The Australian Open has raised its total prize money purse to $36.2M (AU$50M) for next month's event, "continuing the tournament’s stunning growth," according to Leo Schlink of the Melbourne HERALD SUN. Both the men's and women's singles champions will receive a record $2.7M -- an increase of $218,000 -- while "first-round losers will walk away" with almost $36,000 each, up more than $8,000 from '16. Prize money has been boosted by 14% overall, and Tennis Australia CEO and Australian Open Tournament Dir Craig Tiley said that organizers "wanted to ensure players were compensated at both ends of the spectrum." He said, "It was especially important for us to increase the compensation for players in the early rounds and qualifying, and this year we have made some real gains." Schlink notes Australian Open prize money has "more than tripled" since '01. The '16 Australian Open offered a total of about $32M (Melbourne HERALD SUN, 12/21). The U.S. Open has the "largest prize money for a Grand Slam tournament" with a purse of $46.3M and $3.5M for "each of the singles champions" (AP, 12/21).
SCARY INCIDENT: The AP reported two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova will "miss the Australian Open and a significant part of the season" after she was "injured by a knife-wielding attacker at her home" yesterday. Kvitova had to "undergo surgery on her left hand" as a result of the attack. Kvitova's spokesperson Karel Tejkal said that the operation took 3 hours and 45 minutes and that Kvitova "suffered damage to the tendons in her left hand, along with injuries to all five fingers and two nerves." Kvitova will not be "able to fully train for at least three months" (AP, 12/20).
