As depressing as the end of summer is, at least New York has the U.S. Open at the National Tennis Center in Queens. The season's final grand slam is a made-for-television event and has produced some of the most memorable moments in sports. It probably draws the most attention of the mainstream American sports fan out of the four grand slams, and the success of Americans, especially men, has made it a favorite each September.
This year, as was the case last year, the men's tournament has defending champion Roger Federer on one level and everyone else on the next. That Federer owns his two closest rivals, Lleyton Hewitt (2001 champion) of Australia and the American Andy Roddick (2003 champion), makes most of his matches predictable. The only player capapble of beating Federer when both play their best tennis is 2000 champion Marat Safin, but inconsitency has rocked his career.
The women have a bunch of players who seem afraid to win the big tournament. Lindsay Davenport has choked in Queens before, and Kim Clijsters never wins a big match in a grand slam tournament. Maria Sharapova is the world no. 1, and she has as good a shot as any to win the tournament. Gothamist would make a predicition, but picking the two number one seeds would be lame.
Tickets for the Open can be found on Ticketmaster.
