This year at the US Open, the top seed is being challenged — and we’re not talking about Janik Sinner or Aryna Sabalenka.
The tournament’s reigning alcoholic beverage, the Grey Goose Honey Deuce, is facing off against several new cocktail competitors as Arthur Ashe Stadium increasingly becomes a venue for drunken follies and mayhem — not just double faults and match points.
“Seventy percent of the fans are just loaded and just absolutely drunk,” beloved American player Frances Tiafoe said of the crowd in 2023.
Last year, a record 556,000 Honey Deuce cocktails — vodka, lemonade, and raspberry liquor; topped with honeydew cut like mini tennis balls; and served in a keepsake cup printed — were sold at the tournament, bringing in nearly $13 million.
Its most clear competitor debuting is the Watermelon Slice, created by IHG Hotels & Resorts and featuring Champagne, elderflower liquor, fresh watermelon juice and lime. It’s served in a fluorescent yellow glass shaped like a tennis ball and topped with a watermelon wedge — for just $39. By comparison, the $23 Honey Deuce is a steal.
Other drinks debuting this year include fresh types of espresso martinis from Lavazza and Moet Mimosas, for those people who don’t want to drink hard liquor at 10 am when gates open.
The Ace Paloma, first introduced in 2023, will be making a return, as will Aperol Spritzes and two margaritas Dobel Tequila created last year with Taylor Fritz and Aryna Sabalenka.
Not all tennis fans are cheering for the abundance of options.
“These other cocktails are for sure copycating,” said Zach Miller, 39, who lives in Queens, works for the Trucking Association of New York and served Honey Deuces at his wedding earlier this year. “I don’t begrudge them for trying to get on the bandwagon … but I am going to remain loyal,”
He added, “It’s like the Aston Martin DB5 is the James Bond car, and you’ve had all these James Bond movies, and he’s had all these other cars, and it doesn’t matter because the DB5 from Goldfinger is the James Bond car. The Honey Deuce is the DB5.”
His wife, Jill Rafson, 44, an artistic director of a theater company, plans on branching out. “I am going to dabble,” she said. “The neon cup with the watermelon, that sounds very much up my alley.”
The tournament officially started Monday with Fan Week and Mixed Doubles. (Singles matches start Sunday.) Tennis lovers who have already made the pilgrimage to Flushing Meadows say they’ve been shocked by all the drinks on offer.
“I was surprised,” said Charly HIll, 23, a sports content creator who lives in Brooklyn. “I only expected the Honey Deuces.”
Clarice Bell, a 21-year-old tennis professional at a country club on Long Island, was attending the US Open for the first time since being of legal drinking age. She welcomed the options.
“I think tennis can only be made better with a couple of refreshments,” she said, though she took issue with the Watermelon Slice’s $39 price tag. Even with the souvenir cup, she said, “it’s still not worth it.”
After 19 years of dominating the tournament, Grey Goose isn’t sweating the newcomers but rather opting to be flattered by those inching in on its courts.
“The Grey Goose Honey Deuce has set the standard for nearly two decades, and others wanting to follow only reinforces its status as an icon,” said Aleco Azqueta, the brand’s vice president of marketing. “We see it as the ultimate compliment.”
Some fans think more variety might mean less binge drinking
“If there are options for people, maybe the lines won’t be so long, and you won’t have to buy as many Honey Deuces as you can possibly carry back to your seat at once,” Rafson said. “Maybe it will spread things out a little more.”
Her husband, Miller, however, hopes she is wrong.
“The US Open is the end of the summer party, and I don’t think that’s a bad thing,” he said. “We don’t want that to change.”
