Serena Williams has been fined for verbally abusing the chair umpire during her loss to Sam Stosur in the US Open tennis final.
Williams, still on probation over a tirade during the 2009 US Open, was fined $2,000.
The three-time US Open winner escaped a more severe penalty after officials ruled that Sunday's incident was not a major offence.
"Williams' conduct, while verbally abusive, does not rise to the level of a major offense under the grand slam code of conduct," tournament referee Brian Earley said in a statement.
Williams was issued with a code violation for verbally abusing the umpire in the second set.
She is under probation for her foul-mouthed outburst during her 2009 US Open semi-final loss to eventual champion Kim Clijsters.
