AIUI most tennis players like to leave town as soon as they lose. Many players, though, also enter doubles, so even if they lose in the first round of singles they may be around for a few more days until they lose in the doubles. The tours cant do a whole lot to help them, I think, because each player's schedule is different. Also, a player may get late notice that they've qualified for a particular tournament because someone else dropped out, so this stuff is changing all the time. I was told in the 1980s by one player that racking up the frequent flyer miles was an important part of her budgeting. And then you mahy havae trips within trips - eg, you know you're an American pllayer, you know you're going to be playing in Europe from mid-May to early July, so you buy *that* ticket, but then within that you lose early somewhere and decide to go home for a week.

You don't say who the player was, but there are some who havve airline endorsements, and I'd expect them to get VIP treatment (Caroline Wozniacki did ads for some airline for a while, eg). Your pro's J fare could have been a frequent flyer upgrade, a sponsor's gift, a treat to himself for a good week, or simply physical necessity because his next match was soon after arrival.

wg