Unlikely PGA Star on verge of breaking Tiger | Golf News

Among Spaun’s 5 top-10 finishes have been two second-place outcomes – at the Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches and The Players Championship – that are among the highest-paying occasions on the PGA Tour calendar.

His shocking efficiency this season is underscored by the fact that he only earned $1.65 million in prize money last 12 months, with his earlier best season whole being $3 million.

The Californian will look to continue his exceptional ascent in the opening spherical of the FedExCup Playoffs this week at the FedEx St Jude Championship.

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The FedExCup Playoffs are a trio of occasions with progressively smaller fields: 70 at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, 50 at the BMW Championship, and 30 at the TOUR Championship.

This locations Spaun in an glorious place to surpass the $700,000 he wants to outdo golf legend Woods’ most profitable 12 months in prize money.

The 15-time major winner is often celebrated as one of the best golfers of all time. Yet, he only surpassed the $10M mark in earnings in three years – 2005, 2007, and 2009 – with his highest-earning 12 months being 2007 at $10.87M, despite claiming seven PGA Tour wins, including the PGA Championship.

This highlights just how considerably prize money has escalated in current years, with current PGA Tour winnings on any given Sunday dwarfing what Woods and his friends once earned.

Although Spaun has seen current success, he still has fairly a distance to cowl to attain Woods’ profession achievements, which boast 82 Tour victories and a whole prize assortment of $121M before accidents impacted his recreation.

Nevertheless, Spaun’s journey from a common competitor to a major champion serves as a motivational story of willpower for any aspiring golf skilled. “I never thought I would win a major – a few years ago I was just trying to get in them,” he mirrored post-victory.

“It’s a big difference, having the spotlight on me now and the expectations, but all I can do is just rely on the experiences I’ve had – coming down the stretch at the U.S. Open, getting myself in the play-off at The Players Championship.

“I’ve had approach greater challenges – whether or not it is life or golf or dropping my card – than just being more in the highlight, so I’m studying to embrace it.”