I was going to post this in the "What's the deal?" thread, but thinking it over, I really want to know the answer.
I've noticed that at various sporting events, competitions, and such, especially when depicted in fiction (because I usually don't care to watch reality on television), winners are shown with really large checks. Not large in amount (though it often is), but by the literal, physical size of the checks. But why do some people get checks of that size? Wouldn't they still be able to get that amount if it was a regular wallet-sized check?