Scottie Scheffler secured a cool $3.1m (R55m) for his winning efforts at the Open Championship at Royal Portrush over the weekend.

According to The Citizen, it was the 29-year-old American’s fourth Major title and his second this year, after also winning the PGA Championship in May. He has won four titles in total on the PGA Tour this year.

Scheffler finished on 17-under-par, four strokes ahead of runner-up Harris English.

South Africans in the field

Only three of the 11 South Africans made the halfway cut at Royal Portrush, but all will be smiling to the bank this week.

The best-placed South African was Christiaan Bezuidenhout, who finished tied 34th and will pocket $86 517 (R1.5m) for his four days of work in Northern Ireland.

Thriston Lawrence, who placed fourth at the Open last year, settled for tied-45th and $51 186 (R906 000), while Dean Burmester ended tied-61st for $41 100 (R727 000).

Even those who missed the cut were generously compensated. The top 10 players (and ties) on the wrong side of the cut received $12 350, the next 20 earned $10 300, and the remainder of the field took home $8 750.

That means South Africans Louis Oosthuizen, Daniel van Tonder, Justin Walters, Aldrich Potgieter, Dylan Naidoo, Darren Fichardt, Shaun Norris and amateur Bryan Newman still left with earnings despite not playing on Saturday and Sunday.

Richest tournaments in golf

The total purse at the Open this year was unchanged at $17m, making it the least lucrative of the four Majors.

The US Open leads with $21.5m, followed by the Masters at $21m and the PGA Championship at $19m.

The Players Championship, regarded as the unofficial fifth Major, offers the largest purse on the PGA Tour with $25m.