Serena fined $2K for berating chair umpire

Serena Williams was fined $2,000 for her outburst directed at the chair umpire during her loss to Samantha Stosur in the U.S. Open final, the USTA announced on Monday. Williams was already under probation for verbally abusing a linesperson at the 2009 U.S. Open. If the USTA had deemed her conduct in Sunday's match "a major offense," she would have faced further discipline.

Here is the USTA's statement:

"US Open Tournament Referee Brian Earley has fined Serena Williams $2,000 following the code violation issued for verbal abuse during the women’s singles final. This fine is consistent with similar offenses at Grand Slam events. As with all fines at the US Open, the monies levied are provided to the Grand Slam Development Fund which develops tennis programs around the world.

"After independently reviewing the incident which served as the basis for the code violation, and taking into account the level of fine imposed by the US Open referee, the Grand Slam Committee Director has determined that Ms. Williams’ conduct, while verbally abusive, does not rise to the level of a major offense under the Grand Slam Code of Conduct."