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LONDON (AP) — Men’s professional tennis players ranked in the Top 100 will be guaranteed an annual income of $300,000 in 2024 under a new financial program announced by the ATP Tour on Tuesday.
The plan, called Baseline, starts with a three-year trial beginning next season and aims at “ensuring a greater number of players can make a sustainable living from the sport,” the tour said in a news release.
The ATP expects a total of 30 to 45 players to receive money through one of Baseline’s three parts each season.
In “guaranteed base earnings,” the ATP will make up the difference if players do not reach certain thresholds: $300,000 for the Top 100, $150,000 for players ranked from 101 to 175 and $75,000 for those ranked from 176 to 250.
An element called “injury protection” will pay players who participate in fewer than nine ATP Tour and ATP Challenger Events in a season.
And “newcomer investment” will offer access to $200,000 in funding when players first make it into the Top 125, offset against prize money they make.