McIlroy didn’t need to think hard. It was 2007 and he had made $20,530 on the DP World Tour for a T-42 finish at the British Masters. He followed that up with a third-place finish at the Alfred Dunhill Cup, which banked $286,769, and a T-4 at the Madrid Open, where he cashed a check for $56,425. That’s when he made an eye-opening discovery.

Rory McIlroy is second all-time in career PGA Tour prize money, amassing over $107 million in winnings to date. He looks likely to catch and pass Tiger Woods’ mark of $121 million long before his career is up.