KUALA LUMPUR: The top performers on the Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour will be laughing all the way to the bank after the announcement of a significant increase in prize money for the season-ending event over the next four years.
To kick it off, the prize purse for this year's edition, scheduled to be held in Hangzhou, China from Dec 13-17, has been increased to US$2.5 million (RM11.66 million), a whopping 20% up from the initial offer of US$2 million.
In a statement today, BWF stated that this amount will be retained for 2024, before receiving another round of boosts in 2025 and 2026, with the prize funds increasing to US$3 million and US$3.5 million, respectively.
The revised prize fund will see the singles champions walk away with a staggering US$200,000 (RM933,000) jackpot, while the winners in doubles events are set to share US$210,000 (RM980,000).
The prize money boost is also set to intensify the race to make the top eight cut for the Finals.
By just making it to the finals, qualifiers in the singles events are assured of US$15,000 (RM70,000), while doubles are guaranteed US$17,500 (RM81,700).
BWF Secretary General Thomas Lund said the prize money injection is a significant boost for the badminton community.
"We are delighted to confirm US$11.5 million over the next four years for what is already our signature finale to the HSBC BWF World Tour," Lund said.
"This represents a greater overall commitment to our players and contributes to an enhanced world-class sports product that we seek.
"We are excited by the prospect of making Hangzhou the new home of the season-ending finals and can't wait to see the world's top stars fight it out for ultimate glory."
Lund added that the allocation of World Ranking points for the BWF World Tour Finals, BWF World Championships, and Olympic Games had also increased.