Ernie Els finished -4 and took 18% of the purse. That $465,000 is worth about $962,472 in 2026 dollars.
How the 1997 U.S. Open purse was split
Every paid player in finishing order. The top 10 took 61% of the money, and the dashed line marks the smallest check.
1997 U.S. Open prize money for every player
Final positions and prize money, with what the same untied position paid the year before.
| Pos | Player | To par | Last year | Prize money |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ernie Els | -4 | $425,000 | $465,000 +9% |
| 2 | Colin Montgomerie | -3 | $204,801 | $275,000 +34% |
| 3 | Tom Lehman | -2 | $172,828 | |
| 4 | Jeff Maggert | +1 | $111,235 | $120,454 +8% |
| T5 | Jay Haas | +2 | $84,964 | $79,875 |
| T5 | Olin Browne | +2 | $84,964 | $79,875 |
| T5 | Bob Tway | +2 | $84,964 | $79,875 |
| T5 | Jim Furyk | +2 | $84,964 | $79,875 |
| T5 | Tommy Tolles | +2 | $84,964 | $79,875 |
| T10 | Scott McCarron | +3 | $52,591 | $56,949 |
| T10 | David Ogrin | +3 | $52,591 | $56,949 |
| T10 | Scott Hoch | +3 | $52,591 | $56,949 |
| T13 | Billy Andrade | +4 | $43,725 | $47,349 |
| T13 | Loren Roberts | +4 | $43,725 | $47,349 |
| T13 | Stewart Cink | +4 | $43,725 | $47,349 |
| T16 | Bradley Hughes | +5 | $33,188 | $40,087 |
| T16 | José María Olazábal | +5 | $33,188 | $40,087 |
| T16 | Davis Love III | +5 | $33,188 | $40,087 |
| T19 | Nick Price | +6 | $31,916 | |
| T19 | Hal Sutton | +6 | $31,916 | |
| T19 | Lee Westwood | +6 | $31,916 | |
| T19 | Paul Stankowski | +6 | $31,916 | |
| T19 | Tiger Woods | +6 | $31,916 | |
| T24 | Edward Fryatt | +7 | $24,174 | |
| T24 | Scott Dunlap | +7 | $24,174 | |
| T24 | Len Mattiace | +7 | $24,174 | |
| T24 | Steve Elkington | +7 | $24,174 | |
| T28 | Kelly Gibson | +8 | $17,443 | |
| T28 | Paul Azinger | +8 | $17,443 | |
| T28 | Mark McNulty | +8 | $17,443 | |
| T28 | Fuzzy Zoeller | +8 | $17,443 | |
| T28 | Payne Stewart | +8 | $17,443 | |
| T28 | Jeff Sluman | +8 | $17,443 | |
| T28 | Paul Goydos | +8 | $17,443 | |
| T28 | Hideki Kase | +8 | $17,443 | |
| T36 | Justin Leonard | +9 | $13,483 | |
| T36 | Frank Nobilo | +9 | $13,483 | |
| T36 | Stuart Appleby | +9 | $13,483 | |
| T36 | Mark O'Meara | +9 | $13,483 | |
| T36 | Grant Waite | +9 | $13,483 | |
| T36 | Steve Stricker | +9 | $13,483 | |
| T36 | John Cook | +9 | $13,483 | |
| T43 | Fred Funk | +10 | $10,491 | |
| T43 | Phil Mickelson | +10 | $10,491 | |
| T43 | Craig Parry | +10 | $10,491 | |
| T43 | Chris Perry | +10 | $10,491 | |
| T43 | Darren Clarke | +10 | $10,491 | |
| T48 | Jesper Parnevik | +11 | $8,497 | |
| T48 | David Duval | +11 | $8,497 | |
| T48 | Nick Faldo | +11 | $8,497 | |
| 51 | David White | +12 | $7,786 | |
| T52 | Peter Teravainen | +13 | $7,139 | |
| T52 | Paul Broadhurst | +13 | $7,139 | |
| T52 | Fred Couples | +13 | $7,139 | |
| T52 | Jack Nicklaus | +13 | $7,139 | |
| T52 | Hale Irwin | +13 | $7,139 | |
| T52 | Lee Janzen | +13 | $7,139 | |
| T58 | Larry Mize | +14 | $6,530 | |
| T58 | Clarence Rose | +14 | $6,530 | |
| T60 | Chris Smith | +15 | $5,825 | $6,270 |
| T60 | Duffy Waldorf | +15 | $5,825 | $6,270 |
| T60 | Steve Jones | +15 | $5,825 | $6,270 |
| T60 | Rodney Butcher | +15 | $5,825 | $6,270 |
| 64 | Tom Watson | +16 | $6,120 | |
| T65 | Dave Schreyer | +17 | $6,000 | |
| T65 | Brad Faxon | +17 | $6,000 | |
| T65 | Ben Crenshaw | +17 | $6,000 | |
| T68 | Tom Kite | +18 | $5,742 | |
| T68 | Mike Hulbert | +18 | $5,742 | |
| T68 | Stephen Ames | +18 | $5,742 | |
| T68 | Greg Kraft | +18 | $5,742 | |
| T68 | Thomas Bjørn | +18 | $5,742 | |
| T68 | John Morse | +18 | $5,742 | |
| 74 | Jimmy Green | +19 | $5,550 | |
| T75 | Andrew Coltart | +20 | $5,468 | |
| T75 | Randy Wylie | +20 | $5,468 | |
| T77 | Vijay Singh | +21 | $5,275 | |
