He may have lost in the first round of Wimbledon but Billy Harris is very much a winner financially.

It has been quite the meteoric rise for the Manxman who has tasted success at a relatively late stage for a tennis player, aged 29.

Harris, who was born in Nottingham but grew up in the Isle of Man, has spent a gruelling nine years travelling the circuit on the ITF World Tennis Tour.

During his entire decade-long professional career, Harris had earnt £231,000 in prize money.

But since the grass court season began he has earnt more than half that amount in just a few weeks.

He bagged a cool £50,000 for reaching the quarter finals of the Queen’s Club Championships before earning nearly £33,000 for reaching the semi-final of LTA’s Rothesay International Eastbourne tournament.

And, despite losing in the first round of Wimbledon to world No 63 Jaume Munar 6-4 6-4 3-6 6-3 in a gutsy performance, Harris still earned an impressive £60,000 for his first ever appearance at the All England Championships.

In total, over the last few weeks, around £144,000 has dropped into his bank account.

It has not been such a glamorous tennis career for Harris who even spent time living in a van as he travelled from tournament to tournament.

He told the BBC last year: ‘I was travelling around in my transit van for three and a half years, with a bed in the back, cooking on the roadside and parking up in McDonald's car parks.’

Harris has five ITF singles titles, winning four in 2021 and one in 2022, and it is only now he has found himself thrust into the spotlight with his fine form in this season’s grass court season.

After his Wimbledon loss, Harris said: ‘It was a good atmosphere, I had plenty of family and friends. The crowd were a great support all the way through the match.

‘It was nice to walk out there for my first match in the main draw. A great feeling at the start and obviously when you lose it’s not quite the same. I went out there feeling good about my game but I was beaten by the better guy on the day.

‘My ranking is on the rise and although I lost, my game is in a good place and I feel like I am improving.’

Harris will also play the men’s doubles at Wimbledon alongside fellow Brit Liam Broady which will see him earn at least a further £15,000.

Currently ranked 162 in the world, Harris is expected to break into the top 150 after his fine run of form.