The 2015 US Open Series

With Wimbledon all wrapped up, tennis fans look forward to the final leg of the tennis season, the US Open Series, seven weeks of hard court tennis leading up to the year’s final Grand Slam in New York City.

In response to the sport’s growing popularity in the United States, the US Open Series was organized to link together the warm-up tournaments on the American tennis circuit. Excluding the ATP Masters tournaments, most U.S. tennis tournaments got little television coverage prior to the Series, leaving a significant gap between Wimbledon and the US Open. After the launch of the Series in 2004, non-Masters tournaments now enjoy about 50 hours of screen time on ESPN 2.

While great for tennis fans, the series is also an exciting boon for the athletes as well. Points are awarded based on a player’s performance in each tournament, including the final Grand Slam. Depending on how the player finishes in New York, there is a cash bonus for the Series’ winner, the highest amount being $1 million for winning the Open and leading in points.

Last year’s men’s winner was the up-and-comer Milos Raonic, but the real highlight was Serena Williams who won both the Series and the Open for the second time in a row, earning her a $4 million check, the highest payout in tennis history for a single performance.

This year’s tournaments will include (in chronological order) the Atlanta Tennis Championships for men, the Stanford Classic for women, the Rogers Cup, the Cincinnati Masters for men, the Connecticut Open for women and the final US Open held August 31–September 13.