Tommy Fleetwood is set to lose almost half of his £615,000 ($827,500) Open Championship prize money because of tax regulations. The British golfer finished T4 at Royal Birkdale Golf Club alongside world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler on Sunday.
Tax Deductions
The 35-year-old is expected to part ways with £289,972 of his cheque due to income tax and national insurance. Speaking exclusively to Express Sport, Nicole Zalys, known as The London Accountant, broke down the losses.
She said: "Assuming Tommy is UK tax resident, resident in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, and the earnings are taxable in the UK as self-employed trading profits. His precise position will depend on the date of his relocation, whether split-year treatment applies and the nature and source of each payment."
UK residents normally pay UK tax on worldwide income, although relocation cases can involve split-year and foreign-income rules. Net earnings face 45% income tax and 2% Class 4 National Insurance, totaling 47%.
"So the total tax liability would be £289,972 ($388,925). Fleetwood’s net take-home would therefore be £327,021 ($438,575)."
Major Drought Continues
While the PGA Tour star still walks away with an incredible amount of money, his desperate wait to end his major drought will have to go on. Speaking after Ryan Fox captured his maiden major, Fleetwood said: "There’s disappointment that I didn’t win today or I couldn’t get it done when I was in a really good position – but of course there’s only one person that gets to win it, and my dream of winning the Open will carry on and I’ll continue to chase it."
He added: "But stuff like that, walking down 18 and the atmosphere out there, that was beyond stuff that I’ve dreamt of. That was just stuff that I never imagined. The crowds were amazing, and they made it the most special week ever for me, and I can’t thank them enough."
