Coco Gauff beat Aryna Sabalenka in the 2023 US Open final to win her first-ever Grand Slam title and took home a rich payout of $3,000,000 as prize money for winning the championship. The cash may be flowing in now, but things were not always smooth for the teenager.
A decade ago, Gauff and her family could not afford full-time tennis lessons for the budding prodigy. She then crossed paths with famous coach Patrick Mouratoglou, who had set up a program to aid talented players lacking the resources. The young American could not afford to join the coach’s academy but was selected into the scholarship program on account of her talent. All the sacrifices have paid off as Gauff lifted the US Open title at only 19.
Coco Gauff faced financial struggles before receiving scholarship
A record prize pool of $65 million is up for grabs at the US Open. As the women’s singles champion, Gauff earned $3 million while runner-up Sabalenka got richer by $1,500,000. The latter looked set to win the match after dominating the first set. Gauff, however, bounced back remarkably to win 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Coco Gauff has seen a lot of struggle before achieving this success at 19. Her parents could not afford to get her tennis lessons of the necessary quality when she was 9-10 years old. This is how she found herself at the selection camp for the Champ’Seed Foundation run by Mouratoglou. The French coach set up the initiative in 2014 to help talented players who did not have the resources to get high-level tennis training. In an exclusive column for Tennishead in 2019, Mouratoglou revealed that he remembers meeting a 10-year-old Gauff for the first time.
He further disclosed that Gauff was part of the first batch of players to seek assistance from the foundation in 2014. She was one of the standout players alongside Jason Tseng, who won the French Open and Wimbledon boy’s singles in 2018. Mouratoglou elaborated upon the selection process, saying players are evaluated in practice sessions, physical tests, and personal interviews with him.
“Coco Gauff was in the very first batch of players seeking help from the foundation and took part in our first selection week, along with Jason Tseng, who went on to win last year’s boys’ singles titles at both Roland-Garros and Wimbledon. During the selection week we take a close look at players in practice sessions and matches and we put them through physical tests. I also interview every one of them individually. Coco was very impressive in every respect.”
The Champ’Seed Foundation was run by the Mouratoglou Academy located in Southern France. The involved parties decided it would not be apt for Gauff to leave her family in Florida and shift bases. While it was important for her to have her family around her, it was also crucial to ensure she got the best possible practice and fitness routines. It was decided to have Gauff split her time between the academy in France and her family in the USA.
Mouratoglou revealed she spent ‘two-thirds’ of her time at home and the rest at his academy, where she soon found her groove and felt happy. Gauff’s performance in juniors brought great results. She won the French Open girl’s singles at only 14 and became World No.1, proving that the balance was working well.
Gauff has come a long way from the days of monetary struggle
After all that struggle and sacrifice, Coco Gauff stands vindicated with the US Open title in her kitty aged only 19. She is also set to become the No.1 woman’s doubles pair with Jessica Pegula. The $3 million prize purse from the American Grand Slam will double her earnings for the season, having earned a little over $2.5 million so far this year. This figure received a boost when she won the Cincinnati Open, bagging $454,500 from her maiden WTA 1000 triumph.
Gauff’s total career prize money stood at just over $8 million before the Majors in Flushing Meadows. It will now go beyond $11 million. Gauff already has many lucrative endorsement deals in the bag. Apart from her outfit sponsors New Balance and equipment partners Head, she is signed to top brands like UPS, and Bose.
After her rise up the rankings and winning her first Grand Slam, she can expect more brands to come rolling in. Gauff can potentially become the most marketable female tennis player soon.
