Tiger Woods took in $486,000 for winning a golf tournament.
The 1997 Masters Tournament was the 61st Masters Tournament , held April 10 -- 13 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta , Georgia . Tiger Woods . By April 1997 he had already won his first major , the 1997 Masters . Woods won this tournament in a record-breaking performance , winning by 12 strokes while pocketing $ 486,000 . After winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational on March 25 , 2013 , he ascended to the No. 1 ranking once again , holding the top spot until May 2014 .