It was held on outdoor hard courts at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City.

Stan Wawrinka and Angelique Kerber were the previous year's men's and women's singles champions.

Neither managed to defend their title as Wawrinka withdrew before the start of the tournament due to a knee injury that ended his season, while Kerber lost in the first round to Naomi Osaka.

In Australia, SBS won the rights to broadcast the US Open with the free to air coverage starting from the quarter finals.

Of that total, a record $3.7 million goes to both the men's and women's singles champions, which is increased to 7.5 percent from last year.

This made the US Open the most lucrative and highest paying tennis grand slam in the world, leapfrogging Wimbledon in total prize money fund.