World number one Tiger Woods has cracked USD 1.3 billion in career earnings by leading the Golf Digest 50 with USD 83 million in income last year, the magazine reported on its website.
Woods, a 14-time major champion, topped the list for the 11th time in its 11-year history with $83,091,508, including an estimated $71 million off the course and more than $12 million in prize money.
The story says Woods' winnings of more than $155 million reflect less than 12 percent of his career earnings, with $1.16 billion coming from endorsements since his pro debut in 1996, a figure that continues to increase even in the wake of an infamous sex scandal and ensuing divorce.
A Woods deal with Electronic Arts involving a golf video game ended at the conclusion of 2013 and, while he has not approached pre-scandal endrosement totals above $100 million a year, he has bounced back from a 2011 low of $62 million in endorsement income.
Second on the Golf Digest list for 2013 income was Phil Mickelson at $52,009,156, with an estimated $45 million in endorsements and other non-prize money income.
The US left-hander won last year's British Open and hopes to complete a career Grand Slam by winning this year's US Open, an event where he is a record six-time runner-up.
Arnold Palmer, the 84-year-old golf icon whose popularity helped spawn the television riches of today's players, was third at $40 million, largely from licensing deals in Asia.
