Photo by Keyur Khamar/PGA TOUR via Getty Images
DiMarco scoffed at the $2 million purses on the Champions Tour, and fans have had about enough.
Chris DiMarco, a three-time PGA Tour winner, recently joined the Subpar podcast with Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz.
While on the show, DiMarco expressed his displeasure with the amount of money players on the PGA Tour Champions make, calling it a “joke.”
“We’re kind of hoping that LIV buys the Champions Tour,” DiMarco said with a snicker.
“Let’s play for a little real money out here. I mean, this is kind of a joke when we’re getting $2 million. There were like seven guys last week from TPC [Sawgrass] that made more money than our purses.”
With the emergence of LIV, fans have been turned off by the amount of money being infused into the sport.
So when a player who has made more than $22 million to play golf during his career cries for more, safe to say it didn’t go over well with fans.
That doesn’t seem like much for a champion tbh
— orbem tsurt (@dvk415) March 28, 2024
That’s why YouTubers are growing in the golf content, it’s fun, relaxed and they aren’t whining about not making more money. At least other pro athletes are admitting that’s it’s got money.
— Bill Ranson, PGA (@BillRansonGolf) March 27, 2024
Most people would dream of making that kind of money over their career. And he made it hitting a golf ball. BFD. Sorry, but greed seems to be the king of pro golf now at the top level and at a certain point the regular golfer will tire of it and turn it off.
— J LEW (@JLew820) March 27, 2024
Wish I could only golf for a living for a paltry $2 million a year. Probably payouts have to do more with ratings and TV revenue. LIV forced the PGA Tour to increase their payouts, maybe they need to start a LIV champions tour.
— DAVE (@DAVE53567718) March 28, 2024
As the last fan pointed out, there is far less viewership for the Champions Tour. That means there is far less ad revenue, and less money to be distributed to players. It’s quite simple really.
It’s unclear whether DiMarco was serious about the LIV aspect. He does however sound as though he is bitter about the purse sizes on the senior circuit. But that just comes across greedy and tone deaf.
Golf influencer Paige Spiranac threw DiMarco under the bus on social media, pointing to the same thing many fans feel. The conversation around golfers and money has become a problem and if something doesn’t change, could hurt the bottom line of the sport overall.
Kendall Capps is the Senior Editor of SB Nation’s Playing Through. For more golf coverage, follow us @_PlayingThrough on all major social media platforms.
