Question about tickets for Grand Slams

[El Dude]

So I'm actually thinking of getting down to Flushing Meadows this September. I've never been to a Grand Slam event, so the prospect is really exciting - although I was a bit daunted by the cost of the semifinals and finals - $250+, usually much more than that.

Any suggestions on how to buy tickets for a Grand Slam event? If I want to play, say, less than $150 per ticket, what is the best round I can hope for? And are tickets purchased for an entire day or is it just one match? No offense to the ladies, but I'd much rather see a men's match.

I'd love to see Federer, but not sure how to make that happen in advance. I'd be happy to see any quarterfinal or later, really, although would be a bit disappointed to be stuck with, say, Ferrer and Raonic.

Suggestions?

 

[GameSetAndMath]

In US Open the tickets are sold on a "Session" Basis. A typical day session will get you 3 matches and a night session 2 matches. In side courts, a session will typically be 4 matches long.

You cannot purchase tickets so as to guarantee seeing Fed. This is because you typically would not know the court assignments and schedule, not to mention that you would not know Fed would advance to the particular round that you are buying ticket for.

However, if you are not making a trip to NY from somewhere else and do live/stay in NY around that time, it might be possible to buy a ticket from scalpers to guarantee seeing Fed.

 

[Kieran]

I've only been to the USO twice, in 2002 and 2007. The first time, Sampras played Roddick in the quarters and we had no difficulty getting tickets on the day of the match. I think we even bought them at the stadium just before it.

The second time, Roger played Roddick and tickets were still available on the USO website. We could have gone but we didn't. It's a good slam that way, because despite its size as the biggest annual sporting event in the world, tennis isn't the main sport in America. Tickets for the final can be bought easily by the public on the website. They're already on sale, I'm sure...

 

[Federberg]

Sorry Dude, I'm ashamed to say I've never paid for a ticket for slams or other tournaments. In my past life banks always invited me to corporate events. I've been to RG a few times and Wimbledon more times than I care to remember. I'm rather intrigued to see how it's done though, particularly the US Open If anything in the future I'll be the one taking clients to these things, I'd better start learning quick!

 

[El Dude]

Thanks all. It sounds like it is a good thing that tennis isn't super popular in the US! I'll think about it and play it closer to the date.

 

[Moxie]

Thanks all. It sounds like it is a good thing that tennis isn't super popular in the US! I'll think about it and play it closer to the date.

And also that Ashe is enormous, which I consider a down-side. Watching from the nose-bleeds is a lot like watching on TV, as you watch the Jumbotron/use good binoculars. Consider keeping an eye on NYC Craig's List for people getting rid of tickets they can't use. (I once gave away some nice tickets on CL because they came to me for free...it can happen, and most people aren't looking to scalp, but recoup their $. Also note that the USOpen site has re-sale tickets.)

If you really most want to see Roger, and get a feel for the Slam atmosphere, and you have to plan your trip, you might consider going during the first week/weekend, get a grounds-pass (all-access except for Ashe...about $60,) for 2 consecutive days. This way, when the schedule becomes clear as to when Roger is playing, you can get tickets to Ashe for that session, and even trade in your grounds pass, if you want to. In one of those two days, he'll play, either day or night session. The other benefit of the grounds pass is that you can see all the matches on the other courts, including Armstrong, Grandstand, and the new show court. You get to see a lot of players in action. Show your Amex card and pick up an ear-piece when you arrive. This is a little in-grounds radio station that keeps you up on matches, and tells you who is on the practice courts. The bonus of this, and why I say an earlier session is that you might be able to catch Roger on the practice courts, which is likely the closest you'll ever get to him. Also, by the practice courts is where the top players arrive for their matches, and you can see them up-close, if you time it right.

If you go earlier, you won't get to see a 4th round/QF, but I think there is a lot of enjoyment to be had when a lot of the players are still playing, compared to only seeing a few matches from a high vantage point. That's the way I like to approach it, anyway. You'll never see Roger up-close there, unless you spring for big-bucks, or catch him on the practice court. He will always play on Ashe. However, you might get to see some other players at a close distance, which is really valuable. I saw Safin up close on Armstrong (and in practice,) and Juan Martin, as well, to see just how hard he (used to) hit the ball, which was stunning. I've only seen Rafa play on Ashe, but I saw him on the nearest practice court, aided by my little earpiece, just 3 meters away from me. I saw Martina play doubles on a small court the year before she retired. I stood next to Cedric Pioline watching a Moya match on a side court. All of these fun things happen in the first week.

You'll decide what you want to do, but that's my 2 cents, as someone who has gone most years of the last 15.

 

[angrygradstudent]

I've lurked for a long time but I feel compelled to answer this question. I live in Queens and have been to the grounds many times.

Arthur Ashe is enormous and not a great place to see tennis without spending serious serious dollars. I highly recommend getting a ground pass (~$70 last year) and you cram in as much tennis as you can handle during the day session. The ground pass covers the 1st three rounds plus the first day of round 4 (men). For my money the 1st day of 4th round is the best day to go. If you get there at 11 A.M. you can easily snag first row seats in the grandstand (3rd biggest stadium) and watch great "2nd tier" players for 8-9 hours. I've seen Almagro, Raonic, Wawrinka, and many others there. You just typically won't be able to see male players ranked 1-8 or female players ranked 1-4 there. The ground pass also allows you to move to a dozen or so outer courts.

If your deadset on seeing Fed or other high ranked players it is easy enough to do once the draw is released. If your confident your player will reach a certain round you can buy session tickets in advance with some risk of missing due to day or night scheduling which released until the day before. Fed is fairly easy to predict here (always bet on a night session once he has played one day session). You can also buy tickets the day of like others have said but they get very expensive (think $250 or $500+) if your doing so for the semis or finals for popular matchups. I think the quarterfinals are a good sweet spot for high profile matches.

 

[Moxie]

Welcome, angrygradstudent. I agree with a lot of your points about how to deal with the USO.

 

[kskate2]

Welcome Angrygradstudent. Thanks for all the pointers. I think I will go to the USO next year. I have a sneaky suspicion a few players will retire next season and may make that their last tournament.