| T77 | Donnie Hammond | +21 | $5,275 | |
| T77 | Dick Mast | +21 | $5,275 | |
| T77 | Greg Towne | +21 | $5,275 | |
| T77 | Perry Parker | +21 | $5,275 | |
| 82 | Jack Ferenz | +23 | $5,415 | $5,110 -6% |
| 83 | Marco Dawson | +24 | $5,055 | |
| 84 | Slade Adams | +26 | $5,000 | |
| MC | Bob Kearney | +17 | $0 | |
| MC | Joel Kribel | +8 | $0 | |
| MC | John Pillar | +12 | $0 | |
| MC | Jason Semelsberger | +14 | $0 | |
| MC | Mike Brisky | +12 | $0 | |
| MC | Robert Allenby | +10 | $0 | |
| MC | Greg Sweatt | +27 | $0 | |
| MC | Matt Gogel | +11 | $0 | |
| MC | Spike McRoy | +10 | $0 | |
| MC | Gary Nicklaus | +10 | $0 | |
| MC | Eric Brito | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | P.J. Cowan | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Gary Robison | +12 | $0 | |
| MC | Peter Mitchell | +13 | $0 | |
| MC | Padraig Harrington | +12 | $0 | |
| MC | Raymond Russell | +20 | $0 | |
| MC | Chris Wollmann | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Brett Wayment | +15 | $0 | |
| MC | Rob Bradley | +15 | $0 | |
| MC | Terry Noe | +11 | $0 | |
| MC | Mike Sposa | +11 | $0 | |
| MC | Frank Lickliter II | +13 | $0 | |
| MC | Dennis Zinkon | +10 | $0 | |
| MC | Kent Jones | +12 | $0 | |
| MC | Paul McGinley | +8 | $0 | |
| MC | Anthony Aguilar | +11 | $0 | |
| MC | Mike Martin | +20 | $0 | |
| MC | Kevin Altenhof | +10 | $0 | |
| MC | Michael Clark II | +8 | $0 | |
| MC | Mark Wiebe | +11 | $0 | |
| MC | Ian Woosnam | +10 | $0 | |
| MC | Dennis Trixler | +11 | $0 | |
| MC | Ted Tryba | +19 | $0 | |
| MC | Andy Morse | +24 | $0 | |
| MC | Jim Estes | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Jim McGovern | +12 | $0 | |
| MC | Sean Murphy | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Roy Hunter | +14 | $0 | |
| MC | Bill Porter | +10 | $0 | |
| MC | Marty Schiene | +19 | $0 | |
| MC | Larry Silveira | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Scott Simpson | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Dave Stockton | +14 | $0 | |
| MC | Curtis Strange | +10 | $0 | |
| MC | Mike Swartz | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Brian Tennyson | +19 | $0 | |
| MC | Ken Schall | +11 | $0 | |
| MC | Mike Reid | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Larry Rinker | +8 | $0 | |
| MC | Lee Rinker | +8 | $0 | |
| MC | Kenny Perry | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Corey Pavin | +8 | $0 | |
| MC | Masashi Ozaki | +12 | $0 | |
| MC | Dan Forsman | +11 | $0 | |
| MC | Bob Gilder | +13 | $0 | |
| MC | Ken Green | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Roger Gunn | +16 | $0 | |
| MC | Rick Cramer | +13 | $0 | |
| MC | Mark Calcavecchia | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Russ Cochran | +11 | $0 | |
| MC | Ronnie Black | +8 | $0 | |
| MC | Jay Don Blake | +12 | $0 | |
| MC | Michael Bradley | +11 | $0 | |
| MC | Mark Brooks | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Larry Nelson | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Greg Norman | +14 | $0 | |
| MC | John Mazza | +9 | $0 | |
| MC | Steve Hart | +12 | $0 | |
| MC | Ed Humenik | +17 | $0 | |
| MC | Bernhard Langer | +8 | $0 | |
| WD | John Daly | +7 | Not known | |
| WD | David Toms | +8 | Not known |
U.S. Open winner's share over time
This year is labeled. Full tournament history →
1997 U.S. Open payout FAQ
How much did the winner of the 1997 U.S. Open get?
Ernie Els won $465,000 from a $2,600,000 purse.
What was the 1997 U.S. Open purse?
$2,600,000.
How much did last place get at the 1997 U.S. Open?
The smallest check was $5,000, to Slade Adams (84).
How many players made the cut at the 1997 U.S. Open?
84 players made the cut and finished, and 70 players missed it.