Inside the world of tennis earnings: Sam Querrey and Steve Johnson unveil the secrets of players' paychecks

Ever wondered how the likes of Carlos Alcaraz of Novak Djokovic get their hands on their millions after their successes on the tennis court? Wonder no more thanks to former American ATP Tour winners Sam Querrey and Steve Johnson.

Along with fellow ex-tennis pros John Isner and Jack Sock, Querrey and Johnson appear on the Nothing Major podcast, in which they take a not-too-serious, behind-the-scenes look at the sport.

In the show’s most recent episode, Querrey, who reached No. 11 in the world, and Johnson, who got to No. 21, shed light on how tennis stars receive their hand-earned cash.

This is how their conversation went.

How tennis players get paid

Querrey: “I would say you usually get paid 10 days after a tournament ends. And most of the time, you pay taxes in that country. So if the Australian Open, you go there, you make 100 grand, and if the Australian tax is 25 per cent, you get to take home 75 grand, and the 75 grand will be wired to your bank account about 10 days later.

“You check as a player. Especially if you get a big win. You pop a quarterfinal of a Slam, or a tournament win. You go on the bank account a week later…you’re like ‘I got a hit. I’m gonna go buy something'. It’s a good feeling."

Johnson: “Yeh, you just wait, you’re like ‘just refresh’, like every Thursday or Friday in the next week, you’re like ‘refresh’. Come on…give me some good news. Give me some good news. When you make a deep run in one of these tournaments, it’s exciting.

Querrey: “You think Rafa (Nadal), or Novak (Djokovic), or Serena (Williams), or Roger (Federer) ever hit the refresh after winning a Slam? Be like ‘when’s that three million gonna hit'?

Johnson: “The first one, the first one for sure. I’m definitely hitting that refresh. You win a Slam, you wanna see a couple of commas floating in that bank account”.

Querrey won 10 professional career titles and earned just over $13.5 million in prize money, while Johnson’s four tournament victories helped him rack up a little more than $8 million. That’s a lot of refreshing, if not quite as much as Alcaraz or Djokovic.

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