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TROON, Scotland - As the men's professional golf season hits its exciting climax on the eve of  Open Championship, the tournament's outgoing chief executive has warned that escalating purse sizes across tours could damage the long-term health of the sport.

Speaking ahead of this week's Open Championship, R&A CEO Martin Slumbers acknowledged Royal Troon will award a record $17 million in prize money, including a tournament-high $3.1 million payout to the champion. However, Slumbers expressed unease that such lavish rewards pale in comparison to other stops on the major circuit and rival leagues.

"There's clearly a market out there," Slumbers said. "We watch it week in and week out, throughout regular play as well as through the big events. So yeah, we're aware of what the numbers are, but we're also aware of our own business model and the way we think about it and, as I keep saying, the importance to keep investing."

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The U.S. Open purse tops the majors at $21.5 million, while this year's Players Championship doled out an unheard of $25 million to winner Cameron Smith. Meanwhile, each inaugural LIV Golf event has featured an identical $25 million prize pool fully divided among individual and team victors.

While appreciative of sponsor support driving prize inflation, Slumbers stressed that ballooning funds threaten to divert focus from developing the grassroots level. "These are very encouraging figures, but we have to maintain this momentum," he told the reporter. "To do that, we must have a sustainable business model in the long term. If you look at golf as a pyramid, however strong the pyramid is at the top, it can only be sustained in the long term if the pyramid is equally strong at the base."

As a non-profit organization, the R&A takes a careful approach to purse distribution compared to commercial circuits. Slumbers stressed continuing to make resources go as far as possible, whether that means funding facilities, coaching or pathways for new talent.

Golf participation has surged since the Covid-19 pandemic according to the CEO, who is stepping down after nine pioneering years. However, he warned against focusing solely on the numbers at the top in order to sustain long-term growth.

Brian Harman poses with outgoing CEO of The R&A and Secretary of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, Martin Slumbers as Harman returns the Claret Jug ahead of the 152nd British Open at Royal Troon. (Andy Buchanan/AFP via Getty Images)

Under the respected Englishman's nine-year tenure, the R&A has prioritized growing the game globally through participation efforts. "The reason I'm raising this concern is frankly that I care deeply about getting more people into golf around the world and helping them to move through the levels of the sport if they have the talent and the motivation,"  Slumbers fears burgeoning budgets risk overshadowing this core mission. 

"While we will always offer a very competitive prize fund for The Open, our wider focus is on increasing participation and improving pathways in golf," he said. "We have to make choices about how we allocate resources and make the resources we have go as far as they can."

It remains to be seen if Slumbers' successor, incoming CEO Mark Darbon, maintains this pragmatic perspective regarding finances. But with the future health of the royal and ancient sport at stake, the R&A would do well to keep purse inflation in check and capitalize on this week's spotlight to further their grassroots goals.

References: https://www.espn.com/golf/story/_/id/40580866/ra-ceo-concerned-high-purses-take-focus-golf-future