Top 20 - 2018 PDGA Pro Earnings

[DiscFifty]

It's always surprising how much our favorite pros make from just pdga tour events. These are the superstars of our sport, and sure they make additional money from sponsorships, endorsements, etc, but this is why the sport isn't growing that much on the pro side imop. The payouts just aren't there....yet.

P. McBet $57,245.00
R. Wysocki $45,989.67
E. McMahon $44,669.30
K. Jones $34,793.67
C. Dickerson $34,477.50
P. Ulibarri $31,396.43
J. Conrad $30,173.50
P. Pierce $28,777.00
G. Barsby $28,682.63
N. Sexton $26,569.92
S. Hokom $24,769.75
G. Gurthie $23,510.17
C. Allen $23,382.00
S. Lizotte $21,564.79
D. Gibson $20,806.00
N. Locastro $20,162.00
M. Orum $18,403.00
C. Colglazier $18,197.67
Z. Melton $17,693.08
P. Brathwaite $17,577.52

 

[Jolt]

Feels like 2018 has been a good year for Paul. . but he made way more money in 2017 $69.411

And Paige . .WOW $41.373 last year. . "only" $28,777 in 2018

 

[DavidSauls]

I think it's amazing that they earn so much.

Not that I wish they wouldn't. But in that there's no money from spectators, and beating the rest of the field out of their entry fees only goes so far. After all, there are only so many players willing to pay entry fees to play big events, and take home nothing.

A big chunk of those totals come from the locals who run events, willing to scour their area begging money from local businesses, and doing other fundraisers, to pump up the purses. All to draw the top pros to their courses. I, for one, am impressed.

 

[da Crippler]

there are only so many players willing to pay entry fees to play big events, and take home nothing.

Bingo.

 

[DavidSauls]

Sometimes people think that our top disc golfers should earn a lot of money because they're good at disc golf.

People don't earn big money for being good at something. They earn money for the value being good at something has to someone else.

For athletes, that's as entertainers---individually, as a part of a team. There's no real value in being a great quarterback. But there is in drawing hundreds of thousands of paying fans, and tens of millions who'll endure advertisements to watch them on TV.

At any rate, isolating McBeth & Co.'s tournament winning from their income excludes their sponsorships, which may be a major part of what they earn for being good. They're getting paid, just not through tournament winnings. The sponsorship money is linked to their value as entertainers, inasmuch as people who follow the pros are more likely to buy signature discs, or discs from a manufacturer, because of those players.

 

[Cgkdisc]

At the Summit meeting, Sarah Hokom indicated this was the first year she broke even on tour. Not sure what expenses she was including in that calculation beyond entry fees. It would be interesting to see a ranking of players' net winnings each year, simply by subtracting their entry fees (which would also be publicly available) from their posted PDGA winnings.

 

[DavidSauls]

At the Summit meeting, Sarah Hokom indicated this was the first year she broke even on tour. Not sure what expenses she was including in that calculation beyond entry fees. It would be interesting to see a ranking of players' net winnings each year, simply by subtracting their entry fees (which would also be publicly available) from their posted PDGA winnings.

It would be interesting.

You could probably ballpark it for the top players, by picking a representative one, estimating an average entry fee for different tiers, and use that as a rough baseline for all of them.

Then again, if their sponsors paid their entries, you could throw that out.

 

[ru4por]

Not much money. I have a set of expenditures. Rent, food, utilities, entertainment, house repairs, car payment, gifts to friends/relatives, beer..... These players have all these expenses, plus the cost of travel, lodging and entry fees. Granted a handful of these top guys have sponsorships that help offset some of this, but most do not.

 

[VictorB]

Not much money. I have a set of expenditures. Rent, food, utilities, entertainment, house repairs, car payment, gifts to friends/relatives, beer..... These players have all these expenses, plus the cost of travel, lodging and entry fees. Granted a handful of these top guys have sponsorships that help offset some of this, but most do not.

I really doubt that the touring pros are paying for rent, utilities, house repairs, or car payments - simply because they don't have those costs in their life. Or, their car payments are their house payments. Lots of conversion vans and campers out there on tour - and even quite a few that tent camp still.




I feel like pro tour disc golf is basically a game for trust fund kids or people with zero external obligation. That's not going to help the sport grow at that level.

 

[GMcAtee]

Pretty depressing, but life is all about choices. I haven't made that little since my early 20's.

