The U.S. Open: Spend Your Time and Money Wisely!

August 19, 2013 | By Michael Bernstein
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For those of you who are veterans at attending the U.S. Open, you probably already know all of this stuff, but for those of you who may be looking to attend the U.S. Open for the first time, here are a few thoughts that might make it a little easier for you to enjoy the tournament and save you a few bucks.

Getting there
Most likely, you’ll be staying in Manhattan. You’ve basically got four options: A cab, the subway, a scheduled shuttle if you’re doing a tour package or the train. For me, the Long Island Railroad from Penn Station is my preferred option. For a $15 round trip fare, in about 20 minutes, you’ll go from Penn Station to the National Tennis Center in a very comfortable ride. The train also lets you off just steps from the actual main gate of the National Tennis center, saving you a few hundred yards of Boardwalk to cross from where the #7 Subway train would otherwise let you off. So if possible, catch the train at Penn Station, direction Port Washington.

A cab from the city can also be a nice way to go, assuming you don’t have any traffic getting off Manhattan and don’t mind paying the $45-$55 fare. If you want to take a car service, that would run you about $95 bucks for a trip out and then to return, you can have them send another car to meet you in front of grounds by the Main Gate where the limo pick up area is located. You would just take their number and call them about 30 minutes before you’re ready to leave the action, and your car should theoretically be there waiting for you right when you leave.

When to go, so many sessions!
The tournament runs for two weeks, Aug. 26th to Monday, Sept. 9th, the day of the Men’s Finals. This will be the case for the next two years until the 2015 tournament goes back to its traditional schedule of having the tournament end on a Sunday. Depending on how much time you’ve got, keep in mind the following things. In the first week, there’s a ton of matches going on and tickets are cheaper for both the day and night session tickets. In the second week, you have smaller crowds and the best matches will be played on Center Court, making it worthwhile to pick up a Center Court ticket.

In the first week, you will be able to see great men’s and women’s singles matches being played all over the place, not just on Center Court. From my experience the most exciting matches in the first week usually tend to take place out on the outside courts that only require only a Grounds Pass to see. On Center Court in the first week, you’ll generally see the top seeds like Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, etc., being pitted against much lower ranked players in what usually ends up being a cake-walk, straight-set victory for the top seeds. It’s on those outside side courts where the big upsets and nail-biting matches take place.

But, in order to get a good seat, or any seat at all for those outside court matches, you really need to be organized. Take a look at the Order of Play which usually comes out around 9:00 p.m. the night before on the official site, usopen.org. Print it out and circle all of the matches you want to attend and then get to the specific court as early as possible in order to get a good seat (at least up to 30 minutes before the match is scheduled to start). And when I say a good seat, you can literally be sitting just feet from the court. Keep in mind though, if you want to leave your seat once the match begins for a bathroom or refreshment break, you will likely have to wait in line to get back on to that court, the ushers don’t let you hold your seats. So make sure you’re ready to be in your seat for a few hours.

Ticket prices for this year’s U.S. Open are at a four-year high which kind of makes sense since the economy is finally back humming and the stock market is at record highs. For me, the time to spend the money on a good seat on the Arthur Ashe Center Court during the first week is really only the Night Sessions when you know that you will be staying put, not roaming around, and there’s really nothing else going on any of the other courts unless you have a Day Session match that is running very late. Or if there turns out to be a great match during the Day Session that first week that you really want to check out, like if Federer is playing Tommy Haas or something like that.

If you do want a ticket on Center Court, I strongly suggest you step it up and drop a few more bucks to get a decent ticket. The Stadium holds 23,500 seats, so if you’re in the upper level or "Promenade" Level as it’s called and are not in the first 10 rows, you’ll be able to enjoy nice views of the distant Manhattan skyline, but may have a hard time actually following the ball from that far away. The Loge Level seats, which I think are the best value for your money in the Stadium, are situated between the Luxury Level and the Promenade Level Sections, and are generally just a few more bucks in the first week and well worth it. Besides Sessions 9, 11, 13, 15, 20, 22, 24, 25 and 26, you can pick up a Loge Level ticket for a very reasonable amount, sometimes even less than face value in the secondary market for some of the less-popular first week day sessions.

Another thing to keep in mind during any Day Session, if possible, is to get your seats in the West Side of the Stadium so you don’t have the sun in your face. It makes the day much more enjoyable when you’re not having to constantly be blocking the sun from your eyes. Also, if you do buy a Courtside ticket you’ll have access to the Aces Restaurant and Champions Bar and Grill which both require a Courtside Box or Luxury seat ticket for access (reservations by calling 718.760.6363 are recommended for any of the Night Sessions if you actually want to get a table). These nine sessions I listed above are generally the sold out Sessions at the Open, and you can expect to see U.S. Open ticket prices quite elevated, ranging from $150 for decent lower row Promenade seats, to $7,000 for the finest Courtside seats behind the server.

 


Michael Bernstein
President, Championship Tennis Tours

Michael Bernstein is president of Championship Tennis Tours. He may be reached by e-mail at mike@tennistours.com or visit www.tennistours.com.

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