Vasant A. Sukhatme

Testing Rosen's Sequential Elimination Tournament Model Incentives and Player Performance in Professional Tennis

The authors use an extensive and unique data set from the mens professional tennis circuit to test Rosens sequential elimination style tournament model. Specifically, they investigate what effect an increase in prize money differentials between rounds has on the stronger players probability of winning the match. This involves estimating a standard probit model utilizing data from 2,632 individual matches over 68 tournaments during the 2001 mens professional tennis circuit. The results of the study support predictions associated with Rosens match play tournament model. Increases in prize money differentials have a positive, statistically significant effect on the stronger players probability of winning the match.

Tournament incentives and match outcomes in women's professional tennis

Our research examines the effect of prize money differentials in womens professional tennis tournaments on the probability that the favoured player wins the match. This study adds to the existing literature on tournament theory through its focus on Rosens (1986) elimination-style, match play tournament model. We estimate a standard probit model using a unique data set containing detailed information on prize money, player-specific characteristics, and match play outcomes for all tournaments played during the 2004 tour sponsored by the Womens Tennis Association (WTA). Our results support predictions by Rosens tournament model. Larger prize money differentials have a positive, statistically significant effect on the favoured players probability of winning the match. In addition, the number of stages remaining has a significant, negative effect on winning, consistent with tournament theory predictions associated with the number of contestants in a tournament.

Gender differences in responses to incentives in sports: some new results from golf

Women’s sports have received much less attention from economists than from other social scientists. This Handbook fills that gap with a comprehensive economic analysis of women’s sports. It also analyzes how the behavior and treatment of female athletes reflect broad economic forces.