Fact about pro tennis players I did not know

[gamecockcat]

The income for the #100 men's player in the world is about $350k. That includes endorsements. That's incredibly lower than I imagined. The top 10 make several million but by #50, you're well below $1 million per year. And think of the expenses with travel, coaches, trainers, entry fees, etc. Hardly breaking even at that income.

I'd bet the #100 men's golfer, NFL player, NBA player and MLB player all make 10x that or more. Really surprised me.

 

[chroix]

I saw a stat that if you lose in the first round of an open you lose about $10k. If you make it past the second round you break even, past that you start earning. Primarily due to travel expenses for support staff and coaches but it’s a sport for the well heeled more than not.

 

[Ron Mehico]

People far outweigh how much money athletes/entertainers make. The top 25% are absolutely loaded but then there is a severe drop off. And the other 75% are still the top 1% in the world. I think sometimes we overlook how incredibly gifted some of these guys/gals at the top are.

 

[CAT Scratch FVR]

You shouldn't be shocked. Minimum US tv coverage, meaning no tv money, there is little movement in top 30, when there are 64 in the tournament, save for qualifying, most times. I'm sure some Europeans get decent endorsement deals, maybe some top players from a particular country, but limited opportunity to earn each week makes it tough.

 

[WildcatFan1982]

I worked at a hotel that hosted a ton of tennis players for that 5/3 open tournament in Lexington. Those guys were not raking in the dough. But one of them was married to a Miss Universe contestant so watching her walk through the lobby several times a day was wonderful.

 

[LowCountryCat]

Much better to be a pro golfer. More money and less chance of injury.

 

[Tskware]

My wife's first cousin was a pro tennis player, good enough to get in the Wimbledon draw one year in doubles, but her dad told my wife her "pro career" had cost him more than $75K already, and that was long before she hung it up.

 

[Glenn's Take]

The number 100 player in the world wins in golf a lot. The number 100 player in the world at tennis never makes the semi finals.

 

[Bigblue2023]

Played satellite and had numerous friends go on tour. None came out ahead financially. It was worth chasing the dream, and if attained is beyond worth it, but damn it’s hard. Most are in career fields outside tennis and a few are teaching pros.

 

[Fact_Checker]

The number 100 player in the world wins in golf a lot. The number 100 player in the world at tennis never makes the semi finals.

If there was a tennis player as good at tennis as Tiger Woods was at golf they would have never lost a tournament IMO. Tennis is the hardest sport to beat someone that outclasses you.

 

[Tskware]

If there was a tennis player as good at tennis as Tiger Woods was at golf they would have never lost a tournament IMO. Tennis is the hardest sport to beat someone that outclasses you.

Good analogy, I have read there are thousands of shots in a 4 hour tennis match, but maybe only 270 or so in a golf tournament, many of which are gimme putts that any pro can make in his sleep, thus the better tennis player is at an immense advantage over the weaker player

 

[CatInCanuckLand]

It’s easy to beat Djoko. All you have to do is hope he nails a lines judge in the noggin. But even those are going the way of the dinosaur as tournaments adopt the technology.

 

[CB3UK]

Tennis is one of the few sports where I can enjoy rhe women's version as kuch as the men's.

Yes, certainly the skirts help. But in all seriousness, I absolutely enjoy watching the women's tennis matches. That and softball hold up on their own merits.

Can't say I ever gave much thought to how much compensation any tennis player got. I guess I always assumed it was along similar lines to pro and amateur golf.

I'd imagine golf gets better ratings than tennis in the US.

 

[CatInCanuckLand]

Tennis is one of the few sports where I can enjoy rhe women's version as kuch as the men's.

Yes, certainly the skirts help. But in all seriousness, I absolutely enjoy watching the women's tennis matches. That and softball hold up on their own merits.

Can't say I ever gave much thought to how much compensation any tennis player got. I guess I always assumed it was along similar lines to pro and amateur golf.

I'd imagine golf gets better ratings than tennis in the US.

You actually enjoy watching women’s tennis? I watch a lot of it, but only because of legs, boobies, and wagering purposes.

Absolutely drives me nuts to watch a match and there will be like 19 breaks of serve. Pitiful.

 

[gamecockcat]

I, too, like the women's game maybe not as much as the men's but I do like it. I really miss the serve-and-volley players. Very few pros come to the net a lot. There are many points on both sides that the players take turns hitting crosscourt shots (I know, it's the high percentage - I get it, I play tennis - but it doesn't make it interesting) with seemingly little strategy other than varying the pace a bit or spin. At the US Open, I saw where one point between Joker and Medevev took 55 shots. C'mon, really?

The men's game with the top players can sometimes be too centered around the serve while the women's is more centered around baseline game. Some of the women can really bomb their first serve but way too many of them hit a spinner at about 80 mph for a second serve while the men typically are up around 95-100 mph on the 2nd. That's why there are more breaks of serve in women's tennis, imo.

 

[NotUofJodieMeeks]

The income for the #100 men's player in the world is about $350k. That includes endorsements. That's incredibly lower than I imagined. The top 10 make several million but by #50, you're well below $1 million per year. And think of the expenses with travel, coaches, trainers, entry fees, etc. Hardly breaking even at that income.

I'd bet the #100 men's golfer, NFL player, NBA player and MLB player all make 10x that or more. Really surprised me.

no one watches the ****.

 

[rudd1]

-tennis is a sport for the well-to-do and educated...of course the proles don't watch it.

 

[CatInCanuckLand]

Tennis is a beautiful sport. Nothing like hitting a +850 (Dimitrov over Federer) and +550 (Wawrinka over Djokovic) within two days of each other (2019 US Open). Andy Murray Wimbledon future from 11 months prior in 2013.

Great sport to wager on during the boring months. Have picked up a racquet like seven times in my life, but my feel for the ebbs and flow of matches is just tremendous, even watching through the television.

 

[Frumpo]

Tennis is a leisure activity passing itself off as sport. Shrink it down and you have ping pong, essentially. I wonder what the #100 Lawn Darts player in the world makes?

 

[BlueVelvetFog]

You actually enjoy watching women’s tennis? I watch a lot of it, but only because of legs, boobies, and wagering purposes.

Absolutely drives me nuts to watch a match and there will be like 19 breaks of serve. Pitiful.

See Also: volleyball

 

[WildcatFan1982]

Tennis is a leisure activity passing itself off as sport. Shrink it down and you have ping pong, essentially. I wonder what the #100 Lawn Darts player in the world makes?

“Behind me, I heard a young woman of 25 say, "If it weren’t for my horse, I wouldn’t have spent that year in college." Now, I'm gonna repeat that, because it bears repeating. "If it weren't for my horse..." as in, giddyup, giddyup, let's go — "I wouldn't have spent that year in college," which is a degree-granting institution. Don't think about that too long, or BLOOD will shoot out your NOSE!”​

I hope Lewis Black reads this thread so he can update his routine.