👋 {{readername | Hey, golf fans}},

Good morning. While you were sleeping, Scottie Scheffler, Bryson DeChambeau, and others teed off at Royal Birkdale. We’ll knock on your inbox with timely updates for the next four days. But today, before you turn on your TV, we have a couple of updates from Birkdale.

The R&A announced the purse for this year, and we noticed a very curious pattern. Meanwhile, Justin Thomas spoke about why he wants to win The Open (and it has everything to do with Jordan Spieth), two defending champions met on the greens, and a video emerged of Jerry Rice chasing (literally) a heckler down. Explore today's stories, and be sure to share your perspective by voting in our poll at the end of the newsletter.

Let’s get started…

The year is 1961. Arnold Palmer walks away with about $3,920 from a purse of roughly $23,000 at Royal Birkdale. Watch this rare clip of Palmer’s victory. Back then, it barely covered repeat attempts to qualify or travel, yet players started traveling at Palmer’s urging. The purse increased slowly, and The Open maintained its prestige.

That sentiment still guides it. CEO Mark Darbon says the R&A is committed to investing “in the player experience.” He adds they’re trying to strike a delicate balance between that experience and bigger purses while reinvesting revenue back into the game. In short, The Open will not be part of the prize money race.

It still sits at the bottom of the majors in purse size—about $17.75 million, barely up a tick (under 5%) from last year—yet it pays enough that even those who miss the cut take home a check. That pot is also smaller than the roughly $20M purses at LIV Golf events and the PGA Tour’s signature events.

Is that a statement? Yes. At the end of the day, a player’s career is shaped by majors, not paychecks. And isn’t that how it ought to be? Billionaires flinging cash at millionaires feels grubby, alienates the everyday viewer, and widens the chasm between players and the fans, the very people who keep the game alive.

And frankly, no one really cares about the purse when it's about the Claret Jug.

The Open Championship will have the lowest purse among men's majors. But can you guess the highest purse among this year's men's majors? 83% of fans got it wrong.

Fan moment: The stars were aligned for AIG Women’s Open defending champ Miyu Yamashita at the Heroes Classic on Tuesday. Yamashita paired up with Tommy Fleetwood, but her sights were clearly set on another team, the one with her favorite, Scottie Scheffler. And guess what happened when she finally got to meet him? Watch the interaction between two defending champions here.

Goals: The Open hasn’t exactly been kind to Justin Thomas in the past, even if his wedge play is still world-class (watch this for proof). JT harbors hopes of lifting the Claret Jug at Royal Birkdale one day. And not for the reason you’re expecting—the reason is his mate Jordan Spieth. Find out why.

Risky take? Sir Nick Faldo said he’s not holding out much hope for Bryson DeChambeau this week. Read his scathing criticism of the two-time U.S. Open winner’s links golf strategy and the survival tactics it demands. Brandel Chamblee says, well, Bryson is focused on beating Grant Horvat more than Scottie Scheffler. What about the man himself? Bryson was playing the punishing 11th hole, which features a mound on the left and a subtle spine on the green. Check out his creative shot here. Did Faldo speak too early?

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Last Poll Result: 82.58% of you agreed with Nick Faldo that Bryson DeChambeau’s links strategy was wrong.

49ers legend Jerry Rice showed how to treat unruly fans. We have all witnessed one of those people at an event. You know who—the kind of annoying spectator that starts with an “h.” At the American Century Championship, a heckler shouted on his backswing. Annoyed, Rice glanced over as someone pointed to the culprit and, club still in hand, chased after him. The heckler bolted, sprinting, but Rice wasn’t letting him off the hook—watch the entire incident here.

Everyone is tired of these guys, including pros and celebrities. Remember when Rickie Fowler had an all-time takedown of a heckler? The R&A brought in a new policy to tackle this. Hopefully, we won’t see any such moments this week at Royal Birkdale.

Is the PGA Tour going wrong with its Player of the Year Award? One Ryder Cup legend argues, yes.

R&A CEO Mark Darbon explains the reason behind pushing the golf ball rollback date. He also hints that rules and guidelines might be reconsidered.

Sam Burns welcomes his second child ahead of The Open, speaks on the dilemma of leaving his family for the last major of the season.

Thank you for reading this edition of Essentially Golf.

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