Did you ever wonder how prize money got so large in competitive sports?

The prizes for winning in sports like tennis and golf have grown at an astounding rate in the last 60 years. Professional tennis is a good example of the growth of prize money. Before The Open era began in 1968, prize money was modest and often wasn't even given in cash.

In the 1950's, even at what are now considered "The Majors," prizes to the winners were gifts rather than money. For example, at Wimbleton, the prize for winning the men's singles title was a $75 gift certificate to a sporting goods store. By contrast, the winner of the men's singles title in 2009, Roger Federer, received an amazing $1.4 million. At the Australian Championship in the 1960's, the winner got a tea service. In 2009, the winner of The Australian Open, Rafael Nadal, received the huge amont of $1.8 million. Today's U.S. Open and French Open tennis tournaments have had similar growth in prizes, with 2009 first place winners receiving $1.8 million and $1.5 million respectively. Those winners were Juan Martin del Potro and Roger Federer.

There is no question that the players' skills have improved over those years, but would the best players still compete for lower prize money? I think that they would. The love of the sport and the competitive spirit must also play a part. However, there seems to be no limit in sight to the amount of prize money available to those who win tennis tournaments. Golf has seen similar growth. The difference in prizes over the last 60 years has been the involvement of corporate sponsorship. How long will that continue and how much higher will the cash prizes become? We can only watch with wonder.