Italian Open – Prize Money Breakdown
Many view the Italian Open/Rome masters as one of the best tune-ups for the French Open every single year. As one of the biggest tournaments outside of the majors, the best players in the world flock to Italy to compete on clay.
As a huge stop on tour for both the ATP and WTA, a lot of prize money is handed out in singles and doubles. Organizers have done a great job increasing prize money every year, keeping up with similarly sized tournaments.
How much does the singles winner receive at the Italian Open? The men’s singles winner will receive €958,000. The women’s champion receives roughly half the amount per equivalent finished, with 523,858 pounds for the winner.
Total Prize Money Breakdown
The prize money at the Rome Masters is €5.2 million, split between the men and the women. When looking at strictly singles, the men received 2/3rds of the money, while the women receive 1/3rd. Both doubles tournament paid out equally to the men and women.
Singles
| Men’s Singles (2021) | Prize Money |
|---|---|
| Winner | €958K |
| Runner-Up | €485K |
| Semi-Final | €249K |
| Quarter-Final | €128K |
| R16 | €64K |
| R32 | €34K |
| R64 | €19K |
| Women’s Singles (2021) | Prize Money |
|---|---|
| Winner | €524K |
| Runner-Up | €262K |
| Semi-Final | €131K |
| Quarter-Final | €60K |
| R16 | €30K |
| R32 | €15K |
| R64 | €7.9K |
This is one of a few high-level tournaments which vary slightly in points when looking and the ATP and WTA Tour. On the ATP Tour, it is a Masters 1000 Series event, which means that the winner will receive 1000 points in the ranking system. For the women, it is a Premier Five Event, which means the winner only receives 900 points.
This important distinction is the best way to understand why the prize money so different. The men make about twice as much in singles. The man in 2019 received 958,055 pounds for winning, while the women only received 523,858 pounds. It is sometimes confusing for fans if they do not know how the point system works, but the men and women receive equal prize money if the points up for grabs are the same.
Throughout history, the prize money has grown considerably. Prize money has doubled in just the last 7-8 years for all the tournaments. The organizers also have a strong focus on making sure that the lower-ranked players, who might only win a match or two before being eliminated, get a bigger cut of the pie. This helps them continue their journey as a lower-ranked player.
Doubles
| Men’s Doubles (2021) | Prize Money |
|---|---|
| Winner | €285K |
| Runner-Up | €139K |
| Semi-Final | €70K |
| Quarter-Final | €36K |
| R16 | €19K |
| R32 | €10K |
| Women’s Doubles (2021) | Prize Money |
|---|---|
| Winner | €285K |
| Runner-Up | €139K |
| Semi-Final | €70K |
| Quarter-Final | €36K |
| R16 | €19K |
| R32 | €10K |
Doubles is the exact same for men and women at the Italian Open with prize money. Both received €285K for their efforts in the 2019 Italian Open. It is a pretty competitive doubles tournament, because a lot of teams will use it as a tune-up for the French Open. Doubles players do not receive quite as many huge paydays, so taking advantage of this tournament is a plus.
Rome Masters Tournament History
It should come as no surprise that Rafael Nadal has dominated this clay court event in recent memory. He tries to play it every year, and he is nearly unbeatable when healthy. He is not quite as big of a fan-favorite as he is at the events in Spain, but he still grabs a lot of attention thanks to his dominance.
The only player who is even close to Nadal and his nine titles in Rome is Novak Djokovic with four. He has been able to beat Nadal at this tournament, which is no small feat by any means. Those two players have not let many other people hoist a trophy. Since 2004, the tournament has been won by someone other than those two just twice.
There is not a dominant player on the women’s side at this tournament nearly the same level. Chris Evert still holds the record for most victories with five, but Serena Williams is an active player with four titles to her name. She won those for titles in a five-year span, including three in a row.
Just like at a lot of doubles tournaments, the Bryan brothers have the record for most victories at the Rome Masters with four. On the women’s side, Virginia Wade stands alone with a total of four victories. Martina Hingis and Martina Navratilova both won this tournament three times, but with different partners.
