NEW YORK, Sept 7 (Reuters) – The U.S. Open men’s championship match was delayed and thousands of seats remained empty when it finally got underway, as security checks related to President Donald Trump’s attendance caused confusion and slowed entry to the iconic New York City event.
Fans waited in long lines, some for well over an hour, outside Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, the largest tennis venue in the world with a nearly 24,000-person capacity. U.S. Secret Service and other federal security officers checked bags and ushered fans through metal detectors.
Some attendees who were still outside booed as the match between rivals Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner kicked off a little before 3 p.m. EDT (1900 GMT).
Inside the stadium, Trump was greeted by a mix of cheers and boos when he was shown on the screens.
Kevin, a Brooklyn man employed by a private equity firm, said he had waited an hour and 15 minutes and still had not reached the entrance. The man, who declined to give his last name, blamed Trump for the delay.
“One hundred percent him. Very selfish. I would expect someone like that to have a little bit more grace to know that an event like this would be held up for him being here, especially in a city that hates him,” he said.
A Secret Service spokesperson said in a statement, “We recognize that enhanced security for the President’s visit to the U.S. Open may have contributed to delays for attendees. We sincerely thank every fan for their patience and understanding.”
Strict security measures are standard for any public event that the president attends, regardless of party affiliation or popularity.
The match start time, originally set for 2 p.m. EDT, was pushed back by 30 minutes due to security checks, U.S. Open organizers said shortly before it was set to begin. The United States Tennis Association, which runs the event, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the security delays.
The stadium appeared to be nearly full about an hour into the match, as Sinner and Alcaraz battled in the second set.
Mixed crowd reaction
Trump, a Republican, is a sports fan who regularly voices his opinion about sports in the same way he has sought to influence or intimidate institutions throughout U.S. society.
He has pushed to restrict transgender women from participating in women’s sports and called for the Washington Commanders football team to revert to its former name, the Redskins, a moniker that critics view as a racist portrayal of Native Americans.
Trump’s approval rating stood at 40% in late July and mid-August, Reuters/Ipsos polls found, the lowest of his presidency. On all policies, Trump’s support came overwhelmingly from Republicans, raising questions about how he would be received in New York, a Democratic stronghold.
Maribeth Lodes from New York City said her ticket cost $350. She was in the line at 1:30 p.m. and still had not entered an hour and a half later.
“It’s ridiculous. I think it’s totally unreasonable that they do this. It makes me even more infuriated, because, like, you know, we spent all of this money,” she said.
Some attendees, however, were fine with Trump’s presence. “He can go wherever he wants and attend a match if he wants to,” said Karen Stark, a retired tennis fan, who traveled to the final from Michigan.
Resale tickets to the event ranged from hundreds of dollars to more than $20,000, according to the website SeatGeek.
The president, a regular golfer on the weekends in the Washington area or at his properties in New Jersey and Florida, has attended multiple sports events as president since returning to the White House in January.
He went to the Super Bowl in February, receiving cheers and boos from the crowd, and has attended Ultimate Fighting Championship bouts.
An ABC television broadcast showed Trump stepping out of a box seat after arriving to wave to the still-sparse crowd, but it did not include crowd audio. Cheers and boos were audible during the ESPN feed of a later Trump appearance before the start of the event.
The USTA had asked broadcasters to remove any reaction to Trump, according to reports over the weekend. A USTA spokesperson told Reuters the association regularly asked broadcasters “to refrain from showcasing off-court disruptions.”
