Golf: Record prize for winner of this year's Open

THE winner of this year's Open at Turnberry will receive a record pounds 110,000, an increase of pounds 10,000 on last year and more than the total prize-money when the Ayrshire course staged its first Open in 1977.

The prize fund has been raised to pounds 1.1m, another record, and the policy of supporting players further down the order has again been strengthened. The player finishing 70th, for example, will earn pounds 4,000.

Michael Bonallack, secretary of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club, the organisers of the event, said yesterday: 'In recognition of the cost of competing in the championship for overseas players we believe that this is still the most effective way of maintaining the international strength of the field, which is what sets the Open apart.'

The policy means that while the prize fund is the biggest in Europe this season, the winner's cheque is not. The winner of the Toyota World Matchplay Championship at Wentworth in October can expect at least the pounds 160,000 Corey Pavin collected last year, while in May the Volvo PGA champion will receive pounds 133,000.

Despite a review, there is no change to the rule whereby any player within 10 strokes of the lead after 36 holes qualifies for the final two rounds.