Rory McIlroy's net worth gets significant boost as PGA Championship star goes up £35m

Rory McIlroy's net worth has surged by £35million over the last year. According to the new he boasts a fortune of £260m, compared to the £225m he was valued at 12 months ago.

The 37th edition of the list outlines the 350 richest individuals in the UK. also ranks among the most affluent under-40s in the UK, securing the 19th spot on that list and first in Northern Ireland. However, the actual wealth of the County Down star could be even greater, as the list does not account for bank balances. It is compiled based on identifiable assets, including land, property, art, racehorse ownership and significant stakes in publicly listed companies. Last month, the 36-year-old finally achieved the career Grand Slam, 11 years after his previous major title. His saw him pocket $4.2m (approximately £3.15m), taking his total earnings from the PGA Tour to around £80m.

The combined wealth of the 350 individuals on the list totals £772.8billion, a three per cent decrease from last year. The list was drawn up by business journalist Robert Watts, who said: "The Sunday Times Rich List is changing. Our billionaire count is down and the combined wealth of those who feature in our research is falling.

"We are also finding fewer of the world's super rich are coming to live in the UK. Our research continues to find a wide variety of self-made entrepreneurs building fortunes not just from artificial intelligence, video games and new technologies, but also mundane, everyday items such as make-up, radiators and jogging bottoms.

"We know many of our readers find these people and their stories inspiring - especially the many who had tough starts or setbacks to their lives and careers." McIlroy's play-off victory over Justin Rose at Augusta made him just the sixth male golfer to complete the career Grand Slam and gave him a fifth major title, one behind Sir Nick Faldo.

However, he faces an uphill battle to claim back-to-back major titles after an error-strewn opening round in the 107th US PGA Championship. The superstar struggled to a three-over-par 74 to trail Jhonattan Vegas by a daunting 10 shots.

Vegas finished his round shortly before 8pm local time with five birdies in the last six holes to become the first Venezuelan player to lead a major. He enjoyed a two-shot lead over Australia's Cam Davis and North Carolina native Ryan Gerard, with Europe's Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald another stroke back alongside Aaron Rai, Ryan Fox, Alex Smalley and Stephan Jaeger.

England's Matt Fitzpatrick and Scotland's Robert MacIntyre were another stroke back on three under, alongside US Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley and Tyrrell Hatton. McIlroy, who hit just three fairways in regulation, was fortunate not to find the water with a number of pulled tee shots and before heading straight to the range after his round.