For one of the few times this year, men and women golfers will compete without a purse. Medals and pride are the primary motivators at Le Golf National for the Olympic competitors.
There are, however, some significant perks.
The winner of the men’s event, which begins Thursday outside of Paris, France, will receive:
- Exemptions into the four 2025 major championships (Masters, PGA Championship, U.S. Open and The Open);
- A spot in next year’s Players Championship (as well as The Sentry signature event, if the winner is a PGA Tour member);
- Official World Golf Ranking points (as will all players in the field).
SEE MORE: How to watch golf at the Paris Olympics: TV and stream schedule
And while there is no purse, many Olympic committees financially incentivize their athletes. For the most recent Games, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee paid athletes $37,500 for gold medals, $22,500 for silver and $15,000 for bronze. That payout goes for both men and women, as the women’s golf competition will commence Aug. 7 on the same venue.
The winner of the women’s event will gain exemptions into next month’s AIG Women’s Open at St. Andrews, as well as the other four majors in 2025 (Chevron Championship, KPMG Women’s PGA, U.S. Women’s Open and Amudi Evian Championship).
Women in the field will also receive Rolex Ranking points and anyone who claims a gold medal will earn one point towards the LPGA’s Hall of Fame. That could prove significant for Lydia Ko, who has won a silver and a bronze in the last two editions and is currently a point shy of reaching the necessary 27-point threshold for HOF inclusion.
Of note on the men’s side, a gold medal for South Korea’s Tom Kim or Byeong Hun An would mean an exemption from their country’s two-year mandatory military obligation.
SEE MORE: Tom Kim, Byeong Hun An focused on winning for South Korea, not what gold would bring
© 2024 KOBI-TV NBC5. All rights reserved unless otherwise stated.