Why do Americans work so much?

[dvh]

Surprise, I am American. Some background:I am a late 30's male, college educated doing a job I love. I am a PGA Professional and the Facility GM for a golf course/hotel combo. I easily work 60 hours a week and have 2 children that I spend almost all of my free time with.

My wife and I often have small arguments about the hours professional people put in. My thought is if you are going to be successful you have to strive to be the best. To me the hours are a byproduct of working to achieve that goal. I tell her 60 is reasonable for professional/salaried people.

The average household income in the region I live in is, I believe, around $50k annually. Hard to break that as an hourly worker and to double that number (which is still a small amount to many Balla poker players) takes a certain amount of dedication and time committment.

Just curious how many share my thoughts, or am I a chump?