Why Tony Romo turned down $125K after winning celebrity golf tournament

Tony Romo has long had a reputation as a competitive amateur golfer.

The CBS Sports announcer and former Dallas Cowboys quarterback has attempted to qualify for the U.S. Open on multiple occasions, coming up short each time.

Tony Romo wins tournament after 3 2nd-place finishes

He showed his bonafides on Sunday, beating out other athletes and celebrities to take home the American Century Championship at Lake Tahoe with five birdies in his final round in a tournament he has finished as runner-up three times.

He topped other current and former professional athletes Aaron Rodgers, Stephen Curry, Ray Allen, John Smoltz and Mark Mulder to secure the trophy and the $125,000 check that came with the title.

“It’s a special win,” Romo said. “It’s a privilege to play in this event. I think I’ll always feel lucky. It’s one of our favorite weeks of the year.”

Why Romo turned down prize money

The thing is, Romo turned down the prize money. And while it’s notable that the six-figure check instead went to charities, philanthropy wasn’t Romo’s only motivation in declining the big payday.

He wanted to retain his amateur status.

Shortly after the win, Romo flew to Wisconsin for another golf event in an attempt to qualify for the U.S. Amateur.

According to Spotrac, Romo earned more that $127 million in salary during his 14-year NFL career in addition to endorsement money and a surely substantial paycheck from CBS.

So he’s in the envious position of being able to casually turn down a six-figure payday to pursue his golf dreams.

More from Yahoo Sports:
• The Instagram account that pokes fun at the reality of Minor League life
• Of course LaVar Ball says he could’ve beat LeBron James one-on-one in his prime
• Ben McAdoo ‘at peace’ about decision to bench Eli Manning last year
• Poker player Tony Miles apologizes for ‘slow roll’ comment about champ John Cynn