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Good morning! Go viral for your good manners today. Inside:
Net Gain: A transcendent U.S. Open
This U.S. Open is already seismic. On the women’s side, the world No. 1 and No. 2 face off today in the final for the first time since 2013 (4 p.m. ET on ESPN). And tomorrow, Ben Shelton has a shot at becoming the first American man to win a slam (ANY SLAM!) in 23 years. (The last to do it was Andy Roddick at the U.S. Open in 2003.)
And yet … off-court hoopla came close to overshadowing — nay, at one point fully overshadowed! — the actual tennis this year.
If you’ve been plugged into the tournament at all, you’ve heard about the “Influencer Problem.” Early in the tournament, certain spectators were notably disruptive, staging photoshoots, talking loudly, or using flash photography during play. The discourse quickly spiraled into hand-wringing about the state of the U.S. Open, sports and influencer culture at large.
That led me to wonder: Is it actually worse this year? Tennis is a punctilious sport. New York is a rambunctious city. Arthur Ashe Stadium, where most of the issues happened, is always a rowdy crowd.
So I asked our tennis writer Ava Wallace:
💬 Aside from the few instances of assumed influencers disturbing players during a match, I didn’t find the atmosphere during the main draw any more boisterous than past years. That’s New York, baby! Its overwhelming nature is what makes the U.S. Open unique!
I second her: The only disturbances I saw in Ashe were caused by several drunk dudes who definitely weren’t capturing content!
A couple of other considerations, though:
In Ashe, 2,000 seats were added in the lower bowl, priced up and positioned near the best hospitality options.
The U.S. Open reportedly doubled the number of credentials offered to content creators this year.
The influx of new fans has its upsides, but also clear downsides: skyrocketing prices and disruptive behavior among them.
It’s easy to point the blame at “influencers,” who have become a sort of catch-all for whinging about our society’s ills. But I would argue that the responsible parties are the USTA and the brands who invited guests in the first place. Most of us who love tennis can probably remember the first match we went to, and how someone — a parent, teacher, coach — sat us down and told us how to act. Sure, there’s some sense of “reading the room” or “listening to the extremely clear instructions on the loudspeaker.” But… a little education never hurt nobody???
Ultimately, reducing it to an “influencer” problem oversimplifies it. Tennis has always been and continues to evolve as a rich text of etiquette, classism, manners, rules, snobbishness, gatekeeping (positive and negative), empathy, responsibility and questions around who bears it.
I would argue the REAL issues facing tennis are thornier: income inequality, economic inaccessibility and who sports are ultimately for.
Thankfully: The tournament got lucky. The quality of the tennis met — and even transcended! — the moment. With two historic finals ahead of us, I asked Ava one more question.
Where does this tournament rate for you on the tennis Richter scale?
💬 This was a fantastic way to close out the Grand Slam year. The top four women’s seeds made it to the semifinals to reestablish dominance after relatively shaky seasons. It’s a huge moment for Black tennis, with Gael Monfils playing his final major tournament and two Black American men playing in the U.S. Open semifinals for the first time. Also a big year for American men. Oh yeah, and Carlos Alcaraz came back from a wrist injury and gave us a few thrills. Pretty high on the scale!
News to Know
Patrick McDermott / Getty Images
Brewers and Rays clinch
Milwaukee and Tampa Bay became the first teams in their respective leagues to secure postseason berths yesterday, and both punched their tickets rather emphatically. The Brewers — in for the eighth time in nine years as baseball’s smallest-market team — two-hit the Reds in a 20-0 rout. Indeed! The Rays took a different tack: Tied 1-1 with the Astros in the bottom of the ninth, Junior Caminero did this:
His 40th homer of the year and, per MLB, first career walk-off hit. The Dodgers could become the third team to clinch a spot today.
Did Kansas win Twitter, at least?
Kansas invoked the Civil War in a hype video ahead of last night’s rivalry game with No. 23 Missouri, framing it as a matchup of “right and wrong.” The case for that involves real history and is understandably animating … but maybe it’s also a bit much for a college football game in 2026? Idk. Anyway, when you cast yourself as a literal hero, it behooves you not to lose 38-21.