It's always surprising how much our favorite pros make from just pdga tour events. These are the superstars of our sport, and sure they make additional money from sponsorships, endorsements, etc, but this is why the sport isn't growing that much on the pro side imop. The payouts just aren't there....yet.

P. McBet $57,245.00
R. Wysocki $45,989.67
E. McMahon $44,669.30
K. Jones $34,793.67
C. Dickerson $34,477.50
P. Ulibarri $31,396.43
J. Conrad $30,173.50
P. Pierce $28,777.00
G. Barsby $28,682.63
N. Sexton $26,569.92
S. Hokom $24,769.75
G. Gurthie $23,510.17
C. Allen $23,382.00
S. Lizotte $21,564.79
D. Gibson $20,806.00
N. Locastro $20,162.00
M. Orum $18,403.00
C. Colglazier $18,197.67
Z. Melton $17,693.08
P. Brathwaite $17,577.52

 

[ThrowBot]

Some of the list really surprised me. K-Jo really came out of nowhere this year; excited to see who signs him and all the wins in his future. Great thrower.

A key point to remember:
The tournament winnings aren't ONLY generated by beating other players out of their entry fees. Tourney fundraising is YUGE. Look at Ledgestone: Discraft goes balls out selling those LE discs all year, and a sizable amount of those sales goes straight to the pro purse. Other tourneys do the same thing but to a lesser extent.

Anyone fighting for tournament cash should remember that. TD's and other staff do a lot of work to organize, prep courses, etc...and on top of that, knocking on doors to get sponsors is a monumental task. Hats off to all of the even organizers out there!

 

[Halcón]

^ Aren't there PDGA guidelines that dictate what percentage of a large tournament's payout has to come from added cash?

 

[DavidSauls]

^ Aren't there PDGA guidelines that dictate what percentage of a large tournament's payout has to come from added cash?

Not exactly. The rules are how much added cash there must be, on top of the entry fees.

 

[Putt for D'oh]

I feel like pro tour disc golf is basically a game for trust fund kids or people with zero external obligation. That's not going to help the sport grow at that level.

The few i've played with and or talked with who have made a run at touring have had to make big sacrifices and really fund raise hard. A preseason pop-up tourney we had in the spring that was all to help two guys fund their tour and in the end I was so amazed at how little money it raised and the idea of raising money to fund Pro athletes be Pro athletes is a bit surreal but good guys I'm happy to buy their discs for 2x retail and wish them well.
BUT from one of the guys that didn't make it and had to step back from trying to tour its also obvious all of those expenses and distractions we call normal life can strip the focus from their game. It makes losses harder and it makes bouncing back harder and making that trip to the next tournament harder again. Can you give up your normal life? Can you put it on pause and not have it weigh you down every week you are gone? Can you live the season 100% on the road or are you going to be traveling back forth every weekend across the country. The money is a big barrier.

 

[Putt for D'oh]

As less of a tangent and more on point to the thread, it is at least a bit cool that 3 of the top 20 money earners in the sport are female. Granted talking chump change compared to big established sports, but that seems ahead of the game in some ways.

 

[DiscGolfCraig]

As less of a tangent and more on point to the thread, it is at least a bit cool that 3 of the top 20 money earners in the sport are female. Granted talking chump change compared to big established sports, but that seems ahead of the game in some ways.

How many minorities are on the list?

 

[BuiltTooLong]

At the Summit meeting, Sarah Hokom indicated this was the first year she broke even on tour. Not sure what expenses she was including in that calculation beyond entry fees. It would be interesting to see a ranking of players' net winnings each year, simply by subtracting their entry fees (which would also be publicly available) from their posted PDGA winnings.

How has she been touring for 10 years like that??

 

[BuiltTooLong]

Pretty depressing, but life is all about choices. I haven't made that little since my early 20's.

:clap: Bravo for you sir. Some people would call a life judged by how much they make "pretty depressing"

 

[Halcón]

How many minorities are on the list?

Paul McBeth is Mexican-American. But it all depends on what you call a "minority." Is a Chicano who has become so ingrained that he may as well be white still considered a minority? (No offense Paul, I'm like you, 'cept I speak Spanish. I bet you speak some too, but don't let on. )

 

[JC17393]

How has she been touring for 10 years like that??

Working off-season jobs, living off savings, relying on the generosity of others (lodging, food, rides). Breaking even, I would imagine, is a simple equation of not losing any money on the year. Doesn't necessarily mean that any debt carried into the year isn't still there.