Along with golf, singles tennis is one of the rare sports where a professional athlete has nobody to rely on when it comes to achieving elite success. The players who have managed to rake in tens of millions of dollars on the court have done so by simply being better and lasting longer than their opponents over the course of many years. In tennis history, some players have used their racket as a personal mint more effectively than others.
As of May 31, 2021, these are the biggest career money winners in ATP Tour history, which represents the top echelon of the men’s game.
30. Fernando Verdasco
Career Winnings: $17.7 million
Spain’s Fernando Verdasco has never won a Grand Slam event and has never been ranked in the top five of the world singles rankings but that hasn’t kept him from making bank. The ATP Tour veteran has won seven career singles titles so far, with the latest coming in 2016 at Bucharest. The lefty had an all-time classic match with fellow Spaniard Rafael Nadal at the semifinals of the Australian Open in 2009, which lasted more than five grueling hours.
29. Feliciano López
Career Winnings: $17.8 million
You don’t get to the top of many career record books in sports without losing a lot along the way and nobody in ATP Tour history has lost as many matches as Feliciano López. Despite all those blemishes on his overall record, the Spaniard ranks among the elites in terms of his bank account. López has won seven career singles titles so far, none of which came at Grand Slam events, but he did capture the French Open doubles crown in 2016 alongside fellow countryman Marc López.
28. Richard Gasquet
Career Winnings: $18.6 million
Frenchman Richard Gasquet has been a three-time semifinalist at Grand Slam singles events, including twice at Wimbledon, but has yet to take home the trophy from any of them. He did win the 2004 French Open mixed doubles crown alongside Tatiana Golovin but his 15 career singles titles have come at other events, including three times in 2013. In 2002, Gasquet made history by winning an ATP Tour match at 15 years old and he made further history in March 2021, when he joined an elite club of players who’ve won at least 550 matches.
27. Michael Chang
Career Winnings: $19.1 million
American prodigy Michael Chang turned pro in 1988, when he was a teen, and won the 1989 French Open at the age of 17. That record-setting victory set the New Jersey native on the path to eventually reach No. 2 in the men’s singles rankings and collect more than $19 million from ATP Tour events. Chang would never win another Grand Slam singles crown but would finish as runner-up at the Australian Open and U.S. Open in 1996 and would win a remarkable 34 titles in his Hall-of-Fame career, with the last coming in 2000.
26. Gaël Monfils
Career Winnings: $19.4 million
France’s Gaël Monfils has earned more than $19 million from ATP Tour events since turning pro in 2004, with that tally being helped by his 10 career singles tournament crowns. The former world No. 6 has never won a Grand Slam event in singles or doubles but has been a semifinalist at the French Open and U.S. Open. In 2020, he put together his first multi-win season, taking the titles at Rotterdam and Montpellier.
25. John Isner
Career Winnings: $19.4 million
North Carolina native John Isner is in the tennis record books for several remarkable reasons, including his career earnings. In 2010, he made history by winning a match at Wimbledon that lasted more than 11 hours and was played over the span of three days. Then, in 2016, he hit the fastest serve in either ATP Tour or Davis Cup history, when he launched the ball at 157.2 miles per hour. The 15-time singles champion has yet to win a Grand Slam event but he’s always a threat to blast an ace, thanks to his 6-foot-10-inch frame.
24. Grigor Dimitrov
Career Winnings: $19.5 million
Regarded as the best men’s tennis player to ever come from Bulgaria, Grigor Dimitrov likely still has plenty of time to climb higher on this list. Since turning pro in 2008, he’s won eight singles titles on the ATP Tour, including four in 2017, the year that saw him reach No. 3 in the world rankings. Dimitrov has yet to cash in at a Grand Slam event but he’s been a semifinalist at three of them since 2014, including at the 2019 U.S. Open, where he knocked off Roger Federer.
23. Goran IvaniševiÄ
Career Winnings: $19.8 million
International Tennis Hall of Famer Goran IvaniševiÄ is one of few players on this list to have predated the ATP Tour with his pro career, as he debuted in 1988, two years before the organization was founded. From 1990 to 2001, the Croatian icon won 22 ATP events, with the final one coming at Wimbledon. IvaniševiÄ, who climbed as high as No. 2 in the world rankings, also took home hardware from the Davis Cup, Hopman Cup and Grand Slam Cup.
