Yahoo Lifestyle Serena Williams Once Tried To Deposit $1 Million Of Tennis Winnings At A Drive-Thru ATM Because She Was So Unaccustomed To Large Sums Of Money
With 23 Grand Slam titles to her name, Serena Williams certainly knows a thing or two about prize money. However, on the latest episode of Hot Ones, the retired tennis legend told a funny story to prove that the payouts certainly weren’t always her top priority.
While eating their way through the lineup of spicy hot wings, host Sean Evans asked Serena to comment on rumors that she would “rarely” collect her prize money and once “unsuccessfully” tried to deposit a $1-million check at a drive-thru ATM.
For context, players in the ATP and WTA get prize money whenever they participate in tournaments. Obviously, the amount of money they receive depends on how far they get and what tournament they’re playing at. However, a player will pretty much always get a payout of some size, even if they lose in the first round.
“I never played for money,” she said after confirming that the stories were true. “I played ’cause I loved the sport… I don’t even know if I wanted to play to be the best; I wanted to win.”
Serena recalled that her tax advisor often had to remind her to collect her winnings throughout tours, particularly after losing.
“So my tax guy, he would be like, ‘You didn’t get your money?’ and I’d be like, ‘Oh, I didn’t get that one in Zurich,’ ‘Oh, I forget that one in Moscow,’ ... I was just playing to win,” she said. “And if I didn’t win, I wasn’t thinking.”
“I was just so angry that I wanted to find a way to get better and win the next time,” she continued.
Eventually, she received a check for $1 million of accumulated winnings. However, Serena wasn’t used to handling large sums of money then, so she had a little trouble cashing it in.
“I never really spent a lot of money, you know? I was so serious. I don’t know what happened to me,” she said. “I went through the drive-thru...and the guy was like, ‘Uh, I think you need to come inside for this,’ and I was like, ‘Oh, OK’...lessons to learn.”
Noted! You can watch Serena’s full appearance on Hot Ones here.
Serena Williams And Alexis Ohanian Have Welcomed Their Second Daughter, Adira River OhanianJen Abidor · Aug. 22, 2023
Serena Williams Is Officially Retiring From Tennis — Here's What She SaidRyan Schocket · Aug. 9, 2022
Serena Williams Says She's Fully "Prepared" For Retirement And "Always Had A Plan"Rachel Brodsky · Feb. 9, 2022
