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Australian Open Increases Prize Money To $32M, Plans To Host 1 Million Fans

Australian Open Dir Craig Tiley is confident the "latest multi-million-dollar prizemoney increase for the tournament" will offset "any disparity with the other grand slams" as the Australian dollar's value falls, according to Courtney Walsh of NEWS LIMITED. Players at the 2016 Australian Open will compete for a A$44M ($32M) purse, which is an increase of 10% on that offered in January. The Australian Open has been able to "match and trump the other slams in recent years" due to a strong Australian dollar that, at times, was "above parity" with the U.S. greenback. Its dip to around $.70 has "seen a lag in relation to Wimbledon and the US Open." Tiley: "The rest of the slams only make their announcement for 2016 later on, so we are generally on par and we monitor how prizemoney goes through the rest of the year. We are going to provide some additional surprises for the players in January which we don’t announce until they show up" (NEWS LIMITED, 10/14).

OPEN PLANS TO HOST 1 MILLION: In London, Barry Flatman reported the Australian Open "may still be regarded as the junior partner when it comes to grand slams" but organizers "boasted that it will be the first to accommodate one million tennis fans." The "sport-obsessed population" of Melbourne "would quite happily watch two possums racing up a tree," but even so, the claims about spectator numbers are "quite some boast" given that this summer's Wimbledon "only enticed 484,391 fans through the turnstiles" and the best the US Open has ever managed was 721,059, back in '09. Tennis Australia Commercial Dir Richard Heaselgrave said, "The PR people will hate me for saying this, but the Australian Open is hoping to be the first grand slam to target a million guests" (LONDON TIMES, 10/13). In Melbourne, Leo Schlink reported the Australian Open has forged a "multi-faced 'friendship' agreement in China." The Australian Open and the Shanghai Rolex Masters will "share resources and engage in joint promotional activity in a major social, cultural, sporting and commercial coup." By linking with the region's only ATP Masters 1000 event -- which this week features all of the world's top 10 men -- the Open is "aiming to tap into the phenomenal Chinese tennis market." The success of Li Na and the "growing profile" of the Shanghai Masters has seen a "steadily rising presence of Chinese spectators and media at Melbourne Park." It is expected the two tournaments will share staff, resources and promotional platforms to "build tourism around about events" (HERALD SUN, 10/12).

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