Matt Slocum/Associated Press The green jacket and a place in the annals of golf history are often considered the top prizes that go along with winning the Masters. However, there's a lot more to gaining the first major championship of the year than making a fashion statement and finding your name mentioned in the same breath as Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus. There's a huge cash prize that goes along with the title, and that amount grows nearly every year. This year, the Masters will pay out $11.5 million in prize money, $500,000 more than last year, per Ryan Herrington of Golf Digest. This year's winner will earn $2.07 million for his triumph, nearly $100,000 more than Patrick Reed banked last year when he took home $1.98 million. The final round of the Masters is almost always won as the shadows of late afternoon make for the most dramatic stage, but that will not be the case this year. Thunderstorms and poor weather are forecast for the afternoon, so the tournament organizers have ordered that the final round start in the early morning hours. Instead of the usual twosomes playing from the first hole, the final round of the Masters will be played by threesomes teeing off from holes No. 1 and No. 10. Video Play Button Videos you might like Current leader Francesco Molinari, who won the British Open last summer, should be in a position to win his first Masters after firing a six-under 66 in the third round. While the crowd will undoubtedly throw its full support behind Tiger Woods as he goes for his fifth Masters title and his first major win since 2008, Molinari is playing spectacularly steady golf, and he leads Woods and Tony Finau by two strokes. He has not had a bogey on his scorecard since the 11th hole of Thursday's opening round, and he simply does not make the kind of hurtful shots that can turn a tournament around in a heartbeat. "I just try to do my best on every hole," Molinari explained to CBS interviewer Amanda Balionis. "I maybe didn't hit the ball as well as I did yesterday, but I putted the ball very well." The prediction that Tiger won't be able to get the job done Sunday may seem harsh because he has come off rounds of 70-68-67, but Molinari's ability to handle pressure with stability and precision makes him a strong front-runner and favorite. Tiger was able to make many of the shorter putts that he had been missing during the first two days of the tournament, and he credited the flat stick with his ability to get within two strokes of the lead. "I putted well today," Woods told Balionis. "I felt good about my lines, and today I was able to make the putts that I had been missing. "Tomorrow is going to be different. When you're in this position in the Masters, you think you can sleep in and prepare for your round. I am going to have to get up very early to get this body prepared for the early start." Woods later explained that getting up early for a start at 9:20 a.m. ET would involve waking at "3:45 or 4." Finau played himself into a prime spot with Saturday's round of 64, and there will be no stopping him if he can match that Sunday. But that is too much to expect of any golfer in the final round of the Masters. Here are the projections on how the money will be paid after the championship is determined: Top money projections for 2019 Masters 1. Francesco Molinari, $2,070,000 2. Tiger Woods, $1,242,000 3. Brooks Koepka, $782,000 4. Tony Finau, $552,000 5. Matt Kuchar, $460,000 6. Webb Simpson, $414,000 7. Ian Poulter, $385,250 8. Louis Oosthuizen, $356,500 9. Dustin Johnson, $333,500 10. Xander Schauffele, $310,500 While our projections select the leaders after three rounds getting the top spots, that doesn't mean that players like Justin Thomas (six under), Phil Mickelson (six under), Bubba Watson (five under), Tommy Fleetwood (four under) or Jordan Spieth (four under) could rise up, record a great score and put pressure on the leaders. However, the course at Augusta National Golf Club has been receptive, and the belief is that the golfers who finished the third round at the top of the leaderboard will be there at the conclusion of Sunday's round. Tiger will be close, but Molinari will take the green jacket—and the cash.<doc-sep>Francesco Molinari is now the favourite to claim this year's green jacket as the 83rd Masters, heading into the final round two shots ahead. He will face formidable challenges from a cluster of the world's best players, including Tiger Woods who sits in the chasing pack. Aside from the prestigious Augusta National green jacket, the winner of the year's first major will receive close to £1,405,542 in prize money. The total prize money pool is being kept flat at $11m after it was boosted by $1m in 2017. The Masters is the second-largest purse of the four major championships, with the the US Open offering the largest purse in golf at $12 million. That means the purse for the champion is the same sum as defending champion Patrick Reed received after his impressive final round performance last year. The players that failed to make the cut still receive $10,000 each while the person to finish bottom of the leaderboard come Sunday night will still pocket $20,000. Here's a full breakdown of the distribution of prize money:<doc-sep>
AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Winning the Masters is worth far more than any amount of money you could possibly attain for the victory, but boy, that payout is pretty great, too. The 2019 Masters purse is up to $11.5 million from $11 million a year ago, and the winner will receive over $2 million for the first time in the history of the tournament. And while you won't get a green jacket, second place isn't that shabby at $1.24 million, which is more than can be earned by the victor of many PGA Tour events in a given season. The purse is so big, in fact, that this year's third-place finisher will receive as much as the entire field did when Jack Nicklaus won the 1986 Masters. So while one of the last thing a green jacket-earner will be thinking about come Sunday evening (or Monday morning) is how much money will hit his bank account next week, it's still pretty great work ... if you can get it. We are at a blistering pace rolling to a finish at Augusta National, and it is still up in the air who will claim the grand prize. Here's a look at all the prize money and payouts for the 83rd Masters. 2019 Masters prize money, purse, payouts Total purse: $11.5 million Winner -- Tiger Woods: $2,070,000 Runners up (T2) -- Dustin Johnson, Xander Schauffele, Brooks Koepka: $858,666.67 each T5 -- Jason Day, Webb Simpson, Francesco Molinari, Tony Finau: $403,937.50 each T9 -- Jon Rahm, Patrick Cantlay, Rickie Fowler -- $310,500 each T12 -- Bubba Watson, Justin Thomas, Matt Kuchar, Justin Harding, Ian Poulter -- $225,400 each 17th -- Aaron Wise: $184,000 T18 -- Patton Kizire, Phil Mickelson, Adam Scott -- $161,000 each The following are the payouts for the remaining places. When golfers tie for a position, their share of the purse is an average of what those competitors would be paid if they were positioned in order. 21st: $138,000 22nd: $128,800 23rd: $119,600 24th: $110,400 25th: $101,200 26th: $92,000 27th: $88,550 28th: $85,100 29th: $81,650 30th: $78,200 31st: $74,750 32nd: $71,300 33rd: $67,850 34th: $64,975 35th: $62,100 36th: $59,225 37th: $56,350 38th: $54,050 39th: $51,750 40th: $49,450 41st: $47,150 42nd: $44,850 43rd: $42,550 44th: $40,250 45th: $37,950 46th: $35,650 47th: $33,350 48th: $31,510 49th: $29,900 50th: $28,980 The remainder of the professionals will receive cash prizes ranging downward from $28,290 depending on their scores and finishes among the field.