RORY McIlroy faces losing almost half of his $4.2 million Masters prize money.
The Northern Irishman won his first Green Jacket on Sunday night at Augusta National.
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There were emotional scenes on the 18th hole as he broke down in floods of tears.
That came after a dramatic playoff win over Englishman Justin Rose.
It was his first Masters win, completing a career Grand Slam for the 35-year-old.
McIlroy bagged a hefty $4.2m for coming first in the prestigious tournament.
However, US tax laws mean he could lose around half of that money.
“Any prize money earned will be subject to US federal tax, the top rate of which is still 37 per cent,” Tax specialist Paul Barham told the Express.
“Golfers will also have to pay state tax in Georgia at 5.39 per cent.
“The U.S tax will be paid by all the golfers playing at Augusta regardless of where they are tax resident.
“If they are a tax resident in the U.S, they shouldn’t pay tax on this prize money in any other country.”
That means McIlroy would lose around $2.4 million in tax alone.
He lives down in Florida and would be considered a US resident.
That means he should not face any extra deductions in the UK.
The total prize money for the event was a staggering $21 million.
Rose claimed a cool $2.68m for his second-place finish.
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Patrick Reed earned around 1.4m for his third.
And the Masters 2024 champion Scottie Scheffler landed little more than $1m.
McIlroy had already won the US Open, PGA Championship and The Open in the past.
However, he ended an 11-year wait for another Major win on Sunday in Georgia.
“I started to wonder if this would ever be my time,” said McIlroy after his victory.
“Over the course of my career, I think I’ve showed quite a lot of resilience from setbacks.
“Look, you have setbacks and you have disappointments.
“As long as you can learn from them, and move forward and try to put those learnings into practice.
“I feel like is very, very important.”