Ticket alert: The U.S. Open Amex presale opens at 9am ET 5/26

Just as the French Open is swinging its way through Paris, ticket sales to its Grand Slam counterpart, the U.S. Open, will open next week.

Fans can secure their place at one of New York City’s largest sporting events of the year starting Thursday, May 28 at 9 a.m. ET when tickets go on sale to the public. But American Express cardholders can purchase presale tickets starting on Tuesday, May 26 at 9 a.m. ET until May 27 at 11:59 p.m. ET.

There are two types of general/non-premium tickets to the U.S. Open – reserved seats on one of the “show courts” and general admission grounds passes. And, for most days of the tournament, those tickets are broken down into day tickets and night tickets.

The show courts include Arthur Ashe Stadium (24,000 seats), Louis Armstrong Stadium (14,000 seats), and the Grandstand (8,000 seats). To be guaranteed a seat at any of these courts, you need to purchase a reserved ticket that will grant you a designated seat. If you purchase the day session ticket, you’ll have access to that seat for the day session matches, but will not be able to sit there at night (and vice versa). 

TSI TIP: If you purchase a show court ticket for the day session, you can remain at the tournament for the evening session as well. You just won’t have access to the show courts at night. Essentially, a day session show court ticket is also an evening general admission grounds pass.

For Arthur Ashe Stadium, a reserved ticket is required to enter the stadium. Every seat here is ticketed.

But for Louis Armstrong Stadium and the Grandstand, they do have a limited number of general admission seats that are available on a first-come, first-get basis. You simply have to show up as early as possible and get in line, but there are no guarantees that you’ll ever get into the stadium to see a match.

Obviously, these courts will have each day’s highest profile matches with the top players. So if you want to see the stars, you’ll want to purchase a reserved ticket on one of these courts. But you won’t know who is on what court until just before the tournament (and then the schedule is updated daily), so if you want to see one specific player, the only way to do that is to purchase a ticket to every court on every day. Of course that’s not very feasible, so if you do have your heart set on seeing a specific player, you may be better off waiting until the schedule is released and purchasing tickets on a resale site (since the show courts will be sold out by the time the tournament rolls around).

The general admission grounds passes grant you access to the entire USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center Grounds, and you can watch matches on any of the non-show courts, as space allows. This includes Court 17, which has 3,000 seats, as well as all of the outer courts.

A grounds pass will also grant you access to a limited number of general admission seats at Louis Armstrong Stadium and the Grandstand. You’ll want to arrive as early as possible to get in line, and there’s no guarantee you’ll actually be able to get into either stadium, but it is an option.

If you purchase a grounds pass for the day session, you’ll also be able to remain in the venue for the evening session as well. But if you purchase an evening session pass, you’ll only be allowed to enter for the evening session. 

Of course, The Open has hospitality seating as well. They change it each year, so we can’t show you exactly what those products are because we haven’t seen them. But here’s a link to the premium seating page of the tournament so you can browse your options.

Doubleheader Digest

If you’re planning to visit New York for the Open, there are a ton of other sporting events taking place in the area during the 2-3 weeks of the tournament. To see everything in one place, take a look at our Ultimate Sports Calendar for New York.

Unless you have your eyes set on a luxury experience, a grounds pass should provide you with plenty of access to the event’s action, as you can wander from court to court to see whatever matches interest you. But reserved tickets on the show courts are also a good option as they allow for fans to have a reserved seat in the stadium of their choice and additional GA access to other courts, should they want a change of scenery throughout the day. 

Overall, there’s plenty for everyone at the U.S. Open, so be ready for the onsale this Thursday to secure your spot. And if you have an American Express card, be sure to log on first thing Tuesday morning for their presale.