More News
Dylan Larkin will report to Red Wings’ training camp next week but won’t be captain anymore after his trade request, the team announced.
Tua Tagovailoa’s oblique injury means the Falcons will start QB Cooper Rush against the Steelers, with an undrafted rookie out of Division II Minnesota State-Moorhead (Jack Strand) as backup.
A fan waving a Palestinian flag ran onto the field during the seventh inning of Mets-Yankees, at 9:11 p.m. on 9/11. Full story here.
The 49ers quietly signed head coach Kyle Shanahan to an extension during the offseason, per a team source.
The Bears reached an agreement with running back D’Andre Swift on a three-year contract extension. Details here.
Packers coach Matt LaFleur said of running back Josh Jacobs’ recent conviction for misdemeanor battery: “Unfortunately, situations occur in life.” Hmm.
Fantasy & Folly: I did my first fantasy football draft … ever.
Yep, that’s right. I, Hannah, have been an NFL fan my entire life and yet, thanks to a rigorously honed annual practice of evasive maneuvering, light deception, and flat-out refusals, I have never actually been forced into a fantasy league.
Until now.
With no greater enticement than “It’ll be great for content!” (she’s a people pleaser, folks), I agreed to join The Athletic’s staff fantasy league and be a guinea pig for our new fantasy tools.
And — drumroll — I had a fantastic time!! As soon as the draft ended, just like all the men I have mocked all my life, I wanted another shot. (I KNOW I could end up with the perfect roster if I just had enough tries…)
One complaint: In our automated draft recap, I got the badge “Certified Coward” for straying the least from the ADP (average draft positions). EXCUSE ME for needing TRAINING WHEELS on my FIRST BIKE RIDE. GOD FORBID a girl use the DATA she was GIVEN to make SMART DECISIONS.
Anyways, just wait till I win the league! Certified Coward Winner!
Here are the tools I’ll be using to win:
Watch Guide
📺 CFB: No. 11 Oklahoma at Michigan
12 p.m. ET on FOX
Nary a vibe for the Wolverines.
📺 FIBA Women’s World Cup: Team USA vs. Spain
2 p.m. ET on TBS
Wins today from the U.S. and France (playing Germany at 10:30 a.m. ET) would set up a rematch of the Olympic gold medal game the Americans won by a point. Good read here on how Team USA managing director Sue Bird was among those who raised the sport’s international profile — and now sees her job getting tougher all the time.
📺 CFB: No. 1 Ohio State at No. 4 Texas
7:30 p.m. ET on ABC
The sort of blockbuster we used to expect in Week 1. The Buckeyes held the Longhorns to one touchdown last year, but this is an expensively overhauled Texas offense. Here are the guys NFL scouts will be watching tonight.
Get tickets to games like this here.
Pulse Picks
We asked five former pro athletes for the one thing they wish kids knew about the mental side of sports. One word came up over and over again: failure.
Small screen: The third and final season of “Colin from Accounts,” a delightful Australian rom-com, began streaming yesterday on Paramount+. The title character is a dog, if that’s something that interests you. — Brian Bennett
Big screen: The new “Spider-Man,” reviewed by the 8-year-old: “Amazing! So good. It’s only PG-13 because one guy says the S-word a lot. No biggie.” Nailed it. 🎯 — Chris Sprow
Listen: I’m a couple months late, but Tierra Whack’s new album “Whack’s Museum” is brilliant. She is so good at — and delivering — world-class bars while staying refreshingly weird. — Levi Weaver
Eat: For those also celebrating Rosh Hashanah this weekend, I’m always partial to this one-bowl apple cake (gift link) but also enjoyed perusing NYT Cooking’s full collection of dessert ideas. Dinner recipes here, too. — Torrey Hart
Shop: I asked three NFL-tailgating fanatics how they feed a crowd. Their must-haves — including an NFL-themed apron and a snazzy hot dog roller — are practical and fun, even if you’re only hosting a couple people over for a Sunday watch party. — Maki Yazawa
Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: The huge turnout for the NFL’s Australia debut. 🐨
📫 That’s all for now! Say hello at thepulse@theathletic.com, and check out our other newsletters.