Mon Sep 22 02:50:00 UTC 2025: **Headline: McEnroe Explains How Lack of Prize Money in 1960s Hampered Rod Laver’s Grand Slam Count**
**[City, State] –** Tennis legend John McEnroe recently discussed how the financial constraints of professional tennis in the 1960s significantly impacted the career of his idol, Rod Laver. Speaking on the ‘Served’ podcast, McEnroe highlighted that Laver, considered by many to be one of the greatest players of all time, was forced to turn professional to earn a living and support his family.
“Here is the problem, unlike now, where some guys can make a tremendous living, there was no money in tennis. He had a kid, so he had to find a way to make money,” said McEnroe.
This decision, while necessary, meant Laver was barred from competing in Grand Slam tournaments for five years.
“So he had to turn pro, and when you turned pro back in the ’60s, you weren’t allowed to play the Grand Slam events, so for five years, Rod Laver played zero Grand Slam events, even though he was the best player in the world.”
Laver’s career achievements include 11 Grand Slam titles and 8 Pro major titles during his career, a then-record tally. When tennis entered the ‘Open Era’ in 1968, Laver quickly re-established his dominance, winning the Grand Slam in 1969 at the age of 30 or 31. This made him one of only two men to achieve the Calendar Grand Slam – winning all four major tournaments in a single year – and the only man to do it twice.
McEnroe emphasized the stark contrast between the prize money of Laver’s era and today. “He continued to play because he still hadn’t really made any money. I’ll tell you, he made $100,000; he played like 35 tournaments [in 1970] to reach $100,000 in prize money. First round loser at the US Open gets $110,000,” said McEnroe.
Fellow tennis star Andy Roddick added that modern players owe a debt of gratitude to Laver for paving the way for today’s lucrative tournament purses.
The article also acknowledges the rarity of the Grand Slam achievement and recent near misses by players like Novak Djokovic. Since Djokovic came a match away from the Grand Slam in 2021, there have been four attempts at tennis’ most impossible achievement.
While players like Rafael Nadal (2022) and Djokovic (2023) have won the first two Grand Slams of the year, Italy’s Jannik Sinner has won the Australian Open in each of the last two years, but has failed to follow it up with a title in Paris. It remains to be seen if anyone will follow in the footsteps of Budge and Laver and complete the Grand Slam, but it will certainly be something to look out for in the future.
First Piper 