22. Milos Raonic
Career Winnings: $20.2 million
In his native Canada, Milos Raonic is already regarded as one of the all-time greats with a racket. He made history for that nation in 2016 by reaching No. 3 in the world rankings, which was the highest position ever earned by a Canadian man in the sport. He made the semifinals at the Australian Open and the finals at Wimbledon that season, which are the closest he’s yet come to winning a Grand Slam. So far, Raonic has won eight ATP Tour singles events and is one of less than two dozen men to earn more than $20 million on the court from the organization.
21. Stefan Edberg
Career Winnings: $20.6 million
Sweden’s Stefan Edberg is the first former world No. 1 to crack the list and his list of career accomplishments is rivaled by few. Between 1985 and 1992, Edberg won six Grand Slam singles titles, two each at the Australian Open, U.S. Open and Wimbledon — while his appearance in the finals at the 1989 French Open brought him to the doorstep of the elusive career Grand Slam. A decent chunk of his career bankroll from ATP Tour play came in doubles, where he won three more Grand Slam trophies and was also perched atop the world rankings for a time.
20. Andy Roddick
Career Winnings: $20.6 million
Known for his blistering serve, which was known to reach 152 miles per hour, Nebraska’s Andy Roddick won 32 singles titles during his time on the ATP Tour. His tournament victory at the 2003 U.S. Open — one of six events he won that season — made him the unquestioned heir to the thrones of Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi. Roddick would never win another Grand Slam title but would win at least one event each season from 2001-2012 and would consistently rank among the most popular players in a sport that can be devoid of breakout personalities.
19. Lleyton Hewitt
Career Winnings: $20.8 million
In the early part of this millennium, Australia’s Lleyton Hewitt was at the top of the men’s tennis world. He was the year-end No. 1 player in the world in 2001 and 2002 and won 15 ATP Tour events in the three seasons from 2000-2002 alone. His career wins total in singles play stands at 30 events, including crowns at the U.S. Open and Wimbledon. Hewitt is widely regarded as one of the best players to ever come from Australia, but the closest he ever came to winning his home Grand Slam event was a finals appearance at the 2005 Australian Open.
18. Ivan Lendl
Career Winnings: $21.2 million
Hall of Famer Ivan Lendl was one of the most dominant players in men’s tennis in the 1980s and the fact that he still ranks among the 20 highest earners in ATP Tour history is a testament to his lasting greatness. The native of the former Czechoslovakia would win eight Grand Slam singles titles from 1984-1990, including three each at the French Open and U.S. Open. The only Grand Slam that eluded him was Wimbledon, where he played in the final in both 1986 and 1987. Lendl made bank by winning an incredible 94 singles titles in his career, and he had four different seasons where he won at least 10 events.
17. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
Career Winnings: $22.2 million
Despite having never won a Grand Slam title in singles or doubles and never having been ranked higher than No. 5 in the world, France’s Jo-Wilfried Tsonga has amassed a career bankroll that would make any player jealous. The veteran was the ATP Tour’s Newcomer of the Year in 2007 and would win an impressive nine singles titles from 2008-2012. As of June 2021, Tsonga’s win tally stands at 18 singles events with team victories at the Davis Cup and Hopman Cup and a silver medal in doubles at the 2012 Olympics.
16. Yevgeny Kafelnikov
Career Winnings: $23.8 million
For even the greatest tennis players, an Olympic gold medal can prove elusive but Yevgeny Kafelnikov earned his in singles play at the 2000 games. The Russian former world No. 1 was also a two-time Grand Slam singles champion, taking home titles at the Australian Open and French Open in the late 1990s. Kafelnikov was also a brilliant doubles player, winning four Grand Slam titles in that style, including three on the clay at Roland-Garros. In total, he won 26 singles titles on the ATP Tour from 1994-2002.
