Jordyn Woods, Karl-Anthony TownsPhoto: Nick Remsen
The US Open’s physical layout—at least within Arthur Ashe Stadium—looked slightly different this year. With tournament organizers adding some 2,000 seats to the arena’s lower bowl, Ashe’s suite levels were bumped up a floor and many were offered more real estate as a result. Ralph Lauren, the longtime outfitter of the tournament’s official apparel, made fantastic use of its new floor plan—turning its box into an ostensible remote and racquets-centric Polo Bar. Except, instead of the famed midtown Manhattan restaurant’s dark and cozy atmosphere, team RL went bright and brass-accented in Queens.
During finals weekend, Honey Deuces flowed and Coqodaq’s caviar-topped chicken nuggets arrived aplenty. Ralph Lauren even made custom packaging with the restaurant, solely for suite guests.
On Saturday, as Aryna Sabalenka squared off against Elena Rybakina, Leslie Bibb could be seen cheering animatedly for the latter from the suite’s front row. The White Lotus star attended with her friend, comedian Chelsea Handler, and their good energy worked a treat: Rybakina won her first ever US Open title, beating Sabalenka in a close, straight three sets. Also present were Jessica Chastain, Rami Malek, Off-Campus’s Belmont Cameli, Amy Adams, Tom Blyth, Spike Lee, and François Arnaud. All in Ralph, and each more dapper than the next.
On Sunday, hopes were high as Ben Shelton, the men’s eighth seed, took to the court to face Alexander “Sascha” Zverev. Zverev won the match in four sets; dashing Shelton’s hopes of becoming the first American man to win a tennis major in 23 years. The drought continues, but the star quotient was high—both for the young Florida-raised player, who has really and truly broken out this season, and at Ralph Lauren’s Ashe HQ.
Malek and Lee were back for more (Malek said he had stayed in on Saturday night after the women’s final, catching some exciting college football between Texas and Ohio State). The New York Knicks’ Karl Anthony-Towns had been on-site throughout the day, and was joined just before the match started by his wife, Jordyn Woods. The model and influencer mentioned she’d attended and enjoyed the Open once already, to see Venus and Serena Williams play doubles earlier in the tournament.
The musician Sombr and actors Chris Pine and Eiza Gonzalez also took to their seats on Sunday afternoon. Of all the weekend’s ‘fits, Sombr’s sharp, peak-lapel black blazer, with a black-and-white contrast shirt and tie combo beneath it, was particularly notable.
Once all was said and done, an earlier quote from Arnaud—a first time attendee at the Open— came to mind. “I like a winner,” he said. “I’m rooting for whoever the true winner should be.”
In both matches—from Rybakina, who took over the world number one ranking before the final even started, to Zverev, the men’s number one seed who had once lost a US Open final in 2020—that outcome proved true.
As for Ralph Lauren, the brand once again came up tops on the hosting front too.
