Say what you will about Tiger Woods and his fall from grace, but money talks, and Tiger’s money speaks louder than any other US athlete.
Despite pulling out of the US Open and dropping in the golf rankings to 15th in the world, Tiger Woods is still the top dog as far as American athletes go according to Sports Illustrated’s annual “Fortunate 50” rankings.
It’s incredible the Woods is still pulling in that type of cheddar. Woods raked in $62.3 million in combined endorsement earnings, salary and winnings last year, according to SI despite the fact that his overall income took a massive hit after he got busted for cheating on his wife. Woods lost sponsors like Gillette, Gatorade, Accenture and AT&T, but Nike and EA Sports continue to make Woods a rich man.
For years, Woods has been in a league of his own, but now Phil Mickelson is gaining on him on and off the golf course. According to the SI report, Phil Mickelson was a close second behind Woods at $61.2 million in total earnings.
The enigma and the most hated on basketball player on the planet LeBron James of the Miami Heat trailed both Mickelson and Woods at distant third place at $44.5 million in total earnings.
We might be looking at this list next year and seeing Lefty in the lead and if James can solve his choking problems and win a Championship he could challenge both Woods and Mickelson for the top dog in US athletics.
