ST. PETERSBURG, FL, USA - By winning the Sony Ericsson Championships - Doha 2009, Serena Williams has set a new single-season prize money record for the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour by earning $6,545,586. Williams has eclipsed the previous record set by Justine Henin in 2007 ($5,429,586). Prize money totals include Grand Slam prize money earned.
"It's incredible how much women's tennis has grown in the last few years and that the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour has increased our prize money so significantly. We are very fortunate to have an opportunity to be so well rewarded for doing something we love," Williams said about the milestone.
"As a result of the reform of our circuit structure, the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour has been able to unlock significant value in the sport, including with respect to prize money," said Stacey Allaster, Chairman and CEO of the Tour. "Serena Williams is one of the all-time great champions in the history of women's tennis and it's because of athletes like her that the sport has come so far so fast."
Earlier this year, Williams surpassed Lindsay Davenport, the previous record holder in career prize money earnings on the Tour, and became not only the all-time career prize money leader in women's tennis, but also the first professional female athlete to earn more than $23 million in a single professional sports league. She has now boosted her career earnings to $28,506,993.
For a history of the incredible growth of prize money in women's tennis since the beginning of the Tour, check out the full press release.
Also check out this year's season-ending prize money leaderboard.
