Gauzy revealed that he was barely above even money from WTT last year when subtracting expenses and that he would've been in the minus without qualifying for Champions events. The majority of even top 100 players are net payers to play on the tour. You need it for world rank and publicitiy to secure sponsorships and sign for clubs to make a living.
Bollwerk makes a very valid point. The majority of the top 200 table tennis players are dedicated professionals and their sole source of income is from table tennis. And most of them actually LOSE money playing in WTT events once you consider the direct expenses of participating in these events. These expenses include travel, accommodations, etc. ( I am not even counting the cost of bringing a coach, etc). Some of the top players get these expenses paid for by their sponsors, national associations etc. Most players don't. At the very top level of events, the players get their hotel expenses paid for by the event organizers. But, I believe that at most events. (Star Contender, Contender and Feeder events), the players pay for these expenses and almost always lose money.
Here is a theoretical example. A player ranked at about number 80-100 in the world decided to play in the Almaty Contender event and did quite well and made it to the quarter finals in a singles event. Prize money is $1050 USD. Five nights in the hotel and meals (even if it's just at $120 per night) and flights at about $1000 means that at this "success" of a tournament cost him/her over $500. And this is a pretty good case scenario for this player. At the Feeder level, it's even uglier !!
It is "interesting" that WTT chose to only include in their article the top 35 earners. It would be much more interesting to get that data on all of the participants (or at least the top 200 earners). I am sure that the picture would not be pretty. So much for transparency.
It's a real shame and a pity, since table tennis is a wonderful sport. Just not financially, except for a very few.
It reminds me of an old joke: How do most players make a small fortune playing WTT events? Answer: Start with a large fortune !!
A side question: Do the Chinese players get to keep the prize money for themselves or does a portion or all of it go to the Chinese association?
worldtabletennis.com
