This week and next, thousands of people will get to watch the Australian Open in person, and you won’t. Hardly seems fair, does it?
On the other hand, Australia’s really far, and I’m guessing decent seats are kind of pricey. Plus, from what I see on television, there are a lot of bugs. I hate bugs.
So if you’re itching to see the pros play live, you might want to consider a trip to Long Island. From 2/9-2/17, the New York Open will be held at Nassau Colisseum in Uniondale, NY.
The New York Open is an ATP 250-level event. ATP 250 tournaments are the lowest level on the men’s tour, with only 250 ranking points awarded to the champion. (As mentioned in Monday’s post, Grand Slam tournament champions earn 2,000 ranking points.)
But that doesn’t mean you won’t see amazing tennis. According to the tournament website, Kevin Anderson, John Isner, Jack Sock and rising Australian star Alex de Minaur are among the pros committed to playing. On the doubles side, you can expect to see the Bryan brothers and Lleyton Hewitt. That’s some decent star wattage.
Front row, VIP tickets for the semi-finals go for $205 apiece, including food and beverages in the VIP lounge. (Try getting that deal at the U.S. Open.) But you don’t need to spend that much. New York Open ticket prices start at $25.50.
And if you don’t want to drive home after your day of tennis, you can stay at the Long Island Marriott, a five-minute walk from the Colisseum.
So who needs Australia with its 100-degree heat and pesky bugs? Scratch your tennis itch on wintry Long Island!
Are you going?
I’m not sure. I’ll be in NY at the very beginning of the tournament but it may not work, time-wise. I want to, though. I’d love to see Lleyton Hewitt play, and the Bryan brothers are always a treat.
Lucky me, My husband and I are in Floria for the winter, renting a condo in Palm Beach County. So I can’t follow up on Deb’s excellent advice about attending the NY Open. But I can (and will) easily attend the annual DelRay Beach Open, running Feb 15-24. It’s a small tourney but Juan delPotro has been a regular for the last few years along with a few other familiar names.
Maybe we should all go to that tournament instead! Karla, you’ll put us all up, right?
I hope you get to see del Potro. He had to pull out of the Australian Open b/c of injury. Poor guy can’t catch a break.
Enjoy the sun! (We’re getting snow here in a couple of days…)
Great idea. You have wet my whistle and I never even knew about this tournament.
I’d still rather go to the Australian Open, though. Someday…