Forbes highest-paid athletes of 2018 list includes five golfers

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Forbes highest paid athletes Rory McIlroy

DUBLIN, OH – JUNE 03: Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland hits his tee shot on the second hole during the final round of The Memorial Tournament Presented by Nationwide at Muirfield Village Golf Club on June 3, 2018 in Dublin, Ohio. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images) /

Rory McIlroy came in fourth out of all golfers this year, a number somewhat deflated by the fact that he went winless on the PGA TOUR in 2016-17. It was his first winless year since 2013, and his 58^th-place finish in the FedEx Cup race was the worst of any qualifying season in his career.

Still, that doesn’t mean we should feel bad for Rors, not by a long shot. First, with $3.7 million in on-course earnings, it’s not like he’ll wind up in the poor-house anytime soon. But what Rory has in common with the other three golfers on this list is simple: out-of-this-world marketability.

While the days of constant comparisons to Tiger Woods are over (thankfully), there’s no doubt that McIlroy is one of the game’s most popular players all over the world. The only non-American golfer on the list, McIlroy’s deals with Nike, TaylorMade (rumored to be worth more than $100 million in total) and Omega watches make him wealthy beyond reason. Granted, these are just estimates, but his $34 million in endorsement pay last year would put him 22^nd on the TOUR’s all-time winnings list.

In other words, he’d be a mere five spots behind himself, as the Ulsterman has earned just over $39 million in his illustrious career.

Considering that he just turned 29, it’s not hard to imagine McIlroy topping this list sometime in the not-too-distant future.

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