The U.S. Open will turn on the lights for this year’s qualifying tournament August 23-27 — and admission is free (photo by twi-ny/mdr)
Billie Jean King National Tennis Center
Flushing Meadows Corona Park
Qualifying tournament: August 23-27, free
Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day: August 28, $10-$44
U.S. Open Championship: August 29 – September, $52 – $1,013
www.usopen.org
www.nywatertaxi.com/tennis-ferry
The draws are just about to be announced for the 2011 U.S. Open, which runs August 29 through September 11, but you don’t have to wait until then to see some fine tennis. The qualifying tournament gets under way today at 11:00 am and continues through Friday, with 128 men and 128 women from around the world trying to play their way into the annual championship, and admission is free, a far cry from the lofty prices for the real deal beginning next week. You can also get ready by attending Saturday’s sixteenth annual Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day, with special children’s activities, autograph sessions, tennis clinics, and appearances by tennis stars as well as actor Bradley Cooper and Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony and musical performances by Jason Derulo, Cody Simpson, Diggy Simmons, Jessica Jarrell, Mindless Behavior, Girls Nite Out, Action Item, Jacob Latimore, and others. And on Sunday, the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center will be open for free, allowing fans to walk the grounds and check out the players getting in their final practices before the tournament gets under way on Monday. To continue the less expensive side of the U.S. Open, Delta has teamed up with New York Water Taxi to offer free Tennis Taxi rides from the South Street Seaport and East 35th St. throughout the championship (August 29 – September 11), leaving twice a day, at 9:30/9:45 and 5:30/5:45, with large-screen TVs on board and special cocktails available. (If you want to guarantee a seat, you can reserve a ticket online for a $1 fee.)