In our previous articles, we have covered the Super 1000 and Super 750 tournaments conducted in badminton. This article will provide you with a rundown on the Super 500 level.
So here is the format, player qualification, points, and prize money for the BWF World Tour Super 500 tournaments.
BWF World Tour Super 500 Level
The Super 500 comes under the BWF World Tour structure at Level 4. It’s down in the pecking order after the Finals, Super 1000, and Super 750 tournaments.
The tournaments under the Super 500 level provide an opportunity for participating shuttlers to earn significant ranking points and prize money.
How many tournaments are part of the Super 500 level?
When the BWF World Tour came into existence in 2018, there were five tournaments with Super 500 status. Now from 2023 onwards, the number of tournaments has shot up to nine.
The BWF upgraded the Australian Open from the Super 300 and the Canada Open from the Super 100 to the Super 500 level. The governing body also added two new events – the Arctic Open and the Japan Masters – in the Level 4 category.
Hong Kong Open, Indonesia Masters, Korea Open, Malaysia Masters, and Thailand Open are the initial Super 500 badminton tournaments.
How does the format of the Super 500 tournaments work?
The Super 500 tournaments also follow the knockout format used in the higher-level competitions. The top-seeded shuttlers face the lower-ranked players in the first round before the tournament proceeds to the second round.
These qualified shuttlers are put into four different sections to advance from preliminary rounds to the quarter-finals. The four quarter-final winners move into the semi-final, with the tournament ending with the final.
How many points and prize money do players earn?
For the 2023 and 2024 seasons, the Super 500 tournaments carried a prize pot of US$420,000. But in 2025, the total prize money will increase to US$475,000.
Speaking of ranking points, the winner of the Super 500 tournament rakes in 9,200 points, while the runner-up gets 7,800 points.
Here is the detailed breakdown of ranking points and prize money in the Super 500 tournaments
| Result | Winner | Runner-up | 3/4 | 5/8 | 9/16 | 17/32 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 9,200 | 7,800 | 6,420 | 5,040 | 3,600 | 2,220 |
| Prize (Singles) | $31,500 | $15,960 | $6,090 | $2,520 | $1,470 | – |
| Prize (Doubles) | $33,180 | $15,960 | $5,880 | $3,045 | $2,762.5 | – |
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