At an age when most of her peers are turning their tassels and heading into their first-time jobs, tennis superstar Coco Gauff is on a tear at the U.S. Open. The 22-year-old is heading into the tournament’s quarterfinal match tonight\u2014and is one step closer to reclaiming the title she won in 2023.<\/p>\n
Gauff has put together a whirlwind performance at the 2026 U.S. Open. The Florida native most recently faced off against fellow American Iva Jovic Monday night, taking home a 6-1, 6-4 win and becoming one of the tournament’s final eight competitors. Her string of four straight singles victories at the tournament was preceded by a run to the Wimbledon semifinals and a Cincinnati title just weeks before the 2026 U.S. Open. Gauff hasn’t lost a single set in New York City competition so far\u2014and the fourth-seeded player credited a change in mindset to her triumphs.<\/p>\n
“The biggest difference in the way I’ve been playing is just trying to play with no regrets,” Gauff said after<\/a> her Monday win against Jovic. “I think I have a lot more fun and success playing like this.”<\/p>\n The Gen Z athlete is one of six U.S. players to advance to this stage of the U.S. Open\u2014the greatest number of Americans to have made the quarterfinals since 2002\u2014according to the United States Tennis Association. And as the last American woman to win the singles title back in 2023, Gauff is now competing to reclaim the title in Arthur Ashe Stadium. Tonight, she will hit the courts against 19-year-old Russian Mirra Andreeva, the fifth-seed rising star and reigning French Open champion. While Gauff has yet to drop the ball and lose a set, she’s stuck true to the mindset of letting mistakes go and trusting her game.<\/p>\n “I think I’m doing a good job of when I maybe miss opportunities or lose some games, just keeping it in the past and focusing on the present,” Gauff said<\/a>. “I don’t view it as opportunities lost sometimes. I try to just view it as what to do better and just trusting that I’ll be in the same position again.”<\/p>\n Gauff earns $35.5 million\u2014and will take home at least $780K at the U.S. Open\u00a0<\/p>\n Gauff has become one of tennis’s most recognizable names through her eight-year professional run.<\/p>\n The world tuned into her talent when she was only 15 years old\u2014one year into her professional career\u2014as Gauff made history as the youngest to qualify for Wimbledon’s main draw. And in the years since, the professional athlete hasn’t quit breaking records and taking names. In 2023, she became the youngest American to win the U.S. Open singles title since Serena Williams in 1999; she’d go on to claim the 2025 French Open singles title, her second Grand Slam singles victory. Gauff has also been crowned world number one in doubles and world number two in singles, according to the Women’s Tennis Association. Gauff was also the U.S. flag bearer for the Paris 2024 Olympics\u2014making her the youngest American flag bearer in U.S. Olympic history.<\/p>\n On and off the court, Gauff is collecting big checks for her partnerships and accomplishments. Gauff was crowned the highest-paid female athlete in the world in both 2025 and 2024, according to Forbes. And this year, she was the fifth highest-paid<\/a> of anyone in sports, earning a whopping $35.5 million\u2014$7.5 million on the field and $28 million off the tennis green. Aside from prize money from two singles titles in 2025, including the French Open, she made bank through endorsements and brand deals. Her sponsorships include Mercedes-Benz<\/a>, Chase Bank, Rolex, and New Balance; and in 2025, Gauff has also launched her own management firm, Coco Gauff Enterprises, with talent agency WME to “take greater ownership of my career.”<\/p>\n “As I’ve gotten older, I don’t want to just be a face of brands, but also be the brand,” Gauff told<\/a> Forbes last year. “My dad has always said that this was his plan for me when I was younger, and it was up to me if I wanted to hop on board or not. And when I became 18, I knew that this is something that I wanted to work for.”<\/p>\n Tonight, Gauff will walk away from the quarterfinal match hundreds of thousands of dollars richer\u2014win or lose. If her 19-year-old opponent walks away victorious, then the American player will take home the round’s prize money of $780,000. And if Gauff continues her four-win streak this tournament, then the honeypot only grows larger: $1,450,000 for semifinalists, $2,800,000 for the runner-up, and $5,500,000 for the winner of the women’s singles competition.\u00a0<\/p>\n