US Open: Giovannini hit with hefty fine for walking out of a match after just a few minutes
According to the referee, “he did not take part in the competition in accordance with the required professional standards”, as reported by Ubitennis.
An article by Vanni Gibertini, entitled “US Open: fine almost wipes out a qualifier’s prize money”, was published on the Ubitennis website on 9 September 2026. The Argentine Luisina Giovannini was fined 20,000 dollars for failing to play at a sufficiently professional level”. The source of the news is the USTA (U.S. Tennis Association), which published a list of all fines imposed on participants at the US Open during the first three rounds, starting with the qualifiers, as Gibertini reports in his article.
Luisina Giovannini (WTA No. 198), aged 19, who was due to face Italy’s Lucia Bronzetti in the first round of qualifying, has been fined for breaching Rule III, paragraph G of the ‘Grand Slam Rulebook’, namely because, in the opinion of the referee, “she did not participate in the competition in accordance with the required professional standards”, as reported by Ubitennis.
Gibertini puts it in figures: “The fine imposed has almost wiped out the prize money Giovannini pocketed in New York: the prize money for the first qualifying round is 32,000, from which a 35 per cent withholding tax must be deducted, leaving a net amount of 20,800 dollars.
Tennis and remuneration
The issue of prize money in tennis returned to the spotlight in 2026 with the increase in the prize fund for the Wimbledon tournament, which “certainly meets the recent demands of players who have been calling for more substantial prize money in Grand Slam tournaments”, wrote Eliana Di on 11 June 2026 Eliana Di Caro on the Sole 24 Ore website. For the London tournament, the organisers have announced a prize fund of 64.2 million pounds, approximately 74.3 million euros.
Regarding the prize money for the 2026 US Open, the USTA – as reported by the SuperTennis website – has announced a total prize fund of 92.5 million euros ($108 million). This is the highest prize money ever in professional tennis, representing a 20 per cent increase on the previous record set in 2025.
