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Arthur Ashe Stadium's New Roof Blocking Out Sun For Attendees; Practice Facility Praised

The USTA spent $150M on a retractable roof to "shield Arthur Ashe Stadium from rain," but two days into its first U.S. Open, the roof’s "primary effect has been to block the sun," according to Brian Costa of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. Even with the roof open, as it has remained since the tournament began Monday, the "permanent portion of it has left far more seats in the shade during the day than there were in years past." By late afternoon yesterday, roughly two-thirds of the seats "were shaded, a noticeable difference for longtime ticket holders." But fans left out in the sun "weren’t as impressed." Meanwhile, fans yesterday "wandered into Court 10" and discovered one "addition that wasn’t planned: a ghost court." Before the tournament, the USTA announced that Court 10 would be "closed temporarily because of 'court surface imperfections.'" As a result, the old Grandstand, which was due to become a practice court this year, has been "given a stay of execution." And Court 10 has been "all but deserted, save for some practice sessions" (WSJ.com, 8/30). Serena Williams said of the upgrades, "I love the roof, I love that if there's a rain delay, we'll have an opportunity out here" ("U.S. Open," ESPN, 8/30). 

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT
: The WALL STREET JOURNAL's Jason Gay notes in the past, watching practice at the U.S. Open "kind of stunk." Other tennis tournaments had "built seating and cleared space for fans to watch their favorite players warm up and do drills, but the Open had a thread of five courts" that fans could "really only watch from one side." However, that "changed radically" in '14, as fans made it clear they "cared about being able to watch practice." And the USTA "responded, building a grandstand on one side, adding a digital screen with the practice schedule, and transforming the experience." While "most of the attention has gone to the retractable roof ... true tennis nuts didn’t care" compared with their new ability to watch practice. ESPN tennis analyst Mary Joe Fernandez said, "It’s the best spot on the grounds. It reminds me of going to the driving range at a big golf tournament.” ESPN analyst Brad Gilbert: "It’s added to the experience. People like to see what (a player) is like in practice, what he’s working on, how intense it is” (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 8/31).

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