Dominic Thiem stands between Rafael Nadal and his 12th French Open title in 15 years after the Austrian became the first player to win a set against Novak Djokovic in a five-set semi-final victory.
Djokovic was chasing the chance to hold all four Grand Slams at the same time for the second time in his career, but was thwarted as Thiem won the deciding set 7-5.
The fourth seed now faces an arguably even tougher task against the Spaniard, who continued his largely untroubled run at the tournament by crushing Roger Federer in straight sets in his semi-final.
Nadal and Thiem would have won more than £520,000 even if they had suffered the fate of their semi-final victims, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
The champion will pocket more than £2m, up from the figure of around £1.92m Nadal won 12 months ago.
French Open bosses said they had made a “special effort” to improve the earnings of players knocked out at an early stage of the Grand Slam this year.
The vast total prize fund of around £37 million has been distributed more evenly between stars knocked out in early and late rounds in Paris this year, with increases across the board meaning lower-ranked players are guaranteed a more lucrative tournament.
The President of the French Tennis Federation, Bernard Giudicelli, and Tournament Director Guy Forget said they wanted to “narrow the gap” between the money likely to be won by outsiders and big-name favourites.
In total, the prize fund has grown by eight percent compared to the 2018 edition, although Nadal and Thiem will receive less than they would at the Australian Open, Wimbledon or the US Open.
The greatest increase in prize money this year has already been earned by players entering the first round of qualifying, with a relatively modest reward of just over £6,000 representing an increase of almost 17 percent.
Hopefuls reaching the first round proper picked up £40,000 – the second-highest increase of the year, rising by 15 percent.
Competitors who exited during the first week of qualifying had the solace of a cash increase of around 10 percent this year.
But the greatest jump between rounds occurred between the semi-finals and final, with beaten semi-finalists Federer and Djokovic receiving half as much as the finalists.
French Open prize money – how much do men and women earn at the French Open?
First round qualifiers
£6,100
Second round qualifiers
£10,600
Third round qualifiers
£20,800
1st round
£40,000
2nd round
£75,000
3rd round
£124,000
4th round
£211,000
Quarter-final
£360,000
Semi-final
£511,000
Runner-up
£1m
French Open winner prize money
£2.05m