Rising Australian star Maya Joint has made the tough decision to forfeit most of her $210,000 in prize money claimed at the US Open earlier this month because of a controversial rule.
The 18-year-old dropped one set during qualifying at Flushing Meadows to appear in her first-ever Grand Slam main draw, defeating veteran Laura Siegemund in the first round before crashing out to former finalist Madison Keys on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
However, Joint is enrolled at the University of Texas to study for a psychology degree, but the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) prohibit college athletes from collecting prize money beyond "actual and necessary" expenses for any professional event.
The American-born talent switched allegiance to Australia due to her father's nationality and was forced to miss the first week of psychology class to compete at the US Open.
Putting her education first, Joint has opted to forfeit the majority of her winnings in favour of completing her college degree.
"The money is gone... it's immensely disappointing," her attorney Jason Miller told The Washington Post.
Joint and Miller have asked the United States Tennis Association (USTA) for an extension to help appeal the decision, which was rejected.
"While we understand and are empathetic to Ms Maya's situation, it would be unfair and inequitable to change our practice or grant exceptions to these rules in the middle of a tournament after others have already made their decisions and submitted their paperwork based on the long-standing practice," a USTA spokesman said.
Joint can claim a portion of the prize money to cover expenses including accommodation, coaching fees and other costs for competing in New York.
The teenager achieved a career-high ranking of No.111 after the final Grand Slam of the year concluded, now up to No.110 in the live WTA rankings.
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