Rory McIlroy tops the 2026 major tournament earnings list with the biggest payday of any golfer this year.

But that success comes at a price — an estimated over $2.1 million (around £1.63 million) tax bill on his major winnings alone. It makes him the single biggest taxpayer in the game this season, when it comes to majors.

The bulk of that tax burden comes from Augusta National in April, where McIlroy became just the fourth golfer in history to defend a Masters title successfully.

He outdueled Scottie Scheffler by a single shot for a $4.5 million winner's check. It was his sixth major, moving him level with Nick Faldo on the all-time European list, behind only Harry Vardon.

But the prize money didn't come without strings attached.

Every golfer who competes at the Masters is subject to a combined federal and Georgia state tax rate of 41.99% in 2026. And applied to a $4.5 million purse, that works out to a tax bill of roughly $1.9 million from that single week.

After that, the rest of his major year was steady rather than spectacular. He finished T7 at the PGA Championship to earn $637,050, before a T32 finish at the US Open at Shinnecock Hills added another $128,756.

He then wrapped up his major season with a T40 at The Open at Royal Birkdale to earn $69,750.

Add it all up and McIlroy's major prize money for the year comes to just under £4 million ($ 5.34 million).

And based on the tax analysis from golfclubs4cash, more than a third of that disappears in deductions, leaving him with roughly £2.35 million ($ 3.13 million) from golf’s four biggest weeks.

That's not the whole story of his year, though. McIlroy also pocketed roughly $3.2 million from his other PGA Tour starts in a season in which he deliberately scaled back his schedule to prioritize the majors.

Once the same tax rate is applied to that money too, McIlroy's total take-home from all PGA Tour events in 2026 becomes an estimated £3.85 million($5.1 million), per mirror.co.uk.

The other big earners facing giant tax bills, too

McIlroy wasn't alone in facing a seven-figure bill. Six players in total owed north of £1 million ($ 1.33 million) in tax on their major earnings in 2026.

Wyndham Clark finished second on the list. He's just £4,000($5,345.40) behind McIlroy, after winning his second US Open title in four years at Shinnecock Hills.

That win earned him the $4,500,000 top prize. A T21 finish at the Masters added another $252,000, though he missed the cut at both the PGA Championship and The Open.

Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns ended up in third and fourth position without winning any majors. Scheffler placed top four at three of the four Majors and was left with a £1.44 million($1.9 million) tax on £3.38 million($4.5 million) earned.

Burns, meanwhile, was runner-up at both the US Open and The Open, denied by a single stroke on each occasion, leaving him with a £1.49 million($1.9 million) tax on £3.32 million ($4.4 million) in prize money.

Aaron Rai was fifth in the list after winning the 2026 PGA Championship. Ryan Fox is sixth in the list after winning the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale. Cameron Young takes seventh after a good season, with several top-10 finishes at the majors.

Justin Rose finished eighth, Jon Rahm was ninth, and Alex Smalley rounded out the top 10. Rahm is the lone LIV-linked name in the top 10.

Read more at Club Golf!

Written by

Md Saife Fida