Well, butter my biscuit and call me a scone! The AIG Women’s Open is back at the Old Course, St Andrews, and this year it’s not just the fairways that are lush—so is the prize fund.
The bigwigs have announced that the purse for this year’s event has swelled to a whopping $9.5 million.
That’s half a million dollars more than last year, for those keeping score at home, and a staggering increase from the days when the winner might’ve been content with a shiny trophy and a firm handshake.
In the six years since The R&A teamed up with AIG, the prize money for the AIG Women’s Open has done more than just inch its way up—it’s skyrocketed like a drive on a tailwind. If you’re curious about just how far we’ve come, check out this leaderboard:
- 2024: $9.5 million (Yes, you read that right)
- 2023: $9 million (Impressive, but not $9.5 million)
- 2022: $7.3 million (That escalated quickly)
- 2021: $5.8 million (Now we’re talking)
- 2020: $4.5 million (Remember when that seemed like a lot?)
- 2019: $4.5 million (Where it all started with AIG)
- 2018: $3.25 million (The Dark Ages, relatively speaking)
The winner this year will pocket a cool $1,425,000, the largest sum ever awarded in the event’s nearly half-century run.
It’s safe to say that the stakes have never been higher—not just for the players, but for the game itself.
Martin Slumbers, CEO of The R&A, was full of gratitude—and why wouldn’t he be? “With the outstanding backing we have received from AIG as our title sponsor, we have been able to achieve a step change and take this Championship to new levels.
We greatly appreciate AIG’s support and are proud that they share our goal to elevate the AIG Women’s Open still further and ensure it remains at the pinnacle of the women’s game.
The increased prize fund and our enhancements to the staging and the spectator experience this year reflect our shared commitment to making the AIG Women’s Open a world-class championship for players and fans alike,” he said, with the confidence of someone holding a royal flush.
So, as the world’s best female golfers tee it up at the home of golf, they do so knowing that the AIG Women’s Open 2024 Prize Fund is bigger, better, and more history-making than ever before.
It’s a thrilling time to be a part of women’s golf, and if this trend keeps up, the future looks as bright as a new sleeve of Pro V1s on a sunny day in St Andrews.
