Texas A&M senior Sam Bennett, 23, missed out on a $241,000 payday at the Masters because of his amat

• Sam Bennett, a 23-year-old amateur golfer, wrote one of the sport's great storylines last week.
• Bennett stormed up the field to a tie for 16th place at the Masters — one of golf's major tournaments.
• If he had competed as a pro, he would have earned $241,000. As an amateur, he walks away with nothing.

Collegiate golfer Sam Bennett, 23, missed out on a $240,000 payday, despite taking the Masters by storm over the weekend.

A current Texas A&M fifth-year senior, Bennett wrote one of the tournament's great storylines, as he put himself within reach of the green jacket with extraordinary scores on the first two days of the event.

Bennett carded a 4-under 68 on Day 1 at Augusta National Golf Club, tied for sixth, and repeated his score on Friday to climb to third behind only Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka for the weekend.

However, he began falling away slightly on Saturday, shooting a 4-over 76, and a 74 on Sunday to finish -2 overall.

Bennett's performance earned him the Low Amateur award — meaning he was the best amateur player at the Masters — and he ended 16th overall.

That finish would have scored a pro a $241,000 payday.

Yet, because he competed as an amateur, Bennett is not permitted to earn prize money.

How Bennett's success on the big stage could see him score bigger paydays down the road

That does not mean it wasn't a valuable experience for Bennett. The vast media and television exposure he received could see him earn considerably more in the coming months and year, should he cash in on name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals, Golf Digest reports.

Luke Feldlam, a sports attorney and NIL expert, told the golf publication that Bennett could parlay increased attention on his social media channels to scoop endorsement contracts that could be worth "high six figures — and probably seven figures — for him going forward."

Such a haul would see him quadruple that $241,000 prize money he'd have scooped had he competed as a pro rather than an amateur.

But it still pales in comparison to the big bucks winner Jon Rahm will take home. He'll earn a $3.24 million paycheck for his four-stroke victory over Brooks Koepka and Phil Mickelson, who each earned $1.6 million for second place.

Last year's winner at Augusta, Scottie Scheffler, earned $2.7 million.

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