More than 300,000 fans are expected to pass through Mason's Lindner Family Tennis Center before the Cincinnati Open wraps up Sunday, Aug. 23, and many of them are coming for something few other major tournaments offer: a concrete walkway where world-class players walk right past the crowd.

The short stretch connecting the main competition area, locker rooms and players' lounge has become what fans call the tournament's "red carpet," according to WLWT. Because the venue funnels everyone through the same path, autograph-seekers and selfie-takers can stand feet from top-ranked pros between sessions.

"A lot of great signatures — Rublev, Medvedev," said fan Derlis Garcia on Tuesday, Aug. 18. "A lot of players are good like that. If they have time, they'll pose for a picture. Some of them will take your phone and take the selfie, which is quite charming really."

Diann Solloway and Cindy Friend drove three hours from Fort Wayne, Indiana, specifically for that access. Solloway told WLWT the practice courts alone were worth the trip. Friend said the atmosphere sets the tournament apart: "In Cincinnati, the players are great. You feel like they're your family friends."

Bruce Kudanian of Ann Arbor, Michigan, has made the drive every year since 1999. He told WVXU on Aug. 12 that he heads straight for the players' lounge entrance each morning, contrasting it with the U.S. Open, where "the player is a little dot like 300 yards away from you."

The intimacy isn't accidental. The Lindner Family Tennis Center's $260 million expansion, completed in 2025, doubled the campus from 20 to 40 acres and grew the court count from 17 to 31, but kept the shared walkway that makes player-fan encounters routine. Tournament Director Bob Moran told WCPO on Aug. 7 that organizers want visitors "to experience Cincinnati, experience Mason, experience Warren County."

Mason resident Melissa Koop, whose parents volunteered at the tournament for decades, said many locals underestimate the event's global draw. Last year's edition brought 285,000 fans from all 50 states and 65 countries. The 2026 tournament, the Open's 127th edition, is on pace to top that mark.

Players notice the atmosphere too. Coco Gauff, the 2023 champion, said at her pre-tournament press conference on Aug. 17 that Mason has "a hometown kind of feel." Most pros lodge in town during the two-week run, frequenting local restaurants and golf courses between matches.

Finals Weekend kicks off Saturday, Aug. 22, with semifinals at 11 a.m. and a night session at 6 p.m. The championship matches follow Sunday, Aug. 23, at 2 p.m., with gates opening at noon. The ellesse Junior Championships, a USTA-sanctioned 18-and-under national event, runs concurrently Friday through Sunday on Courts 4-18 at the north end of the campus.