Purses and prize money have grown a lot in women’s golf in recent yearsand this trend is continuing in 2026. First, the Chevron Championship announced a huge increase. Now the AIG Women’s Open is following suit.
On Tuesday, the R&A announced that the 2026 AIG Women’s Open at Royal Lytham & St Annesplayers will compete for the record purse of $10 million.
The AIG Women’s Open purse has tripled in 8 years
The AIG Women’s Open’s new $10 million purse is only a modest $250,000 increase from last year’s total payout of $9.75 million. But the tournament’s purse has been growing regularly for years now, as R&A CEO Mark Darbon noted in the press release announcing the latest increase.
“This is the sixth year in a row that the AIG Women’s Open prize fund has grown,” said Mark Darbon. “These sustained and sustained investments in the prize fund clearly demonstrate the commitment of the R&A and AIG to elevate the Championship to the global stage.”
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This course, not Muirfield, will host the 2028 Open Championship
Kevin Cunningham
When we look back at recent history, we can see how dramatic the increases in prize money have been for the LPGA.
The last time the Women’s Open was held at this year’s host course, Royal Lytham & St Annes, was in 2018. The total purse that year was just $3.25 million. This means that in just eight years the AIG Women’s Open purse has tripled in size.
Whoever wins this year’s event will take home a record $1.5 million winner’s share.
How the AIG Women’s Open purse compares to other majors
Last week, the LPGA played its first major of the season at the Chevron Championship. And they played for a lot more money than in 2025. The the total purse of the 2026 Chevron Championship was $9 milliona $1 million increase from a year ago thanks to an infusion from sponsor JM Eagle.
Nelly Korda took home $1.375 million for its Chevron win.
Just one week ago at the 2026 JM Eagle LA Championship, the CEO of JM Eagle announced a $1 million raise for that live TV event mid-tournament.
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Chevron 2026 Championship Purse: Payment Information, Winner’s Share
James Colgan
The new $10 million purse at the AIG Women’s Open still exceeds Chevron’s increased purse by $1 million. But two other companies offer even bigger purses than Open Women.
Both of them Women’s US Open AND KPMG Women’s PGA Championship earned purses of $12 million last season. But the winner’s stakes in those two events were different. In the Women’s PGA, winner Minjee Lee took home $1.8 million. At the 2025 US Women’s Open, Maja Stark earned $2.4 million for her victory.
But all of the major LPGA winners’ payouts pale in comparison to the CME Group Tour Championship. The LPGA’s season-ending event features a $4 million winner’s share.
How do the LPGA majors compare to the men’s majors? The biggest purse in a men’s bachelor’s degree in 2025 was $21.5 million at the US Open. The smaller main men’s bag was $17 million in the Open Championship.
