Along with Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy is the most recognized golfer on the planet - and with good reason.
A four-time Major winner, he has racked up 43 professional wins worldwide, while he has topped the world rankings for 122 weeks. He is also a three-time FedEx Cup and six-time Race to Dubai/DP World Tour Rankings winner.
In short, the Northern Irishman has accumulated an incredible number of titles and some huge prize money throughout his career. But how much is he worth? Here, we take a look.
Some of the easiest figures to verify are his on-course earnings, and on the PGA Tour, where he spends most of his time, he currently sits second behind Woods in its career money list with earnings of over $100m. However, this doesn't factor in his three FedEx Cup victories, which total $43m, meaning that number jumps over the $143m mark.
On the other side of the Atlantic on the DP World Tour, McIlroy sits top of its money list, with over €60m ($68m) in career earnings, although there is some overlap with the PGA Tour due to Majors and World Golf Championships. The number increases further when you factor in his six Race to Dubai victories, which aren't included in the money list. They have netted him around $14m.
Even though McIlroy's primary circuit is the PGA Tour, he still appears in certain DP World Tour events, including the Abu Dhabi Championship and Dubai Desert Classic, events where he reportedly receives around $2m per appearance, further boosting his already considerable net worth.
So, what sponsors endorse the Northern Irishman? Well, previously, he has been backed by the likes of Titleist, FootJoy, Jumeirah, Bose, Oakley and EA Sports. Currently, his sponsors are FM, TaylorMade, Nike, NBC Sports/Golf Pass, Omega and Optum, with McIlroy announcing a new sponsorship deal in 2022 that sees him become a brand ambassador for financial management company, Workday.
McIlroy's TaylorMade deal, which he penned in 2017, is said to be worth $10m per year for 10 years. Playing 14 TaylorMade clubs, golf ball and TaylorMade bag, McIlroy also has a hugely lucrative Nike contract, which was extended in 2017 for 10 years. This is said to be worth $10m per year, too, having been worth $20m per year between 2013 and 2016 when he was using Nike clubs, ball and bag. In total, he is estimated to earn around $35m a year from his sponsorships alone.
McIlroy, Woods, and former Golf Channel President Mike McCarley have also launched sports media and technology company TMRW Sports, which was behind tech-infused golf league TGL's inaugural season.
The Bay Golf Club owner Marc Lasry revealed a wide ballpark figure of more than $25m and less than $100m for his purchase of the team, which offers a strong indication that it is anticipated to become a lucrative money-spinner, with McIlroy in prime position to cash in.
Another indicator that McIlroy could make a fortune from his TMRW Sports involvement alone comes from the profile of its investors, with the likes of seven-time F1 World Champion Lewis Hamilton brought on board, as well as the likes of tennis stars Serena Williams and Andy Murray, former Real Madrid footballer Gareth Bale, musician and actor Justin Timberlake, NFL quarterback Josh Allen, and several NBA basketball players including four-time NBA champions Stephen Curry and Andre Iguodala, Chris Paul and Jayson Tatum.
McIlroy also has an investment company, Symphony Ventures, and in October 2023, he was revealed as an investor in the Alpine F1 team, while a year later, it was reported the company had invested $250m in ticketing marketplace TickPick. Those kinds of investments offer further evidence that, as well as his incredibly profitable playing career, McIlroy is in a strong position to grow his wealth even further away from the course over the coming years.
For now, two recent reports offer perhaps the best Indicator of both McIlroy's annual earnings, as well as his current net worth.
In 2023, Forbes released the highest paid golfers list and McIlroy placed second with $83m, with $38m made on the course and $45m off it. The same year, the Sunday Times Rich List estimated his net worth at an astonishing £225m ($294m) and it's only likely to increase from as the years go on.
