WTA Tour 1998 - About The WTA Tour


The 1998 WTA Tour, sponsored by Corel, comprises 53 tournaments, together with two affiliated ITF events, the Federation Cup and Hopman Cup. Each Corel WTA tournament is graded into tiers. There are four such tiers, Tier I events being the most prestigious (and usually boasting the highest quality field, although that doesn't always follow), Tier IV the lowest. For each tier the WTA Tour specifies a minimum level of prize-money to be awarded, although there are a number of exceptions. The table below lists the minimum prize-money available per grade of tournament:

The 1998 WTA Tour, sponsored by Corel, comprises 53 tournaments, together with two affiliated ITF events, the Federation Cup and Hopman Cup. Each Corel WTA tournament is graded into tiers. There are four such tiers, Tier I events being the most prestigious (and usually boasting the highest quality field, although that doesn't always follow), Tier IV the lowest. For each tier the WTA Tour specifies a minimum level of prize-money to be awarded, although there are a number of exceptions. The table below lists the minimum prize-money available per grade of tournament:

Tournament Type	Prize-money
Grand Slam	Varies
Tier I	$926,250
Tier II	$450,000
Tier III	$164,250
Tier IV	$107,500


In addition to the 53 Corel WTA Tour events are the four Grand Slam tournaments, the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open. The Corel WTA Tour is not responsible for the operation of any of the Grand Slams. Also played throughout the year are ITF Futures events. Competitors within ITF Futures events are usually younger players who do not possess a sufficiently high ranking to merit direct entry into a Corel WTA Tour event (either the main draw or qualifying event).
Players on the tour are ranked according to their performance in each of the events they enter. As a player progresses through a tournament, a fixed number of ranking points are awarded. The number of points awarded varies depending on the tier of the tournament - Grand Slam tournaments award the greatest number of points, followed by Tier I events, then Tier II, etc. Additional bonus points are available for wins against ranked players - the higher the rank of the defeated opponent, the more bonus points awarded. The total sum of bonus points accumulated during a good tournament run can often equal the amount of points given for winning the event. Note also that a small number of ranking points are awarded to players who compete in ITF Futures events. The table below outlines the ranking system for main draw events (note that for ranking purposes The Lipton tournament is considered somewhere between Grand Slam and Tier I status):

In addition to the 53 Corel WTA Tour events are the four Grand Slam tournaments, the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open. The Corel WTA Tour is not responsible for the operation of any of the Grand Slams. Also played throughout the year are ITF Futures events. Competitors within ITF Futures events are usually younger players who do not possess a sufficiently high ranking to merit direct entry into a Corel WTA Tour event (either the main draw or qualifying event).

Players on the tour are ranked according to their performance in each of the events they enter. As a player progresses through a tournament, a fixed number of ranking points are awarded. The number of points awarded varies depending on the tier of the tournament - Grand Slam tournaments award the greatest number of points, followed by Tier I events, then Tier II, etc. Additional bonus points are available for wins against ranked players - the higher the rank of the defeated opponent, the more bonus points awarded. The total sum of bonus points accumulated during a good tournament run can often equal the amount of points given for winning the event. Note also that a small number of ranking points are awarded to players who compete in ITF Futures events. The table below outlines the ranking system for main draw events (note that for ranking purposes The Lipton tournament is considered somewhere between Grand Slam and Tier I status):

Tournament Type	Draw	Winner	Finalist	SF	QF	Rof16	Rof32	Rof64	Rof128
Grand Slam	128	520	364	234	130	72	44	26	2
WTA Championships	16	390	273	175	97	-	-	-	-
The Lipton	96	260	182	117	65	36	22	13	1
Tier I	64	260	182	117	65	36	22	1	-
Tier I	32	260	182	117	65	36	1	-	-
Tier II	64	210	147	95	53	27	14	1	-
Tier II	32	210	147	95	53	27	1	-	-
Tier III	64	160	112	72	40	21	11	1	-
Tier III	32	160	112	72	40	21	1	-	-
Tier IV	64	100	70	45	25	13	7	1	-
Tier IV	32	100	70	45	25	13	1	-	-


Most Corel WTA Tour tournaments also hold a qualifying event in addition to the main draw. Competitors whose ranking is insufficient to merit direct entry into the main draw compete in the qualifying event. As such ranking points are awarded to players as they progress through the qualifying event. Note that for those players who qualify for the main draw of an event, the ranking points they have been awarded for the qualifying tournament are added to any points they are awarded in the main event. The table below details the qualifying event ranking system:

Most Corel WTA Tour tournaments also hold a qualifying event in addition to the main draw. Competitors whose ranking is insufficient to merit direct entry into the main draw compete in the qualifying event. As such ranking points are awarded to players as they progress through the qualifying event. Note that for those players who qualify for the main draw of an event, the ranking points they have been awarded for the qualifying tournament are added to any points they are awarded in the main event. The table below details the qualifying event ranking system:

Tournament Type	Draw	Qualifier	Round 3	Round 2	Round 1
Grand Slam	128	16.5	12	6	2
Tier I	64	11	6	3	1
Tier I	64	6	-	3	1
Tier I	128	11	6	3	1
Tier II	32	9	5	3	1
Tier II	64	5	-	3	1
Tier III	32	7	3	2	1
Tier III	64	4	-	2	1
Tier IV	32	4.5	3	2	1
Tier IV	64	2.45	-	1.5	1


Bonus ranking points are awarded based on the following criteria:

Loser's Rank	Bonus Points	Grand Slam Bonus Points
1	75	112.5
2	68	102
3-5	60	90
6-10	45	67.5
11-15	30	45
16-30	20	30
31-50	10	15
51-75	6	9
76-100	4	6
101-150	3	4.5
151-200	1.5	2.3
201-300	1	1.5
301-500	0.5	0.8


Certain Tier II and Tier III tournaments enjoy 'Special Status'. These events are those held the week before a Grand Slam tournament. In effect the special status safeguards the ranking of any player who enters the tournament. The aim behind the special status ruling is to encourage players to enter those tournaments scheduled immediately prior to a Grand Slam event.
A player's ranking is determined by her total Round and Bonus Points. There is no divisor or average used under the ranking system. (The previous system used a minimum divisor of 14 and a player's ranking was determined by her average). Each week, points from the same calendar week of the previous year drop off. Players are not ranked until they have played three tournaments in the 52-week period. The same Round Points will be used for both the Singles and Doubles rankings. However in 1998, there will continue to be separate Quality Point tables for Singles and Doubles.
At the end of the season, in November, the WTA Tour Championships are held as a finale to the season. The draw consists of those 16 players who have accumulated the most points from tournament play during the year. The new ranking system will be used to determine Acceptances and Seedings as well as eligibility into the Chase Championships.