15. Kei Nishikori
Career Winnings: $24.4 million
When Kei Nishikori knocked off Rafael Nadal at the 2016 Olympics, he broke a nearly 100-year medal drought for Japanese tennis players at the games. It was arguably the biggest victory of his career to date, as he’s yet to take home a Grand Slam crown despite an appearance at the U.S. Open finals in 2014. He’s won 12 ATP Tour singles events to date, including four in 2014, and can only climb higher on this list in the years to come.
14. Alexander Zverev
Career Winnings: $24.46 million
If there’s any player on this list who has a great chance to climb into the top five, it might be Alexander Zverev. The German star is only 24 years old and has already joined the elites of the sport in terms of on-court earnings. Since turning pro in 2013, he’s already won 15 singles events, including four crowns at prestigious ATP Tour Masters 1000 tournaments. Zverev has yet to win a Grand Slam title but reached the semifinals at the Australian Open and the finals at the U.S. Open in 2020.
13. Boris Becker
Career Winnings: $25 million
Just ahead of the young Alexander Zverev — for now — is fellow German tennis hero Boris Becker. A year after turning pro in 1984, the reckless redhead became an international star by winning Wimbledon at the age of 17, becoming the youngest man to win a Grand Slam singles tournament in history at that time. He’d prove to be much more than an overnight sensation, however, when he won five more Grand Slam singles crowns during his Hall-of-Fame career, failing only to secure the French Open. Becker won 49 singles titles and another 15 in doubles, plus he captured the gold medal in men’s doubles at the 1992 Olympics.
12. Juan Martín del Potro
Career Winnings: $25.8 million
South American tennis stars don’t come much wealthier than Argentina’s Juan Martín del Potro, who is one of 13 men in history to collect at least $25 million in ATP Tour winnings. He’s won just a single Grand Slam tournament since turning pro in 2005 but he did in unforgettable fashion by knocking off Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer in back-to-back matches to claim the 2009 U.S. Open crown.
Del Potro is a three-time finalist at other Grand Slam events and fell in four sets to Andy Murray in the final match of the 2016 men’s singles tournament at the Olympics, earning himself a silver medal to go with the bronze he’d earned in 2012. Not even Nadal or Federer have two Olympic medals in singles play in their trophy cases.
11. Marin ÄiliÄ
Career Winnings: $28.5 million
Former world No. 3 Marin ÄiliÄ is in prime position to climb in the ATP Tour’s all-time top 10 money winners based on his placement and age. The 32-year-old Croatian counts 18 singles titles to his name, including the 2014 U.S. Open crown, where he knocked off Kei Nishikori in straight sets. ÄiliÄ has been a finalist at the Australian Open and Wimbledon since then but has yet to capture another Grand Slam trophy to this point.
10. Dominic Thiem
Career Winnings: $28.7 million
Rising star Dominic Thiem may still rank behind Thomas Muster as the best men’s tennis player to hail from Austria but he’s got him in terms of career winnings. The former world No. 3 has 17 ATP Tour singles titles to his name and has yet to turn 30, with his biggest victory to date coming at the 2020 U.S. Open, where he came back from two sets down against the aforementioned Alexander Zverev in an absolute classic final match. He’s made the finals at three other Grand Slam singles events so far and reached the final match at the ATP Tour Finals in 2019 and 2020.
9. Tomáš Berdych
Career Winnings: $29.4 million
The legacy of Tomáš Berdych is complicated in that it includes more than 600 singles match victories on the ATP Tour and a mountain of prize money but not much hardware from the sport’s biggest stages. The Czech star never won a Grand Slam event in singles or doubles before retiring in 2019, with a finals appearance at Wimbledon in 2010 being the closest he ever got. His 13 career singles event crowns also pale in comparison to others in the top 10 but he’s one of very few men to have knocked off Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal at least three times each, with six victories alone coming against Federer.
8. Andre Agassi
Career Winnings: $31.1 million
American tennis icon Andre Agassi’s career was a roller coaster but he handled his business on the court better than almost anyone else in the 1990s. The Nevada native won virtually every prize associated with elite tennis, including all four Grand Slams, the ATP Tour Finals, the Davis Cup and an Olympic gold medal. He won eight total Grand Slam singles titles from 1992-2003 — four of which came at the Australian Open — and amassed 60 singles championships overall in a Hall-of-Fame career.
