LONDON (AFP) – The winners of this year's Wimbledon singles' titles will net a staggering one million pounds (1.54 million dollars) in prize money after the All-England Club announced a significant rise in the rewards on offer at the grass-court grand slam on Tuesday.

The credit-crunch defying figures mean reigning men's champion Roger Federer and women's holder Serena Williams will benefit from an increase of 150,000 pounds (231,145 dollars) on the winning purses in 2009 if they retain their crowns in south-west London.
The total prize money for the event has been increased by 1.175 million pounds (1.81 million dollars) to 13.725 million pounds (21.147 million dollars).
All England Club chairman Tim Phillips insisted the landmark million pound prize reflected the tournament's desire to provide a fitting reward for the world's best players.
The purse for the champions at Wimbledon has now doubled in the last 10 years and is just below the 1.6 million dollars awarded to the winners of the 2009 US Open.