Carlos Alcaraz loses $2.8 million in potential prize money bonus with one shocking decision ahead of Shanghai Masters

Carlos Alcaraz has earned a total prize money upwards of $15 million in 2025 alone, mainly due to his twin Grand Slam titles at the French Open and the US Open. However, with one shocking decision ahead of the Shanghai Masters, the World No. 1 is likely to lose a potential $2.8 million bonus money at the end of the year.

Alcaraz has been playing non-stop since the Cincinnati Open, which he won beating Jannik Sinner in the final. The Spaniard immediately flew to New York for the US Open mixed doubles, following which he won the singles title at the tournament, beating Sinner once more in the final.

The six-time Grand Slam champion, after a mini break, then went to the Laver Cup in San Francisco, following which he flew to Tokyo for the Japan Open, winning the title once again with a win over Taylor Fritz in the final. After these whirlwind days, Alcaraz and his team finally decided it was time to give him some rest, a decision that ultimately comes with a huge cost.

Taking to social media hours after the win over Fritz, Alcaraz revealed that he has decided to skip the Shanghai Masters -- an ATP 1000 event that is mandatory on the calendar.

"I'm very disappointed to announce that I won't be able to play the Rolex Shanghai Masters this year! Unfortunately, I've been struggling with some physical issues and, after discussing with my team, we believe the best decision is to rest and recover," Alcaraz wrote.

This, unfortunately, marks the third Masters 1000 tournament the 22-year-old is missing this season, following the Madrid Open and the Canadian Open. He missed both for valid reasons, the first with injury and the rest to prepare for the US Open after the end of the grass swing.

While the decision is sound, it does affect the bonus pool payments from the ATP for the Masters 1000 events. The men's tennis body has a $21 million bonus pool for the top 30 players who scored the most points at these events, with the top player taking home a massive $3.8 million. For the moment, that is Carlos Alcaraz -- who has won three this year, the Monte-Carlo Masters, the Italian Open and the Cincinnati Open.

However, according to the rule book, a player who skipped three Masters 1000 tournaments will have to forfeit 75% of their bonus. The penalty is lesser if the player had been on site and only had to withdraw with an injury sustained just before his matches, but that is not the case with Alcaraz. This means, as things stand at the moment, Alcaraz will lose potentially $2.85 million for his decision to skip mandatory ATP 1000 events.

There is one more Masters 1000 event this year -- the Paris Masters. If Carlos Alcaraz decides to skip that, he will have to forfeit the entire prize money from the ATP 1000 bonus pool. Right now, the second place is occupied by Jack Draper ($1.9 million bonus possible), followed by Lorenzo Musetti ($1.1 million bonus possible) and Casper Ruud ($955,000 bonus possible).

Unlike Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner has lost his entire prize money bonus

Kinoshita Group Japan Open - Day 6 - Source: Getty

Similar to Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner has also missed a series of Masters 1000 tournaments this season. But unlike Alcaraz, the World No. 2 is set to miss out on his entire bonus payment.

Due to his suspension from the tour over a positive doping test, Sinner had to miss the mandatory Indian Wells Open and the Miami Open, followed by the Madrid Open. Then, he also opted out of the Canadian Open, taking his tally up to four missed events. As stated above, that makes him ineligible for the bonus from ATP 1000 events this year.

Sinner is currently in action at the China Open, where he will take on Learner Tien in the final on Wednesday.