The ATP/WTA Miami Open begins today, officially making its move into Hard Rock Stadium after being played at Crandon Park on Key Biscayne for 30 years, and tournament organizers hope that even skeptics who opposed the move "will be pleasantly surprised," according to Michelle Kaufman of the MIAMI HERALD. There has been a $70M transformation of the football venue into a "state-of-the-art tennis facility inside and outside the building." There are now 29 permanent courts -- 11 competition courts, 18 practice courts -- and there is an "entertainment plaza that includes a multi-tiered 'Spanish Steps' area with a stylish rooftop Kiki on the River pop-up and a Stella Artois beer garden." Greenery will be noticeable in the form of "purple bougainvillea popping everywhere and 'The Paseo' landscaped paths." Art Open Miami will "feature an on-site modern art gallery." The 5,191-seat Grandstand stadium is a "permanent structure that houses a player lounge, locker room and gym, amenities which the Grandstand at Crandon did not have." The "centerpiece court of the tournament is the 14,000-seat Stadium Court, a temporary structure built inside the stadium, between the 30-yard lines of the football field." As of yesterday, ticket sales were up 20%, and organizers hope to "match or exceed" the '18 attendance of 300,000 for the event, which runs through March 31 (MIAMI HERALD, 3/19).
READY TO IMPRESS: Dolphins Owner Stephen Ross said he is "excited to see people’s reaction" to the move, noting there are "so many skeptics out there." The AP's Steven Wine noted early reviews from players "are favorable." Fabric screens and temporary stands on three sides of the Stadium Court "obscure most of the unused seats, creating a surprisingly cozy feel in the 65,000-seat stadium, where the capacity for tennis will be 13,800." There are "more lighted courts, practice courts and parking spaces than on Key Biscayne, and better player facilities." Even so, a "sentimental attachment to the old location lingers." Roger Federer said, "I have clearly mixed feelings about the change. I hope it’s all for the better, and I understand the logic behind it. But of course I will miss the place" (AP, 3/18).
CAN'T GO BACK: In N.Y., Cindy Shmerler writes the site change is similar to the U.S. Open's "move from the charming but outgrown West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hills" in '78 to the "more functional, if less romantic, USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in nearby Flushing Meadows." It took a while to "get used to the new digs, but no one would ever want to go back to the old ones." Dolphins President & CEO Tom Garfinkel said, "We are giving people an unprecedented luxury experience in tennis, just like the NFL." Shmerler notes Ross "helped choose everything on the site: the flowers, the gigantic paintings that line the stadium corridors, the tiles on the bathroom walls." He said, "I had a picture in my head of what I wanted this to look like, the same way I do my real estate deals. It’s all in the details. Little things matter" (N.Y. TIMES, 3/19).