7. David Ferrer
Career Winnings: $31.4 million
With more than 700 singles match victories on the ATP Tour before his retirement in 2019, it’s little wonder why David Ferrer ranks among the wealthiest winners ever in the sport. The Spaniard never captured a Grand Slam title and never ranked higher than No. 3 in the world but some rank him as the best to never hoist one of the four major trophies. Two reasons that support that idea? No player has ever won more matches or earned more prize money without winning a Grand Slam.
6. Stan Wawrinka
Career Winnings: $34.7 million
It had to be tough to come from Switzerland and debut just a few years after Roger Federer but Stan Wawrinka has carved out one rich legacy of his own. He didn’t truly break out as a star player until his 14th year on tour, but would win the Australian Open, French Open and U.S. Open, as well as an ATP Tour Masters 1000 event, between 2014 and 2016. Those three magical seasons saw Wawrinka capture 11 of his 16 career singles titles and peak at No. 3 in the global rankings. A gold medal in doubles at the 2008 Olympics, where he partnered with Federer, gives him just another accolade to show the Hall of Fame voting committee.
5. Pete Sampras
Career Winnings: $43.2 million
Here’s the point in the list where the earnings and the legacies start to get truly incredible. The hard-serving native of Washington, D.C., holds the distinction as America’s best men’s tennis product and, at the time of his retirement in 2003, was widely considered the best in world history. His 14 career Grand Slam championships outpace the number of normal events others on this list have won and include a remarkable seven titles at Wimbledon.
Sampras’ 64 ATP Tour singles titles include 10 from the legendary 1994 season that saw him win two of the four Grand Slams, three ATP Masters 1000 events and the year-end ATP Tour Finals.
4. Andy Murray
Career Winnings: $61.8 million
While his three Grand Slam titles may not stack up to the other players in the top five of the ATP Tour’s career winnings leaders, Andy Murray has had a career that any tennis player would kill for. The former world No. 1 has won 46 career singles events on the ATP Tour and had a streak from 2006-2017 that saw him win at least one tournament per season. In 2016, he won his second Wimbledon crown, further cementing his iconic status in his native United Kingdom. That year, he also added a second consecutive gold medal in singles play at the Olympics, giving him his third medal overall.
3. Rafael Nadal
Career Winnings: $124.4 million
There are only three men who’ve made at least $100 million in winnings on the ATP Tour and it’s unlikely anyone will be joining them anytime soon. First up is Spanish legend Rafael Nadal, whose skill on clay courts is unmatched in the history of the sport. His record-tying 20 Grand Slam singles titles — which are spread across all four tournaments — include 13 at the French Open, which are the most by any men’s player at a single major tournament. He’s got more than 1,000 singles match victories and 88 event titles under his belt so far, easily putting Nadal in the conversation of the best to ever pick up a racket.
2. Roger Federer
Career Winnings: $129.9 million
The rivalry between Rafael Nadal and Swiss tennis god Roger Federer is the stuff of tennis legend and continues into the ATP Tour’s all-time money leaders board. While Federer has the edge by a few million as of 2021, he’s still playing on the brink of his 40s and has continued to be a top-ranked player in the past few years.
Overall, he’s one of only two men to have won at least 100 singles tournaments and is tied with Nadal atop the career Grand Slam singles titles record book with 20 so far. His dominance on hard courts and grass courts is well documented and his eight career Wimbledon singles crowns are the most in men’s tennis history.
1. Novak Djokovic
Career Winnings: $148 million
While Federer and Nadal tend to dominate the conversations about the GOAT in men’s tennis history, Serbia’s Novak Djokovic has easily beat them both in winnings. In March 2021, Djokovic surpassed Federer as the all-time leader in total weeks atop the world rankings, further cementing his status atop this list. He’s also the only player in history to win all four Grand Slam tournaments, all nine ATP Masters 1000 events and the ATP Tour Finals. In total, Djokovic has captured 83 singles titles and is showing no signs of slowing down, with 11 of those crowns coming since 2019 alone.
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