Jan 10 Money matters

Jack Nicklaus made $33.33 at his first PGA Tour event in 1962. Curtis Strange was the first to earn $1 million in one season in 1988. The tour celebrated Vijay Singh in 2004 for becoming the first $10 million man in golf.
Aside from claret jugs and green jackets, success in golf has been measured by money.

The PGA Tour is now trying to convince you that money doesn’t matter. And getting its players – not to mention fans – to believe that might be the toughest obstacle in this transition to the points-based FedExCup.

The PGA Tour has 19 events this year with at least a $6 million purse, up from 13 events a year ago. Total prize money will approach $270 million, double what it was in 1999 when the first Tiger Woods-driven television contract began.
Sunday morning at Kapalua, a PGA Tour official mentioned the two milestones at stake for Singh, who had a three-shot lead. A victory would allow him to surpass Sam Snead for most victories in his 40s, and he would crack $50 million in career earnings. There was no mention of his 4,500 points to become the first FedExCup leader.
Money is a hard habit to break.

Jim Furyk said. “We need to promote that and get the public aware that we’re playing for points. But it’s going to be difficult. It’s going to take awhile for the players to get used to.”
The tour is doing what it can to make the money list obsolete. The statistics it makes available to The Press show leaders in the FedExCup standings, followed by their positions on the money list.