17-Year-Old Golfer Earned $50,000 And Won’t See A Cent

Because he’s an amateur, Beau Hossler is forbidden from making money at the U.S. Open.

Image by FREDERIC J. BROWN / Getty Images

Last year at the U.S. Open, the total purse for contestants was $7,500,000. That money was split between every player who made the cut, with the winner, Rory McIlroy, taking in $1,440,000. Not bad, right?

Well, this year, the purse is even higher. According to Yahoo! Sports, “This year’s total purse is $8 million, and the winner will take $1.4 million of that. The tenth-place finisher gets $185,086, and the last-place finisher will take home $16,513.”

And 17-year-old Beau Hossler is currently tied for 16th, although this could change considerably — as of right now, he’s only through 5 holes. But if his position in the field stands, the six-digit payday that he would otherwise be entitled to would be split among the rest of the field, because as an amateur, he’s forbidden from earning prize money from golf.

If Hossler somehow manages to win the Open today — unlikely, considering he’s seven shots back — he would become the first amateur to win in 79 years. (Two other amateurs made the cut, 18-year-old Jordan Spieth and 20-year-old Patrick Cantlay — the numbers 1. and 2. amateurs in the world.)

Best part about all this? Hossler, who will attend the University of Texas in 2013, and he still has braces.

UPDATE: Hossler tied for 29th and won’t see his winnings, which should total just over $50,000.

Image by Harry How / Getty Images