In 2017, Roger Federer continues to impress, just like he did on a Friday afternoon at the US Open 17 years ago. That was when I had the fortune of watching him play for the first time—in person, no less.
In 1998, one year after moving to New York from Mobile, Ala., I made my first foray out to Flushing Meadows. I had nosebleed seats inside Arthur Ashe Stadium, where I saw Lindsay Davenport and Patrick Rafter advance to the semifinalss. The action around the grounds left me star-struck as well, as I was able to catch Martina Hingis and Jana Novotna play doubles, and see an 18-year-old Serena Williams march toward the mixed doubles title with Max Mirnyi.
In 2000, taking into account my first-job salary and the opportunity to get more bang for my (little) buck, I bought a grounds pass and patrolled the outer courts. However, I didn’t expect Mother Nature to make her presence felt with such intensity.
Close to throwing in the towel—actually, my $3 umbrella—and calling it a day, I decided to give it one more shot after the rain and sauntered over to Louis Armstrong Stadium for the Juan Carlos Ferrero match.
The No. 12 seed was playing an unseeded Federer. All I knew of Federer at that time was that he was from Switzerland, had made a final at the beginning of the year and was ranked in the Top 40—not bad for a 19-year-old.