Honestly, if you haven’t been paying attention to the back courts at Flushing Meadows lately, you’ve missed a massive vibe shift. For decades, mixed doubles felt like the "extra" event—a fun, slightly lower-stakes side quest for players who had already crashed out of the singles draw. But the US Open mixed doubles prize money just hit a level that has everyone in the locker room doing a double-take.
We aren't talking about lunch money anymore. In a move that basically sent shockwaves through the tour, the USTA decided to blow the roof off the previous pay structure. If you’re wondering why you suddenly see top-ten singles stars flirting with the idea of playing mixed, the answer is simple: a seven-figure payday.
The $1 Million Milestone: A Total Game Changer
Let’s get straight to the numbers because they are wild. For the first time ever, the winning team in the mixed doubles draw at the US Open takes home a cool $1,000,000.
Think about that for a second.
Just a couple of years ago, the winners were splitting $200,000. That’s a 400% jump. It is, quite frankly, the biggest single-year raise for a specific discipline in Grand Slam history. The USTA didn't just nudge the needle; they broke it. This "reimagined" championship now pays the winning mixed pair the exact same amount as the men’s and women’s doubles champions.
Breaking Down the 2025/2026 Purse
It’s not just the winners getting rich, though. The wealth has been spread—sorta—across the smaller, more exclusive field. Here is how the cash actually flows per team:
- Champions: $1,000,000
- Runners-up: $400,000
- Semifinalists: $200,000
- Quarterfinalists: $100,000
- Round of 16: $20,000
Notice something weird? The payout for losing in the first round (Round of 16 in the new format) is $20,000, which sounds decent until you realize the jump to the quarterfinals is $80k. The USTA is clearly incentivizing winning over "just showing up."
Why the USTA Suddenly Got Generous
You might be asking why they’d dump millions into an event that usually gets scheduled on Court 17 at 11:00 AM.
Basically, they want the stars.
The USTA realized that fans want to see people like Coco Gauff, Ben Shelton, or Stefanos Tsitsipas playing together. But those players usually won't risk the extra fatigue for a $100k split. By dangling a $1 million check, the tournament turned mixed doubles into a "blockbuster" event. They even moved the schedule. Instead of dragging it out over two weeks, they condensed it into a high-intensity sprint during the second week, specifically to accommodate the singles heavyweights.
It’s a business move. Better players mean better TV ratings, which means more sponsorship money from the likes of JPMorgan Chase and American Express.
The "Mixed Madness" Effect
The catalyst for this whole prize money explosion was actually a pre-tournament exhibition called "Mixed Madness." In 2024, they saw how much the crowd obsessed over pairs like "Tsitsidosa" (Paula Badosa and Stefanos Tsitsipas). When that exhibition became a hit, the USTA realized the US Open mixed doubles prize money was the only thing standing between them and a permanent, high-profile star-studded draw.
Italian duo Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori, who took the title in 2024, played in a different era—monetarily speaking. They split $200,000 for their win. If they had won just one year later under the new structure, they would have walked away with five times that amount. That is a life-changing difference for players who primarily grind on the doubles circuit.
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Comparing the Majors: New York vs. The World
The US Open has always been the loudest and richest, but now they've created a massive gap. While Wimbledon and Roland Garros have increased their purses, they haven't touched the $1 million mark for mixed teams.
- Wimbledon: Historically lags significantly behind in mixed pay compared to singles.
- Australian Open: Offers solid pay, but nothing near the seven-figure New York payout.
- French Open: Generally consistent, but remains focused on the traditional clay-court grind.
The US Open is currently the only place on earth where men and women can step onto the same court together and play for a million-dollar prize. It's a massive statement on "equal pay," though critics point out that the singles winners still take home $5 million each. Still, compared to where we were in the 1970s—when the total purse for everything was barely six figures—we are living in a different universe.
What This Means for the Future of the Sport
Expect to see more "super-teams." The days of mixed doubles being a retirement home for legends or a practice session for specialists are numbered. When you put a million dollars on the line, the intensity changes. You'll see more specialized coaching for mixed pairs and potentially more players skipping the traditional doubles draw to save energy for a run at the mixed title.
If you’re a fan, this is a win. You get better matchups, higher stakes, and more prime-time coverage.
Actionable Next Steps for Fans and Bettors
If you're following the tournament or looking at the odds, keep these things in mind:
- Watch the Entry List Early: With the $1 million prize, look for top-20 singles players who usually skip doubles to suddenly appear on the mixed list.
- Follow the Schedule Shift: Remember that the mixed tournament is now a condensed "event-within-an-event," usually peaking mid-to-late in the second week.
- Check for "Chemistry" vs. "Power": Higher prize money attracts singles stars, but traditional doubles specialists (like Errani or Vavassori) often have the tactical edge in no-ad scoring formats.
- Value the Quarterfinals: Since the prize money jumps from $20k to $100k at the quarterfinal stage, expect the Round of 16 matches to be uncharacteristically fierce. Everyone wants that six-figure guarantee.