Gone are the days when a golfer’s career was solely defined by victories on the course.
As the 2023 Ryder Cup approaches, there’s a new game in town, and it’s played on a digital green.
In an era where social media influencers reign supreme, it’s time to explore the fascinating intersection of golf and Instagram.
Which golfer from the 2023 Ryder Cup stands to top the Instagram golf rich list as a tee-to-green influencer?
What is an Instagram Golf Influencer? 📲⛳
Before we dive into the potential earnings of Ryder Cup golfers on Instagram, let’s understand what it means to be an Instagram golf influencer.
In the realm of social media, these are the golfers who don’t just conquer the fairways but also capture the hearts, minds, and thumbs of their followers.
In a similar way to the recent Netflix hit “Full Swing” – they’re the ones who share behind the scenes stories and images, top tips and advice and bring golf fans into the jet-set lifestyle of a touring golf pro.
They create a community of golf enthusiasts who hang onto their every post, swing, and trick shot.
Image source @tigerwoods
The Big Hitters: Golf’s Top Instagram Accounts 🌟
The Instagram golf scene has seen a surge in popularity, with several accounts amassing millions of followers.
From jaw-dropping course views to insider tips and tricks, these accounts have carved out their own niche in the golfing world.
Notable mentions include Golf Digest (@golfdigest), Golf Channel (@golfchannel), DP World Tour (@dpworldtour)and the PGA Tour (@pgatour), each boasting a huge fan base and a knack for delivering content that gets you inside the ropes of the biggest golf events in the World.
But the top three individual earners in golf from Instgram are:
Top Three Golf Personality Influencers:
- Tiger Woods (@tigerwoods): Tiger Woods is not just a golf icon; he’s also a social media sensation with over 4 million followers. His Instagram account provides an behind-the-scenes look into his life, golfing journey, and charitable endeavors.
- Rickie Fowler (@rickiefowler): With nearly 2 million followers, Rickie Fowler is one of the most prominent golf influencers on Instagram. He shares his golfing experiences, travel adventures, new family pics, and insights into his golf career.
- Paige Spiranac (@_paige.renee): For many Paige Spiranac is a controversial golf influencer who despite not having a hugely successful pro career has still amassed a following of nearly 4 million on Instagram. She combines her passion for golf with lifestyle content, providing a unique perspective on the sport.
These influencers not only showcase their respective sports but also engage with their followers, offering a glimpse into their personal lives, training routines, and endorsements. They’ve leveraged their social media presence to become powerful brand ambassadors and inspire millions of fans worldwide – they’ve also worked their way to the top of the Instagram Golf Rich List in the process!
The Global Influencer Elite: Top Three Earning Instagram Influencers in the World 💸
Before we turn our attention to the Ryder Cup, it’s essential to recognize the global Instagram superstars who’ve set the bar high for earnings. As of 2023, the top three highest-earning Instagram influencers worldwide are:
- Cristiano Ronaldo (@cristiano): The soccer legend scores big on and off the field. Despite his recent move to the Saudi Pro League he still has an incredible 606 million Instagram followers. With that number he could be pocketing a staggering $2.4 million 💰 for each sponsored post, which would makes him the highest earning Instagram influencer.
- Kylie Jenner (@kyliejenner): With almost 400 million followers! Kylie Jenner has the potential to earn an astonishing $1.8 million per sponsored post! The youngest member of reality TV’s most famous family Kylie’s cosmetics empire has helped take her to near the top of the Instagram rich list!
- Leo Messi (@leomessi): Arch-rival of Ronaldo, Messi may not be the #1 instagram earner but he has won just about everything there is to win in football including the 2022 World Cup with Argentina. Regarded by many as the greatest of all time Messi can score a potential $1.7 million from sponsored post he sends out to his 488 million followers!
The Road to Ryder Cup Instagram Glory 💫
Now let’s delve into the prospects of Team Europe’s Ryder Cup members topping the Instagram golf rich list influencers.
Which golfer from the 2023 Ryder Cup has the highest potential to transform their social media game into major championship standard!
We’re not sure our golfing stars will get near the riches of our top three earners but they can still bring in some serious spondulicks!
How we calculated potential Instagram Earnings for European Ryder Cup Stars
The first step in our process of building the Instgram Golf Rich List was to record the number of followers each player has on their account.
We also looked at the engagement rate for each account – the % of followers who are active on the individual players account –Â and finally the avergae likes they receive for each post.
This information was put into a Instagram Earnings calculator to give us the Average potential earnings each player could make from a sponsered post on their Instagram account.
So that’s how we did it – now let’s take a look at the results:
Instagram Golf Rich List: Which European Ryder Cup Golfer Earns the Most From Social Media?
Perhaps not surprisingly topping our list of European Ryder Cup stars raking in the Instagram birdies is Rory Mcilroy. With 2,79 million followers we calculate he could have the potential to earn up to $33,000 per sponsored instagram post!
Our #1 may not shock you but Justin Rose coming in at number two may be a bit of an eye-brow raiser! With nearly 730k followers the Captain’s pick and fan favourite Rose could be walking off the social media green with between $6-8.5k per sponsored post.
At the other end of scale we have Austrian star Sepp Straka who with 12,500 followers can max out at approximately $226 per post which still isn’t bad considering he’s only got 74 posts in total on his account compared to Rory’s 601 and our top Instagram earner Ronaldo’s 3500+!
Here’s the full list of Team Europe’s Instgram Golf Rich List earners taking part in the Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf this week. We’ve also added each players account so you can follow their updates and get glimpses behind-the-scenes as the number 1 team event in golf unfolds!
| Player | Account | Followers | Engagement % | Ave likes/post | $k per post | Ave $/post |
| Rory McIlroy | @rorymcilroy | 2.79m | 3.4 | 89300 | $25 – 33k |
$29000 |
| Justin Rose | @justinprose99 | 729.6k | 0.7 | 5170 | $6.3 – 8.5k |
$7335 |
| Jon Rahm | @jonrahm | 700k | 5.1 | 34000 | $6 – 8k |
$7000 |
| Viktor Hovland | @viktor_hovland | 597k | 10.1 | 64000 | $5.6 – 7.6k |
$6600 |
| Tommy Fleetwood | @officialtommyfleetwood | 544.2k | 2.9 | 15700 | $4.8 – 6.5k |
$5650 |
| Shane Lowry | @shanelowrygolf | 284.1k | 2.7 | 7500 | $2.5 – 3.4k |
$2950 |
| Matt Fitzpatrick | @mattfitz94 | 271k | 8.1 | 21700 | $2.5 – 3.4k |
$2950 |
| Tyrrell Hatton | @tyrrellhatton | 137k | 2.3 | 3200 | $1.2 – 1.6k |
$1400 |
| Ludvig Aberg | @luddeaberg | 76.3k | 14.1 | 10600 | $752 – 1.k |
$886 |
| Robert MacIntyre | @robertmacintyre | 46.6k | 8.9 | 4100 | $448 – 607 |
$528 |
| Nicolai Hojgaard | @nicolaihoejgaard | 24.2k | 5.1 | 1230 | $233 – 316 |
$270 |
| Sepp Straka | @seppstraka | 12.5k | 41.5 | 5120 | $167 – 226 |
$197 |
We used Influencer Marketing Hub and inbeat.co as research tools for this post.
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