All photos ©2008 StationStops.com - Taken with Panasonic DMC-FZ18K

When I was a kid growing up in NH, my summer camp used to bring us to the Volvo Tennis Open every year, which at that time was held in NH. I played tennis a lot at camp and although enjoyed seeing some celebs, like Jimmy Connors, I didn’t really get into the whole spectacle of it so much. To be honest, at the time, I was just psyched to be away from camp and be free to consume unlimited soft drinks.

This week my wife brought me to the US Open at the Arthur Ashe stadium in Flushing NY, right next to Shea, for some night games. After a brief rain delay, we watched Lindsay Davenport vs. Marion Bartoli, followed by Andy Roddick vs Ernests Gulbis.

The first thing I noticed entering the US Open is that the crowd is (obviously) MUCH different from the Mets fans at the adjacent Shea Stadium. The Open is a showcase of the wealthy, and is catered to as such by an outdoor mall where you can buy a $90 Ralph Lauren Polo sweatshirt at every turn.
Rather than being sponsored by Budweiser or Miller, the Open is sponsored by Grey Goose Vodka, which is featured in the US Open ‘Signature Cocktail’, which is quite delicious and popular. Unlike the 7th inning at Shea, alcohol flows freely late into the evening at the US Open (which might explain some of the more Shea-like hecklers in the stands around 1 AM).

After taking our seats in the 10th row, a very handsome and well-groomed German family took their seats in the box in front of us. I think the 16-yr-old son had a total of 7 shirts on at one time, as well as a brand new $4000+ Louis Vuitton watch. His sister could have easily starred in a J. Crew catalog just as she was. They were all sporting 3G iPhones and were very excited when American pop music was played between sets - especially ‘We Will Rock You’ by Queen – which even the mother accompanied with some unsettlingly enthusiastic Teutonic hand gestures.

The tennis was a mixed bag. Lindsay Davenport folded sadly to France’s Marion Bartoli to start, but the following Roddick-Gulbis match was very good. Unseeded young Gulbis trounced Roddick 6-1 in the first set, but Roddick pounded his way back steadily to win the match in true Championship form.

Roddick and Federer are still in the running at this point, but I think #1 Nadal is going to take this one.