French Open prize money increased to over €28m

Prize money at the French Open has been increased by €3 million to over €28 million, the French Tennis Federation has announced.

The singles champions will each receive €1.8 million, around €150,000 more than Rafael Nadal and Maria Sharapova picked up last year. However the tournament, held at Roland Garros and beginning on May 24th, remains the grand slam with the lowest prize for the singles champion, lagging behind the Australian Open (€2.1m), Wimbledon (€2.3m) and the US Open (€2.8m).

The main benefactors will be players who go out in the early rounds, with payouts 20 per cent higher for those that go out in the second round than in 2014. Tournament director and French

Tennis Federation general director Gilbert Ysern said: "This notable increase in prize money is part of the four-year plan that was put in place for 2013 until 2016. "Players eliminated in the first week will be the principal beneficiaries."