the typical 15 percent on the LPGA Tour. (The biggest first-place prize money payout in women’s golf remains the $4 million given the winner of the CME Group Tour Championship.)
Even if you don’t make the cut at the U.S. Women’s Open, you’re still walking away with a nice return: $10,000, a doubling of the “stipend” given to pros leaving after 36 holes compared to two years ago. “As I have said every year, we really believe that getting into this field is making the cut,” Whan says.
We’ve charted the growth in the U.S. Women’s Open before, but it’s worth showing again if only to remind everyone that that the overall purse for the U.S. Women’s Open didn’t pass $10,000 until 1965, the 20th year of the championship. And a winner of the major didn’t make $10,000 until 1977.
Here’s a historic look at the prize money payouts in the championship for context about this year’s historic payday:
YEAR: WINNER, OVERALL PURSE, WINNER’S SHARE 1947: Betty Jameson, $7,500, $1,2001966: Sandra Spuzich, $20,000 $4,000 1975: Sandra Palmer, $55,000, $8,0441977: Hollis Stacy, $75,000, $11,0401978: Hollis Stacy, $100,000, $15,0001990: Betsy King, $500,000, $85,000 1995: Annika Sorenstam, $1 million, $175,000 2000: Karrie Webb, $2.75 million, $500,0002014: Michelle Wie, $4 million, $720,000 2017: Sung-Hyun Park, $5 million, $900,000 2019: Jeuong Lee6, $5.5 million, $1 million 2022: Minjee Lee, $10 million, $1.8 million2023: Allisen Corpuz, $11 million, $2 million 2024: Yuka Saso, $12 million, $2.4 million
The full prize money payout breakdown for this year’s championship won’t be released until the cut is make as it varies depending on how many of the 26 amateurs in the field make it to the weekend.. Here is last year’s payouts. We’ll update this list when this year’s is announced and then update things again after the finish of the championship on Sunday and we’ll update with individual names and official totals.
Paul Hundley Public Erin Hills Golf Course Hartford, WI 4.6 42 Panelists
- 100 Greatest
- Best In State
- 100 Greatest Public
Despite the rumor, Erin Hills wasn’t designed specifically to host a U.S. Open. Its original concept was to be a simple, affordable, lay-of-the-land layout, to prove Mother Nature is indeed the best golf architect. The concept changed—some greens moved, one blind par 3 eliminated—as the quest for a U.S. Open grew. That dream came true: after trial runs hosting the 2008 U.S. Women’s Public Links and the 2011 U.S. Amateur, Erin Hills hosted the U.S. Open in 2017, the first time the event had ever been in Wisconsin. Brooks Koepka won with a 72-hole score of 16-under, leading some to conclude Erin Hills was too wide and defenseless. In truth, what it lacked that week was the usual gusty winds that would have effectively narrowed the slanted, canted fairways. Had the par been adjusted to 70 instead of 72 as is usual for most Opens, the score would likely have been closer to 8-under. View Course
Win: Yuka Saso, -4, $2,400,000
2: Hinako Shibuno, -1, $1,296,000
T-3: Andrea Lee, E, $664,778
T-3: Ally Ewing, E, $664,778
5: Arpuchaya Yubol, +1, $456,375
T-6: Ayaka Furue, +2, $365,406
T-6: Wichanee Meechai, +2, $365,406
T-6: Atthaya Thitikul, +2, $365,406
T-9: Rio Takleda, +3, $271,733
T-9: Minjee Lee, +3, $271,733
T-9: Sakura Koiwai, +3, $271,733
T-12: Hyo Joo Kim, +4, $205,709
T-12: Miyu Yamshita, +4, $205,709
T-12: Ruoning Yin, +4, $205,709
T-12: Jee Hee Im, +4, $205,709
T-16: Hannah Green, +5, $161,841
T-16: A Lim Kim, +5, $161,841
T-16: My Hyang Lee, +5, $161,841
T-19: Yan Liu, +6 $125,829
T-19: Charley Hull, +6 $125,829
T-19: Carlota Ciganda, +6 $125,829
T-19: Jenny Shin, +6 $125,829
T-19: Chisato Iwai, +6 $125,829
T-24: Jiwon Jeon, +7, $99,079
T-24: Wei-Ling Hsu, +7, $99,079
T-26: Aditi Ashok, +8, $86,542
T-26: Sophia Popov, +8, $86,542
T-28: Min Byeol Kim, +8, $86,542
T-29: Jin Young Kim, +9, $68,873
T-29: Albane Valenzuela, +9, $68,873
T-29: Pia Babnik, +9, $68,873
T-29: Sarah Kemp, +9, $68,873
T-29: Jodi Ewart Shadoff, +9, $68,873
T-29: Xiyu Janet Lin, +9, $68,873
T-29: Su Ji Kim, +9, $68,873
T-36: Kristen Gillman, +10, $54,338
T-36: Anna Nordqvist, +10, $54,338
T-36: Amiyu Ozeki, +10, $54,338
T-39: Hyunkyung Park, +11, $44,897
T-39: Jiyai Shin, +11, $44,897
T-39: Gaby Lopez, +11, $44,897
T-39: Yuna Nishimura, +11, $44,897
T-39: Yui Kawamoto, +11, $44,897
T-44: Megan Khang, +12, $34,495
T-44: Mariel Galdiano, +12, $34,495
T-44: Alison Lee, +12, $34,495
T-44: Asterisk Talley, +12, Amateur
T-44: Megan Schofill, +12, Amateur
T-44: Nasa Hataoka, +12, $34,495
T-44: Catherine Park, +12, Amateur
T-51: Gabriela Ruffels, +13, $26,595
T-51: Hae Ran Ryu, +13, $26,595
T-51: Danielle Kang, +13, $26,595
T-51: Yuri Yoshida, +13, $26,595
T-51: Alexandra Forsterling, +13, $26,595
T-51: Sofia Garcia, +13, $26,595
T-51: Ashleigh Buhai, +13, $26,595
T-58: Narin An, +14, $23,741
T-58: Celine Boutier, +14, $23,741
T-58: Amelia Garvey, +14, $23,741
T-58: Alana Uriell, +14, $23,741
T-58: Alexa Pano, +14, $23,741
T-58: Emily Kristine Pedersen, +14, $23,741
T-58: Maude-Aimee Leblanc, +14, $23,741
T-58: Kim Kaufman, +14, $23,741
T-58: Jeongeun Lee6, +14, $23,741
T-67: Adela Cernousek, +15, Amateur
T-67: Ai Suzuki. +15, $22,566
T-69: Caroline Inglis, +16, $22,095
T-69: Madelene Sagstrom, +16, $22,095
T-69: Marissa Steen, +16, $22,095
72: Casandra Alexander, +17, $21,625
73: Isi Gabsa, +19, $21,390
74: Akie Iwai, +21, $21,155
75: Cheyenne Knight, +22, $20,920
This article was originally published on golfdigest.com
