Wimbledon prize money to rocket by 40 per cent thanks to player power In recent years, there has been an annual surplus of about £34 million, 90 per cent of which is forwarded to the Lawn Tennis Association according to the terms of the staging agreement between the two organisations. Caroline Wozniacki was the first leading player to respond yesterday, writing on her Twitter page that the new prize-fund was "amazing." It is through the new-found unity of the players - and particularly the men - that these recent leaps in remuneration have been achieved. Roger Federer has been particularly influential in his role as president of the ATP player council, with strong support from the rest of the "Big Four." For an example of player power in action, look at the pressure applied to executives from the US Open, who had to go back with a second offer in March after their opening bid of a 16 per cent pay rise met with rumblings of boycotts and alternative tournaments across the state line in New Jersey. The All England Club never faced such discontent - indeed their hierarchy were determined that they should not be placed in such an embarrassing position. But there have been plenty of pointed remarks in the build-up to yesterday's announcement. Eric Butorac, who works with Federer on the player council, called last week for Wimbledon "to step up in a way that is representative of its tremendous success." These increases will not be even across the board; rather they will be skewed towards the less successful players, so that first-round losers go home with £23,500 for a couple of hours" work, £9,000 more than last year, and a 62 per cent increase. Whereas the prize for the champions will be £1.6 million, up a mere 39 per cent. The first figure might look like a reward for failure, given that there is no necessity even to win a single point. But then times are tough for players ranked around the No 100 mark, and the grand slams are being forced to pick up the slack left by the rest of the tennis tour. Tennis's new financial model is the logical consequence of what we might call "big event mentality" - the idea, which gathers strength every year, that the standing of the leading players is determined by their performances at the four grand slams. As a result, TV networks increasingly pay a premium to screen the elite events, while cutting back on their investment in the lesser tournaments that fill the rest of the itinerary. Wimbledon, of course, is the biggest event of all. And yesterday's announcements were designed to cement its place at the top of the pyramid.