Rory McIlroy finishes atop 2023 Player Impact Program

Rory McIlroy has finished No. 1 on this year’s Player Impact Program, it was announced last week in a memo to the PGA TOUR membership.

McIlroy earned the $15 million first-place prize, with Tiger Woods finishing second (earning $12 million). The total 2023 Player Impact Program prize pool was $100 million, distributed among 20 players.

The Player Impact Program, established in 2020-21, is designed to reward players that have the largest impact on the PGA TOUR business – tickets, sponsorships, media consumption and fan engagement – and drive interest in the PGA TOUR and the game of golf.

Player Impact Program evaluation criteria include Nielsen brand exposure, Google search data, media mentions, MARC general population awareness and MARC golf fan awareness. The latter two replaced MVP Index and Q-Score this year.

“The scoring model for the Program is intended to be as objective as possible with the goal of quantifying the impact each player has on the PGA TOUR,” TOUR Executive Vice President and Chief Player Officer Jason Gore said in the memo.

To be eligible, players must have competed in at least five TOUR events in one of the past five seasons. Woods finished No. 1 on the Player Impact Program in both 2021 and 2022.

For 2024, the Player Impact Program prize pool will total $50 million (among 10 players). The bulk of the $50-million difference will be reallocated to FedExCup and Comcast Business TOUR Top 10 bonus increases and other player programs.

Here are the 2023 Player Impact Program standings and payouts:

1. Rory McIlroy, $15 million
2. Tiger Woods, $12 million
3. Jon Rahm, $9 million
4. Jordan Spieth, $7 million
5. Scottie Scheffler, $6 million
6. Rickie Fowler, $5.5 million
7. Viktor Hovland, $5 million
8. Justin Thomas, $5 million
9. Tommy Fleetwood, $5 million
10. Max Homa, $5 million
11. Xander Schauffele, $3 million
12. Jason Day, $3 million
13. Tony Finau, $3 million
14. Collin Morikawa, $3 million
15. Matt Fitzpatrick, $3 million
16. Wyndham Clark, $2 million
17. Cameron Young, $2 million
18. Justin Rose, $2 million
19. Patrick Cantlay, $2 million
20. Brian Harman, $2 million