Monte Carlo Masters Entry List: Why have 6 American players chosen to skip event?

Oli Dickson Jefford 11 Mar 2026 6:00 PM

Pictured L-R: Ben Shelton, Learner Tien, and Tommy Paul.

US tennis players Ben Shelton, Learner Tien, and Tommy Paul.

The Monte Carlo Masters is one of the highlights of any ATP Tour season, and it will not be too long until several of the biggest names in men’s tennis do battle on the French Riviera.

The event traditionally attracts an incredibly notable line-up, though it is evident that a handful of American players have chosen to skip the event this year, with action taking place from April 5-12.

Here, we look at who those players are, and why they may have made this decision.

Who will — and won’t — be in action?

The Monte Carlo Masters is one of the most historic events in tennis, and with 1,000 ranking points at stake, the event will have a strong field in 2026.

Forty-three of the current world’s top 50 are entered into the tournament, led by world No 1 and reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz.

World No 2 Jannik Sinner, world No 3 Novak Djokovic, and world No 4 Alexander Zverev follow on behind Alcaraz, with nine of the world’s top 10 provisionally entered into the event.

However, seven top-50 players are missing — somewhat of an unusual occurrence for an event of such calibre.

One of those missing is world No 18 Holger Rune, who is unsurprisingly absent as he continues his recovery from an Achilles injury sustained last October.

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However, the other six players who have not entered the event are all American, with the highest-ranked player not entered being Ben Shelton, the current world No 8.

Alongside Shelton, world No 24 Tommy Paul, world No 27 Learner Tien, world No 30 Brandon Nakashima, world No 41 Jenson Brooksby, and world No 44 Alex Michelsen are also all absent.

Why are so many Americans not entered?

The likely reasons as to why six high-profile US players have not entered are likely all connected, and it revolves around action taking place the week before the Monte Carlo Masters.

Sandwiched in between the hard-court Miami Open — also a Masters 1000 event — and the Monte Carlo Masters is the US Men’s Clay Court Championships in Houston.

The ATP 250 event is the only men’s tour-level clay event held in the US, and traditionally attracts a strong home field.

The six players in question — Shelton, Paul, Tien, Nakashima, Brooksby, and Michelsen — are all entered into Houston, with Brooksby (2025) and Shelton (2024) the two most recent champions at the event.

The final in Houston will take place on Sunday, April 5, which is the same day that main-draw action will begin in Monte Carlo.

Any players competing in the Houston final face an extremely tight turnaround to compete in Monte Carlo, especially considering that only the top eight seeds at the Masters event will receive a round-one bye.

With Houston and Monaco approximately 5,400 miles or 8,700 kilometres away from each other, it comes as no surprise to see that some players are not willing to embark on that journey.

And, with action being the last ATP-level event on US soil until late July, it also makes sense that a group of American players want to maximise their time on home turf before a long stretch in Europe.

This also connects to the fact that the Monte Carlo Masters is currently the only Masters 1000 event that is non-mandatory.

Players who choose not to enter or withdraw from the event do not risk losing any bonus point money, while they can also earn any missed ranking points at another ATP event across the season.

With no risk of penalty for Shelton, Paul, Tien, Nakashima, Brooksby, or Michelsen, it is more than understandable as to why they have made this call.

Current Monte Carlo Masters entry list (as of March 11, 2026)

Carlos Alcaraz
Jannik Sinner
Novak Djokovic
Alexander Zverev
Lorenzo Musetti
Alex de Minaur
Taylor Fritz
Felix Auger-Aliassime
Alexander Bublik
Daniil Medvedev
Jakub Mensik
Casper Ruud
Jack Draper
Flavio Cobolli
Karen Khachanov
Andrey Rublev
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina
Francisco Cerundolo
Luciano Darderi
Frances Tiafoe
Jiri Lehecka
Tallon Griekspoor
Valentin Vacherot
Arthur Rinderknech
Cameron Norrie
Tomas Martin Etcheverry
Corentin Moutet
Ugo Humbert
Joao Fonseca
Jaume Munar
Sebastian Korda
Gabriel Diallo
Denis Shapovalov
Alejandro Tabilo
Grigor Dimitrov
Stefanos Tsitsipas
Alexei Popyrin
Fabian Marozsan
Zizou Bergs
Hubert Hurkacz
Adrian Mannarino
Nuno Borges
Tomas Machac
Marin Cilic