The 2023 AIG Open will feature a world-class field including every player in the top 10 of the world rankings, and it has now been confirmed that they will have a record purse to compete for at Walton Heath.
The final Major of the year has a purse of $9m, a 23% increase on last year’s prize fund of $7.3m, of which Ashleigh Buhai claimed $1.095m for her win.
CEO of The R&A Martin Slumbers announced the increase in a press conference before the tournament. He said: “I’m very pleased to let you know that for this week’s championship, together with AIG, we are raising the total prize fund to $9m which is a 23 per cent increase on the 2022 $7.3m with the champion earning $1.35m come Sunday evening.”
The latest increase continues a trend of more attractive purses in the tournament, which has accelerated since AIG began sponsoring it in 2019. Back then, the purse was set at $4.5m. While the 2020 tournament at Royal Troon had an identical prize fund, there was a big leap for the 2021 edition, to $5.8m.
Last year’s tournament at Muirfield saw the latest sizeable increase before the additional $1.7m on offer for 2023. For even more context over how quickly the tournament is growing in stature, the $9m on offer at Walton Heath is three times more than just seven years ago, when competitors battled for a share of $3m at Woburn.
The AIG Women’s Open isn’t the only Major that has seen prize money increases in recent years. This year’s Chevron Championship offered $100,000 more than the 2022 tournament, while the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Baltusol had an increase of $1m to $10m.
The US Women’s Open at Pebble Beach continued the trend with the biggest purse for a women’s Major to date, $12m, which was $1m more than 2022. While July’s Amundi Evian Championship had an identical purse to the year before, $6.5m, it was still $2m higher than the 2021 tournament.
Among the field hoping to claim the top prize will be Nelly Korda, who recently returned to the top of the world rankings, defending champion Buhai and 2018 champion Georgia Hall, who will find plenty of support from the home crowd.
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